When these Ukrainians got to our centers, for those who wished, we arranged flights to Israel, and accommodations and assistance upon their arrival to help them start new lives in the Jewish State, launching the Aliyah Express program to expedite the Aliyah approval process.
“In the midst of the war, we’re truly saving a life every minute. I’m proud of our volunteers, staff, and Israeli emissaries who have risked their lives and worked around the clock to save their brothers and sisters,” shared our CEO and Director General Amira Ahronoviz during her visit to our operations in Warsaw and Budapest in early March 2022.
Refugees charge their phones at the Ukraine-Poland border Aliyah center
Donation of supplies through the Torenu campaign
With so many refugees at our centers needing us to supply them with everything from blankets to coats to toiletries and beyond, we organized the ‘Torenu’ (Our Turn) campaign with the Federation of Local Authorities in Israel to collect basic necessities. In total, 23,000 boxes—equivalent to 354 tons—of supplies were distributed to refugees being housed at our centers.
“I took my children without socks or anything else; we are here only with the clothes on our backs and documents. That’s all,” said Natalia, who drove with her husband and two kids for 20 hours without stopping from Kyiv to Lviv, just after the war began. In Lviv, they boarded a Jewish Agency bus to Warsaw where they were then housed at a Jewish Agency Aliyah center before immigrating to Israel with our assistance.
The efforts of our staff during this crisis have been truly extraordinary. As was the incredible support shown by the Jewish people around the world, and other major Jewish organizations and our partners. Thanks to the generosity of the Jewish Federations of North America, Keren Hayesod, Christian Friends of Israel, and many private donors and foundations around the world, by the end of 2022, more than $60 million had been raised to support our rescue and Aliyah operations of Jews affected by the Russia-Ukraine war.
Volunteers on the ground at Ukraine’s borders
With so many Israelis and members of world Jewry wanting to help and show solidarity, we organized a volunteer hub with the Jewish Federations of North America, JDC and IsraAid to coordinate involvement at our centers. Over 450 volunteers gave their time and skills—as well as their blood, sweat and tears—to aid refugees. We also welcomed multiple delegations of Jewish Agency and Federations leaders to our centers to see our activities firsthand.
Hear from Jewish Agency volunteers about their experiences: