Human Needs Continue

“Human Needs Continue.” This message has been sent out daily by the United Jewish Appeal since the Yom Kippur War began in an effort to underscore the complex and multiform problems confronting the people of Israel on the home front as the defense forces fought to repulse the aggression launched by Egypt and Syria. What are these needs and how are they being handled? The UJA has provided many poignant instances and activities. Its reports have included the following:

The impact of the war on the lives of immigrants of previous years, yet unabsorbed, is being felt on an increasing scale. The economic slowdown has hit especially hard in those communities having large families with marginal incomes. Welfare offices have been instructed to increase payments. Many retraining courses for immigrants have had to be postponed until after the war.

Many Jewish Agency supported agricultural settlements now face the problem of getting their produce to the ports for export since their trucks have been mobilized into service.

Since construction is almost at a complete standstill in Israel, and all absorption centers are filled to capacity, the Jewish Agency has set up a special committee to release workers, material and trucks in order to enable completion of some 4000 apartments for new immigrants In addition, immediate work is to begin to erect three prefabricated absorption centers, each to have 500 beds. Every effort is being made to complete these centers within six months. One will be built in the Haifa area; one in the Tel Aviv area; and one in the Beersheva area.

At the Rogosin Nautical ORT School in Ashdod, a project of the Israel Education Fund of the UJA, the younger boys are finding it difficult to concentrate on their studies while their older schoolmates are working as volunteers and many of their teachers are serving in the navy. Preparing themselves for a life at sea, the boys in the lower classes all want to work in the port and are continuing their regular schooling while waiting to be of practical use on the home front.

Forty-two civilian settlements in the north have been hit by heavy shelling since the outbreak of war. Although many members of these settlements have been mobilized, the remaining manpower has divided its efforts between guard duty and working. Morale is extremely high, and they are making every effort to maintain normal activities. This is true of all settlers, including Israeli-born as well as those who came from North Africa and other Moslem countries. Not one family has asked to leave, despite the fact that they have had to sleep in shelters for three weeks. The Jewish Agency continues to do all it possibly can to repair all damage immediately.

Since the beginning of the war, the Jewish Agency has had to spend additional non-budgeted funds for essential repair work in the civilian settlements in the north which have been under constant shelling. These emergency repairs are only the beginning.