HJELP JODENE HJEM (HJH)

HELP JEWS HOME

Translated from Norwegian

News Bulletin

№2 February 2009

Home – to Israel

1. Now we must be firm and faithful in prayer and in work!

Victims of terror in the South District of Israel need our support and help

Beginning from 2009 we face more difficult tasks than it was before in helping Jewish immigrants in Israel. After 8 years of rocket bombings from Gaza – and after 3-weeks war with its new wave of the life-threatening rocket blows – they vastly need our support, care and assistance! It is not an easy time now for many Israel immigrants!

Some of our partners ask us, if we can help them in this difficult situation? Yes, we’ll do our best to provide the needed help. Now all of us united with the common goal of our Committee “Help Jews Home” (HJH) must give an example of firmness and faithfulness in the immensely important work of assistance to Jewish immigrants!

God’s Word calls on us – Christians — to pray and to work practically and spiritually to fulfill the tasks He entrusted us. And many of us, HJH members, consider it natural and sensible to help the Chosen People to come back to their History Land and believe that this work has a deep spiritual roots.

And now we must specially pray that weapon aimed at Jews and at Israel proved to be powerless, that rockets falling to Jewish houses made no harm.

And if this prayer and the care for our brothers we put above all, then we must think about our own contribution, our own help to them! Because every Human Being is entrusted to care for his/her neighbors. Our task is to transform our love to Jewish people from the abstract metaphysics into the practical deeds. And let the year 2009 not to be an exception from this rule: the one who gives – receives. Let God’s blessing be with us!

2. How nice it is that you have arrived!

We came from the snow-storm of Viena to sunny land of Tel-Aviv on 14 January, at the very height of the war in Gaza. The airplane was practically empty. Among passengers there are several middle-aged couples coming back from their grandchildren in Europe, youngster (drafted to the Army), few journalist, two-three tourists and representatives of different charity organizations.

The atmosphere in the Ben-Gurion airport was quite. Israel newspapers in the airplane tell about the events with a clear language of photos; soldiers, scenes of battle, smiling Finance Minister of Norway Kristin Halvorsen at the demonstration with left radicals from the Blitz bunching.

We pass passport control in a few minutes. TV in the hotel’s suite shows rather quite and sensible discussions: Where do we move? What may be the immediate and distant consequences of this war? When will it be over? President Shimon Peres says that Israel people were never earlier so strongly united.

… This is the long ago planned trip to Israel in frames of the Project supported by HJH. I decided to undertake it now to show our solidarity with people of Israel in this difficult time. As you will see below, Norway is the heaviest critic of Israel among all European countries. That is why our trip is so important. I told everybody who I met in Israel that there are plenty of friends of Israel in Norway, those who well understand the hardships of people suffering during 8 years from thousands of bombardments and rocket blows.

3. Now they haunt us not only at nights.

Chairman of HJH

For a long time, at least during first 50 years after the Second World War, they haunted us only at nights. But times changed.

Two and a half years ago, during Israel war with Hezbollah in Lebanon, anti-Semitism openly showed itself here in Norway – just like now during this war with Hamas. Self-appointed intellectuals and other small “VIPs” poured out to the pages of newspapers all their hatred to Israel mixed with such a charge of anti-Semitism that they would be greeted with admiration to the Internet-clubs of all those who are unhappy with the outcome of the Second World War.

Simultaneously certain Islamist groups added oil to the fire of the restless situation in Norway. These groups propagate vulgar and grotesque anti-Semitism. However this, as it is evident, did not shock Norwegian establishment. But this shocks me.

Islamic youth appealed to kill Jews at their torch march in Oslo, which was declared to authorities as a peaceful one. Broadsheets expressively said about necessity to exterminate all Jews. The leaflets distributed there appealed to spread out pig’s heads at the Jewish cemetery and throw out rubbish before the Oslo Synagogue.

