Help for the people of Israel
October 7 marks the anniversary of Hamas’ attack on Israel. The situation remains serious, but life and humanitarian aid continue. We remain in close contact with our colleagues in Israel. CBN Germany employees Andreas Heerwagen and Julia Brinkmann recently visited the team on site. The employees there are burdened by the severity of the war. They have suffered losses, and the ongoing tension is palpable. Nevertheless, they never tire of doing good.
What we do
Aid efforts are constantly being adapted to the current situation in order to meet the needs of the local people in their time of need.
One focus at the moment is the construction of elevated bunkers. Each bunker can provide shelter for around 15 people in the event of an air raid. As many as possible are being built near local shops or other easily accessible locations.
Since the beginning of the war, hygiene kits containing all necessary items and food have been distributed to Jewish and Arab residents of Israel who have had to flee their homes or are no longer able to provide for themselves.
The first people are returning to their destroyed and burned-down villages. CBN Israel supports projects that provide practical help to those returning, such as providing furniture for a new start. Kibbutzim are also being supported in their reconstruction efforts.
With the Trauma Coalition Center, CBN Israel supports something that is often overlooked in war: psychological processing of the experience. In recent months, war therapists from Ukraine have been flown in to support and train the team to help others process their trauma. Through this work, some traumatized people have already been able to rebuild their lives. They are now preparing for the large wave of severely traumatized people seeking help. The goal is to help them find their way back to life and everyday routines.
But projects that have been around for a long time continue to be supported. One example is the facilities for Holocaust survivors who have returned to Israel and are no longer able to care for themselves, where Rosa (pictured below) also lives. Another example is the so-called “Lonely Soldier Homes,” where soldiers who have no family in the country to return to for their “home leave” can retreat. In addition, there are projects designed to promote community and unity in the country, bringing people together at concerts or restoring a sense of normality and lightheartedness through childcare and the construction of playgrounds.
After October 7th
Right at the start of the war, CBN Israel tried to provide the local people with the essentials as best they could:
To compensate for the initial disruption to infrastructure, the team set up a food truck to provide for families who had fled the border regions. The government provided them with accommodation, but not lunch. There are now several of these trucks. Another restaurant distributed over 1,000 hot meals a day to people affected by the war.
After October 7, 2023, more than 3,000 rockets were fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip. At the same time, a combined offensive was launched in which dozens of armed terrorists entered Israel. Not since the Holocaust have so many Jews been killed in a single day.
For security reasons, we cannot report on all of CBN Israel’s work on the ground, so that humanitarian aid does not itself become a target.
Please support the work of CBN Israel in prayer and, if possible, with a donation.
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