Israelis raise quarter of a million NIS for Syrian children

[shira]

The initiative, led by Israelis from all sectors of the country, was launched Thursday night and aims to raise 600,000 NIS for the refugee children of Syria.

An Israeli grassroots initiative to help Syrian children has swiftly gained traction, raising almost half a million shekels from more than 2,700 donors in the first few days of a crowdfunding campaign. Titled “Just Beyond the Border,” the campaign launched on Thursday night seeks to raise a target of 600,000 NIS in just over a month. The funds will go toward purchasing emergency aid including food, medication and supplies for the winter for Syrian refugees.

The campaign page, on the mimoona crowdfunding platform, details exactly what different amounts of donations will be put toward, from 25 NIS all the way up to 100,000 NIS. The equipment will be purchased in Israel and will be transferred to young refugees with the help of the Israeli Flying Aid organization (IFA) NGO, delivering lifesaving aid to communities affected by natural disasters and human conflict.

“Hundreds of thousands of children from war-torn Syria are now facing winter,” a campaign flyer reads. “We will not stand idly by as the horrors unfold.” The project is being coordinated by Israelis from across the country including religious and secular Jews and Muslims and Christians, who on Yom Kippur organized a mass prayer for the victims of the Syrian conflict.

“As an Israeli child, I grew up asking where the world was when we needed them most,” said organizer Yoav Bakshi Yeivin. “As a Jew, I always knew that I was expected to be there, to help and lend a hand. There is no nation that knows better than us how lethal apathy can be.”

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http://www.jpost.com/printarticle.aspx?id=475716

[shira]

2. You're now toying with not buying Israeli products? You called that racist. n/t