Update on the Situation in Israel - Tuesday

Friends,

In the last week, more than 1,300 rockets have been fired into Israel, which represents one third of the rocket fire during the entire Lebanon War in 2006. On Tuesday alone, 140 rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip toward southern Israel. While Iron Dome defenses intercepted approximately 389 rockets in the last week, at least 40 hit communities or settled areas in Israel, killing five Israelis and wounding many more.  Suffering has increased on all sides.

Update From Israel Solidarity Mission "Time here now is no longer in weeks, days or hours. Think about it in seconds - 15 seconds, 30 seconds, 60 seconds," said Michael Siegal, chair of The Jewish Federations of North America's Board of Trustees, on a teleconference earlier today from southern Israel. "Nobody should live like this, where a siren goes off, and 15 seconds later, you have to go and get into a shelter. It is unrealistic to expect anybody to live like this." Siegal's reflections from JFNA's Israel Solidarity Mission - a tour of 15 senior lay and professional leaders through Israel's south - gave context to the escalating violence, despite reports of an impending cease-fire. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Jerusalem today, where she reiterated the U.S. commitment to supporting Israel and pushed for a diplomatic end to the increasingly lethal conflict. We can only hope that Clinton's arrival serves as a catalyst for peace.

A Story of Hope From Our Israel Office: Hagar, a Jewish-Arab School I would like to share with you a beautiful letter that comes from Hagit Damri, the Executive Director of Hagar, a bi-lingual Jewish-Arab school in Be'er Sheva that is one of our grantees. In the shadow of all the violence and suffering, it reminds us of our common humanity, and of the important work we are doing in Israel to help create a society that is as just and as good as its people.

Dear Friends of Hagar, Over the last six days a new wave of violence had flooded our region and wounded our routine. The usual Hagar sounds of children's laughter in our school kindergartens and daycare, the vivid conversations of our community members in Hebrew and Arabic have been replaced by the frightening sounds of sirens and explosions. All schools in Be'er Sheva, including ours, have been closed and Hagar's children and parents along with all of the families of the Negev are spending their days and nights in bomb shelters and protected spaces. I am so proud and touched to learn that this wave of violence has not weakened us, and on the contrary, during the last six days Jewish and Arab friends and families are encouraging each other between the explosions, offering to host one another away from the rockets at their family homes in the north of Israel. Jewish and Arab teachers are reaching out to Jewish and Arab children, Arab and Jewish children are making an effort to be in touch with one another through phone calls and e-mails. One of our Jewish parents called and told me that she and her family (including a two-month old baby) were invited to spend the weekend away from the rockets with an Arab family in the northern Arab village of Sachnin; and as she and her family drove back she thought about the fact that before her family joined Hagar she never would have sought haven in an Arab Village. Now more than ever Hagar's community is proving its commitment to create a different reality -- one where people refuse to define themselves as enemies but as friends struggling to find common ground. At this time I want to thank all our friends who have e-mailed, posted and called asking about the well-being of our community and offering to help. At this point we don't know what kind of damages we are facing. We will update and consult with you when the picture will be clearer. And finally your 'likes,' posts, letters and donations mean so much. Your support is not just helping Hagar, rather it is Hagar. Thank you. L'Shalom, MaaSalame, With Peace, Hagit Damri

JCF's Israel Relief Fund at Work - Shula's Story With record numbers of rockets hitting residential areas in Israel today, our partner JDC is working non-stop to provide help to the most vulnerable. Here is just one example.

Meet 83-year-old Shula Carmiel from Moshav Arugot, outside of Kiryat Malakhi in south-central Israel. When the siren wails signaling another rocket attack on her hometown, there isn't enough time for Shula to find shelter. Her small, single-story house does not have a safe room and the shelter is too far to reach with her walker. "I sit and pray that everything will okay," Shula says. "I just wait for it to be over." Today Shula is a member of JDC's Supportive Community for the Elderly in Moshav Arugot, where she receives a spectrum of services that allow her to live independently. Especially during this crisis, Hezi, her Supportive Community "father," is a lifeline to Shula and her neighbors, keeping in constant contact with them and providing invaluable emotional support. When Shula's neighbor recently refused to come out of a nearby bomb shelter even after the sirens stopped blaring, Hezi visited her in hopes of convincing her to return home. To reassure her, he called her daughter in Haifa who came in the middle of the night to take her mother out of rocket range. "He's my father now," Shula explains, pointing to Hezi, belying her 83 years. "Anything I need, he helps me with."