November 19, 2012 / 5 Kislev 5773 11 am Israel Time

Deputy Chairman of the Executive of the Jewish Agency for Israel, Rany Trainin and the Director General, Alan Hoffmann visit a house in Sderot which was damaged by rocket fire.

The Deputy Chairman of the Executive of the Jewish agency for Israel Rany Trainin  and the Director General Alan Hoffmann visited communities in the Gaza area today. During the visit, the two met with the heads of local authorities close to Gaza and visited the Ibim Absorption Center. Ibim was recently opened to facilitate the Aliyah of the remaining Ethiopians to Israel as a part of operation Dove’s Wings.

While visiting the Ibim Absorption Center, Alan Hoffmann, Director General of the Jewish Agency said “When we began Operation Dove’s Wings to bring the last of the Ethiopians Aliyah, we didn’t expect that in their first days in Israel they would be faced with such difficult circumstances. The Jewish Agency team here at Ibim takes the olim by the hand every day. If the olim can cope with this week, and it seems they are doing very well, then they will be able to cope with anything during their Aliyah. I cannot emphasize enough my respect for the dedicated team that is helping them through this difficult period.”

“Each of the heads of the local authorities which are in the 0-7 km radius of Gaza, the most affected areas of the country, told us definitively that taking the kids out for respite is their single highest priority. We will also be making this our highest priority, working together with our partners at the Jewish Federations of North America.”