US Jews collect over $833 million for Israel since Oct 7, more than over 50% of all global Jewish donations

Read this article in:

The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), an American Jewish umbrella organization for more than 350 Jewish communities across North America, has raised over $833 million in donations for Israel since the Oct. 7 attack by the Hamas terrorist organization, which resulted in the massacre of 1,200 Israelis.

The large donation constitutes over half of the total amount collected by Jewish communities worldwide. Approximately $433 million of the collected funds have been transferred to some 520 associations in Israel.

Eric Fingerhut, CEO and president of JFNA, emphasized the importance for American Jewish community to support Israel amid unprecedented challenging times. The American Jewish community is the world’s largest Jewish diaspora numbering around 6 million people.

"Since the terrible Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, the Jewish communities of North America have mobilized in an unprecedented way to help our people in Israel in their difficult time," Fingerhut said. "I thank the donors as well as our professionals and our partners in Israel for the quick and considerate distribution of these funds.

He vowed: We will continue to stand by the State of Israel and help the victims and the evacuated communities."

The JNFA funds have been used in Israel for mental health assistance for over 400,000 Israelis; temporary housing for displaced Israelis; distribution of 1.2 million hot meals; emergency loans to more than 480 Israeli businesses; and assistance for wounded Israeli soldiers.

While Israel is an advanced economy, the 10-month-long war with Hamas and the ongoing conflict with Hezbollah forces in Lebanon have negatively impacted the Israeli economy.

The robust Israeli economy contracted by almost 20% during the fourth quarter of 2023.

In June, Bank of Israel Governor Amir Yaron announced that the ongoing war in Gaza would likely cost Israel $67 billion. By comparison, Israel’s annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) exceeds $500 billion and includes military and civilian costs during the period 2023 to 2025.

About $10 billion of this accumulated amount is earmarked for civilian assistance, which includes financing temporary housing for displaced Israeli families from both southern and northern Israel.

The Israeli economy has also been negatively affected by the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's decision in May to halt all bilateral trade between Turkey and Israel, which amounts to an estimated $5 billion annually.