As rockets continue to rain down on Israel from Gaza, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee’s (JDC) emergency response system has been activated and is ensuring the safety and well-being of the most vulnerable Israelis impacted by this ongoing crisis. JDC has been working continuously with the Israeli government and local municipalities as close to 250 rockets have been fired and three people tragically killed in Kiryat Malakhi in a direct hit to their home.
‘We stand in solidarity with all Israelis at this time and we extend our heartfelt condolences to those who lost loved ones. JDC’s Emergency Response Team is already helping the elderly, people with disabilities, and youth at risk, providing basic needs and emotional support during this distressing time,’ said JDC President Penny Blumenstein and JDC Interim CEO Darrell Friedman.
JDC’s Center for Independent Living for people with disabilities in Be’er Sheva is continuing to serve its members out of the home of the Center’s director and an emergency worker is contacting all Center members to determine their individual needs. In Kiryat Malakhi, JDC’s Better Together program is taking care of 30 displaced families whose building was bombed and deemed uninhabitable by providing basic needs and finding them temporary shelter. For hundreds of elderly who rely on JDC’s Day Centers for daily hot meals throughout the region, JDC staff is delivering food to their homes.
JDC is working closely with Israel’s Ministries of Social Affairs and Social Welfare, Education and Health; the Home Front Command, and the National Emergency Network. JDC’s experience in responding to past emergency situations in Israel — during the second intifada, the Second Lebanon War, and the Carmel Fires disaster — is in place to ensure that support and assistance can be delivered quickly and effectively.
