Israel to give another NIS 10 million in aid for Ukrainian Jews, half of it from anonymous donor

Israel is directing another NIS 10 million ($3.08 million) aid package to Ukrainian Jews, half of it funded by an anonymous Australian donor.

“The money will be transferred to the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee for distribution to organizations working to help Jews and Jewish communities in Ukraine,” the Diaspora Affairs Ministry says in a statement.

Half of the funds will come from Israeli government coffers, while the other NIS 5 million ($1.54 million) was matched by an “Australian philanthropic foundation,” the ministry says. “A representative of the foundation, which wishes to remain anonymous, said the organization had been impressed by Israel’s swift actions and that it wanted to be part of this effort,” according to the statement.

This is in addition to a previous NIS 10 million aid package that Israel allocated for Ukrainian Jewry last week.

“Alongside the broader aid we have sent to the Ukrainian people we are adding another NIS 10 million, coming to a total of NIS 20 million ($6.17 million), which will enable the different Jewish communities in Ukraine to cope with the severe difficulties that have been created in recent days,” Diaspora Minister Nachman Shai says.

“This assistance will be designated for buying food, medicine, and emergency equipment for security purposes and transportation.”