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Birthright Israel Extends Age Limit to 50 for Volunteers Helping to Rebuild Gaza Border Areas Post-Oct. 7
Recent participants of Birthright Israel’s volunteer program. Photo: Courtesy of Birthright Israel
Birthright Israel will raise the age limit for its subsidized volunteer program in Israel to 50 starting in 2025 in an effort to encourage more people to visit the Jewish state and help rebuild Gaza border communities impacted by the deadly Oct. 7 terrorist attack last year, the organization announced on Monday.
“The decision responds to the urgent needs in Israel, particularly in areas near the Gaza envelope and along the Lebanon ceasefire zone,” Birthright Israel said in a released statement. “The program aims to mobilize volunteers to support community rebuilding efforts in these regions and assist with various projects in central Israel, including the Tel Aviv area.”
The program’s age range was previously set at 18-40, but starting next year, Jewish adults until the age of 50 will be able to participate in Birthright’s volunteer activities in communities around Israel. The hands-on volunteer opportunities include assisting on restoration projects at kibbutzim and other areas majorly affected by the Oct. 7 massacre and ongoing Israel-Hamas war. Volunteers can help “rebuild kibbutzim, support community re-building efforts, provide food security assistance, and participate in packing and distribution tasks.” Volunteers work for 4-6 hours per day and are provided with transportation to and from their volunteer sites.
The extended age range will also allow alumni who participated in Birthright trips up to 25 years ago to revisit Israel and reconnect with the country through volunteer work. It additionally promotes multigenerational experiences by letting young adults volunteer alongside their parents. A total of 8,000 people have already participated in Birthright Israel’s volunteer program and the organization said it anticipates 10,000 more volunteers in 2025.
“Every Birthright participant arriving in Israel will contribute by volunteering, ensuring that giving back is a cornerstone of the Birthright experience,” said Birthright Israel CEO Gidi Mark. “This initiative underscores Birthright Israel’s commitment to fostering global Jewish solidarity and strengthening ties to the land and people of Israel through meaningful action.”
Participants of Birthright Israel’s volunteer program are reimbursed for flights (up to $900), and also receive a partial food subsidy ($100 per week) and safe housing in major cities. Applicants need to identify as Jewish, know basic English, and have a passport that is valid for at least six months after the end date of the program.
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Germany: 5 Killed, Scores Wounded after Saudi Man Plows Car Into Christmas crowd
Magdeburg Christmas market, December 21, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Christian Mang
i24 News – A suspected terrorist plowed a vehicle into a crowd at a Christmas market in the German city of Magdeburg, west of the capital Berlin, killing at least five and injuring dozens more.
Local police confirmed that the suspect was a Saudi national born in 1974 and acting alone.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed his concern about the incident, saying that “reports from Magdeburg suggest something bad. My thoughts are with the victims and their families.”
Police declined to give casualty numbers, confirming only a large-scale operation at the market, where people had gathered to celebrate in the days leading up to the Christmas holidays.
The post Germany: 5 Killed, Scores Wounded after Saudi Man Plows Car Into Christmas crowd first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Syria’s New Rulers Name HTS Commander as Defense Minister
A person waves a flag adopted by the new Syrian rulers, as people gather during a celebration called by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) near the Umayyad Mosque, after the ousting of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, Photo: December 20, 2024. REUTERS/Ammar Awad/File Photo
Syria’s new rulers have appointed Murhaf Abu Qasra, a leading figure in the insurgency which toppled Bashar al-Assad, as defense minister in the interim government, an official source said on Saturday.
Abu Qasra, who is also known by the nom de guerre Abu Hassan 600, is a senior figure in the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group which led the campaign that ousted Assad this month. He led numerous military operations during Syria’s revolution, the source said.
Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa discussed “the form of the military institution in the new Syria” during a meeting with armed factions on Saturday, state news agency SANA reported.
Abu Qasra during the meeting sat next to Sharaa, also known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Golani, photos published by SANA showed.
Prime Minister Mohammed al-Bashir said this week that the defense ministry would be restructured using former rebel factions and officers who defected from Assad’s army.
Bashir, who formerly led an HTS-affiliated administration in the northwestern province of Idlib, has said he will lead a three-month transitional government. The new administration has not declared plans for what will happen after that.
Earlier on Saturday, the ruling General Command named Asaad Hassan al-Shibani as foreign minister, SANA said. A source in the new administration told Reuters that this step “comes in response to the aspirations of the Syrian people to establish international relations that bring peace and stability.”
Shibani, a 37-year-old graduate of Damascus University, previously led the political department of the rebels’ Idlib government, the General Command said.
Sharaa’s group was part of al Qaeda until he broke ties in 2016. It had been confined to Idlib for years until going on the offensive in late November, sweeping through the cities of western Syria and into Damascus as the army melted away.
Sharaa has met with a number of international envoys this week. He has said his primary focus is on reconstruction and achieving economic development and that he is not interested in engaging in any new conflicts.
Syrian rebels seized control of Damascus on Dec. 8, forcing Assad to flee after more than 13 years of civil war and ending his family’s decades-long rule.
Washington designated Sharaa a terrorist in 2013, saying al Qaeda in Iraq had tasked him with overthrowing Assad’s rule and establishing Islamic sharia law in Syria. US officials said on Friday that Washington would remove a $10 million bounty on his head.
The war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, caused one of the biggest refugee crises of modern times and left cities bombed to rubble and the economy hollowed out by global sanctions.
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Sweden Ends Funding for UNRWA, Pledges to Seek Other Aid Channels
View of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) building in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. Photo: Abed Rahim Khatib / Flash90.
i24 News – Sweden will no longer fund the U.N. refugee agency for Palestinians (UNRWA) and will instead provide humanitarian assistance to Gaza via other channels, the Scandinavian country said on Friday.
The decision comes on the heels of multiple revelations regarding the agency’s employees’ involvement in the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led massacre in southern Israel that triggered the war in Gaza.
Sweden’s decision was in response to the Israeli ban, as it will make channeling aid via the agency more difficult, the country’s aid minister, Benjamin Dousa, said.
“Large parts of UNRWA’s operations in Gaza are either going to be severely weakened or completely impossible,” Dousa said. “For the government, the most important thing is that support gets through.”
The Palestinian embassy in Stockholm said in a statement: “We reject the idea of finding alternatives to UNRWA, which has a special mandate to provide services to Palestinian refugees.”
Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel thanked Dousa for a meeting they had this week and for Sweden’s decision to drop its support for UNRWA.
“There are worthy and viable alternatives for humanitarian aid, and I appreciate the willingness to listen and adopt a different approach,” she said.
The post Sweden Ends Funding for UNRWA, Pledges to Seek Other Aid Channels first appeared on Algemeiner.com.