- Since the outbreak of the recent violence, 694 Israelis have been killed (as of December 2002).
- Close to 5000 people have been wounded (as of December 2002), some of whom will remain permanently diasabled.
- A high proportion of these were new immigrants.
- 2002 has been Israel’s worst financial year since 1953.
- The GNP has declined by 3%.
- The tourism industry has suffered a loss of US$3 billion, and has effectively collapsed.
- Foreign investment in Israel has decreased significantly.
- Unemployment has risen from 180 000 to 270 000
- The inflation rate has risen to 8%, as opposed to 2% in 2000.
- The losses incurred by Israel over the last 2 years reached a total of US$10.6 billion.
- Over 31 000 new immigrants arrived in Israel in 2002.
- One in every 4 IDF soldiers is a new immigrant.
- 85 Olim arrive in Israel every day.
- The 31 000 Olim that arrived in Israel in 2002 include
17 000 from the Former Soviet Union
5 000 from Argentina
2 800 from Ethiopia
2 200 from France
500 from Uruguay
180 from South Africa
- The Ethiopian community in Israel numbers 85 000.
- 41 200 Olim are expected to arrive in Israel in 2003.
- A total of 1.2 million people in Israel – almost a fifth of the population, live in poverty.
- Of the 2 062 000 children living in Israel close to 27% live under the poverty line
- 18% of Israel’s elderly are new immigrants from the FSU. They have meagre resources and limited Hebrew. Many are disabled.
- 15% of the children in Israel are under the care of the welfare services.
- Some 68 000 Israeli children are being raised to some extent outside of their biological homes. Of these, 10 000 have been removed from their homes because they are in imminent danger.
- The Fund for the Victims of Terror has distributed US$3.3 million, helping over 2 500 people
- A special fund for orphans has put aside US$5 000 in a savings account for each of the 400 children who have been orphaned as a result of the terrorism.
- When any terror incident occurs, the Fire and Rescue Services are the first on the scene, providing the vital initial response.
- In the event of an Iraqi attack on Israel, the fire and rescue service will have a critical role to play.
- In an emergency situation, 4 minutes is the crucial response time and can make the difference between life and death.
- There are 462 000 Jews in the Former Soviet Union.
- There are 200 000 Jews in Argentina
- There are 22 500 Jews in Uruguay.
- The Jewish Agency manage 33 absorption centres throughout Israel.
- Some 10 000 people currently reside in Jewish Agency Absorption Centres.
Absorption services include:
Direct municipal absorption
Ulpanim
Kibbutz ulpan
Information centres
Employment training and retraining