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North Americans immigrants arriving with Nefesh B'Nefesh.
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| By Associated Press January 12, 2007 |
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After more than four years as his government's ambassador to Washington, Daniel Ayalon is back home in Israel. In his new job, he hopes tens of thousands of American Jews will follow him.
Ayalon this week joined Nefesh B'Nefesh, a group that sponsors immigration from North America, as its co-chairman. Ayalon hopes to use his experience and contacts in the U.S. to raise funds for the group, and use his stature in Israel to help ease what is often a bumpy transition for new arrivals.
"Once we reach out, I'm sure the reservoir of people will increase," Ayalon said in an interview at his home in central Israel.
Ayalon, a one-time aide to former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, said he wholeheartedly agrees with Sharon's goal of bringing 1 million Jews to Israel by 2020 _ a number that is often met with skepticism. "Working with him, I've certainly absorbed this number and believe in this number," Ayalon said.
With a decade-long rush of immigration from the former Soviet Union slowing to a trickle, the country's leaders have grown increasingly hopeful that they can draw people from large Jewish communities in France, the U.K. and U.S.
Israel offers automatic citizenship to anyone who is Jewish, but has traditionally had difficulty attracting people from Western countries due to the conflict with the Palestinians, high cost of living and notorious bureaucracy.
Ayalon said he expects rising anti-Semitism and Muslim radicalism in Europe to lead to a large increase of immigration from the U.K. and France. He also said a "renaissance" in U.S. Jewish life will bring more Americans to Israel. "I firmly believe that we have not tapped even a small portion of the potential in North America," he said.
Nefesh B'Nefesh, which offers cash grants, job-placement services and other assistance to new immigrants, claims a high success rate for the immigrants it sponsors. It has brought about 10,000 Jewish immigrants to Israel since it began in 2001, and says 99 percent of these immigrants remain in the country.
However, the overall level of immigration from the U.S. remains low. About 3,200 North American Jews immigrated to Israel last year, a tiny fraction of the roughly 6 million Jews in the U.S. and Canada. Altogether, about 100,000 immigrants from North America live in Israel.
Ayalon, who returned to Israel in November, will not be paid for his work. He said he expects to devote most of his time to the immigration group, but is considering other offers, including business consulting, on the side. |
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