Last flight for UIA
The last chartered flight of Operation Dove’s Wings will land today in Israel, in accordance with the Government of Israel’s decision to complete this historic journey of organized Aliyah from Ethiopia.
Heading home
A farewell ceremony for the 450 olim (new immigrants) will take place that same morning at the Israeli Embassy in Addis Ababa, with Jewish Agency Chairman, Natan Sharansky Israel’s Minister of Immigrant Absorption, Sofa Landver, and Israel’s Ambassador to Ethiopia, Belaynesh Zevadia. Shortly thereafter, the two chartered flights organized by The Jewish Agency will head to Ben Gurion Airport in Israel for a welcome ceremony with Agency representatives, the Absorption Ministry, the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ), Keren Hayesod-United Israel Appeal, as well as other donors and supporters.
Operation Dove’s Wings began three years ago in November 2010 with the Government of Israel (GOI)’s decision to bring to Israel thousands of Falash Mura who had been awaiting immigration in Gondar. The GOI appointed The Jewish Agency to prepare those eligible for entry to Israel (per Israel’s Ministry of the Interior) and the Ministry of Absorption to resettle them upon their arrival.
To prepare these olim (immigrants) for a successful life in Israel, The Jewish Agency for Israel operated a community center in Gondar, Ethiopia with the support of IFCJ and JFNA. This center has provided a wide range of educational and social services. Upon their arrival in Israel, The Jewish Agency housed these new immigrants in 17 absorption centers throughout the country run by Israel’s Absorption Ministry and The Agency.
In all, the Jewish Agency chartered 91 fights to bring 7,000 Ethiopians to Israel as part of Operation Dove’s Wings. These last two chartered flights with 450 new immigrants onboard were organized by The Agency, with the support of Keren Hayesod.
Speakers at the airport welcoming ceremony on August 28th will include: Sharansky, Landver, Housing Minister Uri Ariel, IFCJ President Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, KH-UIA Chairman Eliezer (Mody) Zandberg, as well as KH-UIA member Airtom Clerman and JFNA member Danny Labin, among others.
A live feed of the flights’ landings and the welcome ceremony will be available on the Jewish Agency website: www.Jewishagency.org/doveswings and on our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/jewishagency
The Jewish Agency is funded in part by UIA.
