Israel Active

Since Oct 7th Israel Support Bridge has sent 7 cargo planes worth of assistance to Israelis in need. It aims to build bridges between those who want to fund support efforts and volunteers who bring these services where they are needed.

After Oct 7, Jerusalem’s Bible Lands Museum removed its ancient artifacts temporarily to make space for displaced families. Local artists and musicians gave creative workshops. It became a school for special needs children. It now hosts the Splinter from the Storm exhibition.

The Asif Culinary Institute of Israel has helped many displaced families return to some form of normal life, despite being evacuated to hotel rooms. Asif’s Open Kitchen Project has paired 40+ families with host families and their kitchens around Tel Aviv where they can cook meals again.

Israel’s Teva has donated computers from its sites around the world to Israeli families affected by Oct 7. Teva’s offices in the USA, Germany, Spain etc., collected and shipped hundreds of used laptops. These were refurbished and sent to trauma therapists and to displaced families.

Yad Sarah, Israel’s largest volunteer-run non-profit organization, is circumventing shipping delays of critical equipment caused by attacks by Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthis with the arrival of the first airlift to Ben Gurion Airport. Funding was by the Jewish Federations of North America.

All of Israel celebrated the news that IDF special forces had rescued two Israeli-Argentinian hostages in a daring overnight operation in Rafah. The President of Argentina had just completed his historic visit to Israel and was also delighted with the outcome.

In-flight “entertainment” on El Al long haul flights now includes religious content, provided by the YUTorah platform. It includes discussions on Halacha (Jewish law), Jewish history, Tefillah (Jewish prayer), dating and marriage, parenting, Parsha (weekly Torah portion), and Daf Yomi.

Back in 2015, archaeologists discovered the remains of a Roman garrison at Megiddo in northern Israel (see previously). 8.5 years of excavations have revealed it to be Legio - a permanent base for more than 5,000 soldiers, and a strategic military hub for more than 180 years.

Some 5,200 children gathered in 42 communities in the Binyamin region of Samaria to pray for the IDF’s success. They also prayed for soldiers wounded during the military campaign and for the return of hostages being held by Hamas.

Several branches of Israel’s largest hamburger fast-food chains McDonald’s, Burger Ranch and BurgerIM, plus Domino’s Pizza are to enforce higher kosher standards. The aim is to support Israel Defense Force soldiers who only eat mehadrin-certified meat.