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Israelis Have Crowdfunded a Million Shekels for Syrian Children in Less Than a Week

Israel’s government is also exploring ways to bring injured Syrians to its hospitals

by
Yair Rosenberg
December 20, 2016
George Ourdalian/AFP/Getty Images
Syrians who were evacuated from Fuaa and Kafraya, two Shiite villages under rebel-siege on the northern outskirts of Idlib, are welcomed by pro-government forces as they arrive in Jibrin on the eastern outskirts of Aleppo, December 19, 2016. George Ourdalian/AFP/Getty Images
George Ourdalian/AFP/Getty Images
Syrians who were evacuated from Fuaa and Kafraya, two Shiite villages under rebel-siege on the northern outskirts of Idlib, are welcomed by pro-government forces as they arrive in Jibrin on the eastern outskirts of Aleppo, December 19, 2016. George Ourdalian/AFP/Getty Images

Today, responding to the human catastrophe unfolding in Syria, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the Foreign Ministry to devise ways for the Jewish state to increase humanitarian aid to its neighbor’s victims. “We have already treated thousands of wounded from the tragedy in Syria,” Netanyahu said at a press meeting. “I want us to find ways of bringing women, children and also men, if they are non-combatants, from Aleppo for treatment in Israeli hospitals.”

But Israelis haven’t been waiting for their government to act on behalf of beleaguered Syrians: They’ve already crowdfunded a million shekels (approximately $250,000) for Syrian children. The “Just Beyond Our Border” campaign was launched this past Thursday and has shot well past its 600,000 shekel goal with over a month left to the campaign. As of this publication, it has raised 983,147 NIS. (UPDATE: Now 1,009,686 NIS.) The funds will go towards medicines, blankets, clothing, food, infant formula, and other essentials for Syrians and their children.

The campaign was launched with this arresting Hebrew video:

“We must see the truth that is in front of our eyes,” the narrator states. Supporting the children of Syria, he continues, stems from Israelis’ “Jewish obligation, human obligation, and moral obligation not to look away and to extend a hand.”

You can donate to the campaign here.

Yair Rosenberg is a senior writer at Tablet. Subscribe to his newsletter, listen to his music, and follow him on Twitter and Facebook.