The State of Israel’s Poor

The Jerusalem Post’s Lidar Gravé-Lazi reports on a new survey done on the state of the Jewish state’s poor

The Fellowship and our faithful friends continue to provide aid to the many impoverished who live in Israel, and with the recent findings of a report just released in Israel, your help is needed now.

A recent survey conducted by a national research institute and commissioned by The Fellowship, revealed some startling facts about the challenges and concerns of needy Israelis…

81% report that they have no way to break the cycle of poverty for them and their families.
25% of poor citizens would prefer to leave Israel and go live in another country if it were possible to do so.
24% reported that a family member began using antidepressants during the last year because of social-economic difficulties.
29% of people living in poverty know someone who has contemplated suicide because of their socio-economic situation.
65% have lost confidence in the country’s elected leaders and governmental agencies to help them, and 87% of those living in poverty claim the state does not care about them.

The Jerusalem Post’s Lidar Gravé-Lazi reports on this survey:

“Poverty is not just a matter of values, but a real threat to the resilience of Israeli society and its ability to sustain a society that is functioning and shows solidarity,” said Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, founder and president of the IFCJ…

The respondents said the responsibility of taking care of the poor lies first and foremost with the entire government and then, in declining order of responsibility, with the prime minister, the finance minister, the labour and social services minister and the National Insurance Institute…

“The worrisome statistics and severity of poverty, alongside this survey, should be a wakeup call to the leaders of our country and its citizens,” said Eckstein. “It is time that the Israeli government declares an all-out war against poverty and handle the situation with the same determination and the same budgets which it allocates for dealing with external security threats…”

Please help provide for those suffering and in need who have nothing and no one. Become a Guardian of Israel today.

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