One may consider it as a single case of little importance. But this would be the dangerous disregard of the real threat. Because the media in Norway find no difference between Israel and Jewish population living in Diaspora. When influential politicians fervently condemn Israel and we are incapable to see what stays behind it, this means that we are on the dangerous way. When teacher in school tells that he will not take his pupils to the Jewish Museum in Oslo “until Palestine is free” – this evidently legitimizes de-facto the particular disgusting statements.

All it imposed upon the Jews of the whole world the collective responsibility for politics of Israel. When conflict receives the one-sided biased coverage, when TV shows something directly opposite to the real events, when clarifying information is not shown and even purposefully hided, then we must seriously think about the consequences. This ugly biased coverage of events one can often meet even in such a newspaper as Aftenposten. One day the headlines screamed that Israel gathered peaceful population in school and then bombed it. From the headline it was evident that this was the planned action, and only in the end of the Article it was written that this tragedy could be an accident. But how many readers read the Article to its very end? The same hatred-inspiring effect possess the terrifying pictures of victims of allegedly Israel bombardment of the UN school in Gaza. In reality everything was not so at all, but nobody wrote it even after the investigation confirmed the statements of Israel: the rocket blow was directed at terrorists who fired at this school full of peaceful people!

Newest investigations show the growth of anti-Semitism all over the world. This must be a serious signal for the democratic Government, but evidently many do not understand it. Synagogues and Jewish cemeteries are vandalized, Jews are attacked and even killed. When the world will realize what a dangerous way we are going now?

When the world will tell to President of Iran that his statements about necessity of destruction of the state of Israel are absolutely unacceptable, when it will be clearly demonstrated that no relations are possible with such leaders of States? When the same will be demonstrated to Hamas which Charter includes incredible statements about necessity of extermination of Israel and Jews all over the world? When its leaders appear in the International Court for their appeals for genocide?

The world saw such a leaders earlier. Some of them were stopped in time, like e.g. Aman, advisor of Babilon tsar Ahashverosh, who decided to kill all Jews in his country. He was stopped, and since then all Jewish people until now – and also in these days when our News Bulletin comes out – celebrate this joyful event with the feast Purim. Others were not stopped, although it was clear what an insanity they create. Has not the world learned these lessons? When world community will stop modern Amans? It can do it, if it chooses to do it.

Thank you for your support of Israel and its right to exist. Thank you for your assistance in distribution of truthful information about Israel. Thank you for your work directed at protection of right of Jews for the quite and worthy life everywhere where they live. Thank you that you are Human Beings in the highest sense of this word.

4. About 16 000 new immigrants to Israel in 2008

We received new data of the Central Statistical Bureau of Israel on the immigration in 2008. At present there are 16.000 immigrants registered, later final figures may increase this number.

This means that immigration-2008 is the same like in previous 3-4 years, however certain trend for decrease may be seen. Indefiniteness, war, economic problems of the last years resulted in this decrease. Nevertheless about 50 immigrants daily arrive to Israel even now. This is plenty of people who need care, who need assistance in integration into society. This is not a quick process, it takes a number of years!

It is interesting to know wherefrom immigrants are coming and what are the changes in the structure of the immigration stream. From the beginning of new millennium main “immigration countries” remain countries of Former USSR, Ethiopia, USA and France. 5587 (about 30%) immigrants came to Israel from the Former USSR in 2008. Most important countries there remain Russia and Ukraine, small number of Jews come from Byelorussia and from the Baltic States. Lately there were immigrants from Caucasus and from Republics of Central Asia.

2000 arrived from Ethiopia (a little bit less than earlier) and 339 from South Africa. From the USA in 2008 came 2777 immigrants, big figure of immigrants is from France – 1863.

1000 immigrants came from South America, including Argentina and Brazil – those are the most essential “countries of immigration” from South America, about 200 from each of them.

Unfortunately there are no exact statistical data, but it is known that part of immigrants from the USA are former “Russian” who lived in the USA for number of years.

5. To Israel in October. We invite you to the exciting Autumn tour from 12 to 23 October !