Observations in the North during the Second Lebanon War

JDC President's Report
August 1, 2006
Judge Ellen Heller

Dear Board Member,

Monday's travels brought us to Tzfat, Karmiel and Nazareth, cities in the northern region which have been the target of hundreds of katyushas. The drive through this beautiful mountainous country belied the critical emergency situation that has caused such an upheaval in the civilian populations of this area. Our journey was marked by visits to bomb shelters, supply centers, mayors and other representatives of the city government. In this way we had the opportunity to speak directly to those who have been affected most by the crisis. Today's impressions fall into three themes: the severe effects of the shellings; the resiliency of the Israelis; and the incredible mobilization of JDC's resources. The most poignant example of this was in the ancient city of Tzfat, sitting high in the mountains close to Lebanon.

The road into Tzfat was totally empty and all stores were closed. Normally 30,000 people live here, but today the streets were vacant and we were told that, by the third day of the "situation," ninety percent of the population had left. Those who remained were the elderly, disabled and new immigrants who were either too poor or too ill to leave. In a distribution center, we met Benny, a JDC-ESHEL worker, who described the extraordinary relief measures he had put into place with the direct support of the JDC Jerusalem office. When the missiles began to fall, he immediately began calling the eighty caretakers under his supervision. They were so upset and traumatized that he had to calm them down and persuade them to help. His message was simple: by helping others they would help themselves. He took a car and driver and began visiting the older people in the city. He made contact with all the elderly under his care. He confessed it was hard to prioritize whom to see and how to help. In one house he found an elderly lady under her table with a pot on her head for protection. She was terrorized and alone. He took her to the shelter in his own building and placed her on a mat next to his own mother. Benny stayed in constant contact with Yitzhak Brick, the head of ESHEL, who sent him mattresses, diapers, medicines, emergency kits and funds for hot meals. As a result he was immediately able to distribute hot meals that were made in a neighboring town; each day he has distributed 4,000 meals to those who cannot leave. Somehow he found volunteers to distribute the meals—even under the fire of rockets.

Another heroic individual we met in Tzfat was a social worker from another city who came because of the emergency, in spite of a directive that this was not her "assignment." This special woman has taken charge of the social welfare needs of others in this city and organized a volunteer system to distribute the food and other necessities. Both Benny and the social worker could not heap enough praise on the JDC support and the bravery of the volunteers who were providing the assistance in the shelters. We cannot begin to praise the heroism, selflessness and initiative of these two valiant caretakers.

From Tzfat we traveled to the attractive city of Karmiel which is marked by modern buildings of Jerusalem stone and flowering gardens everywhere. Its striking architecture is matched by the strong spirit of the people we met. The situation here was in marked contrast to that in Tzfat. The JDC day care center for the elderly was closed after having been hit twice by missiles. Most of the elderly had been evacuated, but some were too frail or too afraid to leave. So, JDC-ESHEL sent up a food distribution center which is providing close to 400 meals a day to those who are homebound. It was in this center that our spirits were bolstered by a unique scene—volunteers were preparing hot meals to the accompaniment of an accordionist playing old Yiddish songs. And—as if that was not enough—these volunteers had been Hesed volunteers in their hometowns in the FSU. Our group joined in the singing and for a moment it looked as if a hora might begin. We knew then that the fortitude of the Israeli people cannot be defeated.

The Mayor of Karmiel met with us at the City Hall and explained that this was the first time in the city's history that it had been the target of the katyushas. Thus, on the first day of the attack, its 50,000 residents were surprised. But, the city immediately organized a rescue response and began supplying mattresses, ventilators, and lights to its 350 shelters. Currently, there are 20,000 residents still in the shelters and these are mainly children and the elderly. The Mayor thanked the Joint for all of our help, including the hot meals we are supplying each day to the older residents of the city. The next stop in Karmiel was at a shelter where the people—many of whom where children—had been staying for 18 days. Fortunately there was air conditioning here; children had been given kits and were entertained by the AMEN youth volunteers. Still, the confusion and concern on the faces of these people reflected the emotional turmoil they had suffered. The trauma this conflict has inflicted on the people of the northern region cannot be underestimated.

At an Absorption Center in Karmiel we met with volunteer trauma psychologists from southern Israel who had been trained to deal with such issues. These psychologists had gone through special training programs funded from the first UJC Israel Emergency Campaign and they shared stories of the support they were now able to give. This center is one of 500 which has been air conditioned by funds contributed by UJC for the current emergency. However, there are at least 1,000 more shelters in need of these units.

Our final stop was in Nazareth Illit and Arab Nazareth. In so-called Upper Nazareth we were greeted by the Mayor who had a special welcome for Nora Barron because of the city's long time relationship with the city of Detroit, Michigan. We were hosted at a lunch in City Hall where we met a Young Adult group of volunteers that was sponsored by JDC. These students—who were studying economics, law, engineering and architecture—told us of their various volunteer responsibilities. One worked with children in shelters, another helped collect packages for soldiers on the front, and another was organizing day trips for children outside of the city. These young people were filled with enthusiasm about their activities, and we were filled with pride in their generous spirit.

Nazareth has the largest Arab population in Israel. Of its 70,000 residents, approximately 43% are under 18. There is a high level of unemployment. We met with the Director of Social Services who described some of the specific challenges of the Arab population during this crisis.

So, another long day concluded and on the long ride back to Jerusalem we reflected on what we had seen. The current emergency situation in the northern region has come as a surprise to the Israelis who live there. Haifa has not been the target of rocket shellings since 1948 and residents in Karmiel had thought they were beyond the range of the missiles from Lebanon. The uncertainly of how long this conflict will last and the confinement to shelters for almost three weeks have taken its toll. People have been uprooted from their homes and normal activities disrupted. Some cities like Tzfat are basically closed down. In contrast, people are returning to Karmiel, and in Nazareth–Illit the Mayor has kept all government offices operating and is encouraging businesses and private offices to remain open.

Although it is a struggle, once again the Israeli people will meet this challenge and once again we are very gratified that JDC will have provided indispensable help. Our Board can feel immense pride in the JDC professionals and volunteers who are working around the clock to ensure that the elderly, the disabled and the children in Israel affected by the crisis will be sheltered and fed.

We will give you more details during the Board conference call today, as well as a report from our trip to the southern regions near Gaza.