“I don’t think I’ve ever been happier in my whole life than I am today. It’s been a big dream that I’ve had for many years,” says one new immigrant.
By Pesach Benson, TPS
A planeload of 215 immigrants from the U.S. and Canada landed at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport on Wednesday, sparking emotional family reunions and even dancing in one of the terminals.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been happier in my whole life than I am today. It’s been a big dream that I’ve had for many years,” Carol Ginzburg, 77, told the Tazpit Press Service. “I have a bunch of children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren who are living in Israel. So I want to be here.”
“Frankly, I’m ready to be in Israel and be done with the crazy conflicts in America,” she added.
Nefesh B’Nefesh, a non-profit organization facilitates the immigration of Jews to Israel from North America which chartered the plane, said Ginzburg was also the oldest immigrant arriving on the flight.
The airport’s arrival hall was full of emotional family reunions, and in some cases, people joyously dancing in circles as the newcomers tightly hugged their Israeli relatives.
But not all the immigrants were greeted by relatives. Nefesh B’Nefesh said that about one-quarter of Wednesday’s immigrants will be drafted into the Israeli Defense Forces as “lone soldiers,” or soldiers who have no family in Israel to support them. Instead, the lone soldiers will instead be supported by Garin Tzabar, a program which helps lone soldiers before and throughout military service.
One lone soldier, Ariel Hassan from New Jersey, told TPS he was looking forward to joining the army, and that he specifically hopes to serve in the IDF’s elite Egoz commando unit.
“It’s a very famous unit,” Hassan explained. “But we’ll see. The army will decide, and wherever they send me, I’ll do the best that I can do.”
The flight was comprised of 22 families with 75 children amongst them, 15 single men and women, and 17 retirees. Among the 215 on board were seven doctors and 15 health professionals who will be integrating into the Israeli health care system.
“It was my absolute joy to welcome these new [immigrants] upon their arrival in Israel. It is especially exciting to see families with kids and young adults embrace the Zionist dream of making aliyah,” said Minister of Immigration and Integration Ofir Sofer, using the Hebrew word for immigration.
Other dignitaries on hand to welcome Israel’s newest citizens were Minister of Interior and Health, Moshe Arbel, and Nefesh B’Nefesh co-founder and executive director Rabbi Yehoshua Fass.
“Each and every [immigrant] carries with them a unique story, yet what bonds them together is a unified love for our homeland, shared goals and collective action,” said Fass. “It teaches us that diversity exists within unity – that shared values and commitment can bind different individuals and groups together.”
According to figures released in July by the Jewish Agency for Israel, a quasi-governmental organization that facilitates immigration from around the world, 29,293 immigrants arrived in Israel during the first half of 2023. The Jewish Agency noted that 80% of the newcomers were from Russia.