Support for Israel
© New Israel Fund Deutschland e. V.
© New Israel Fund Deutschland e. V.
Alongside the Central and Eastern Europe region, Israel is a priority country for the EVZ Foundation's funding activities. Since the terrorist attacks by Hamas on October 7, 2023, civil society in Israel has done a great deal to care for terror survivors and internally displaced persons, to support Shoah survivors and their families and to promote peaceful coexistence between Jewish and Arab people in Israel.
One and a half years after 7 October, the challenges for civil society in Israel remain great. The EVZ Foundation and the New Israel Fund Germany are committed to strengthening the network of democratic civil society actors in both countries. We want to promote Israeli perspectives in Germany as well as the mutual exchange of knowledge and experience.
One year after this turning point in Israel's history, the needs of civil society remain high. For this reason, Aktion Sühnezeichen Friedensdienst e.V., Alfred Landecker Foundation, AMCHA Deutschland e.V., New Israel Fund Deutschland e.V., the German-Israeli Future Forum Foundation and the EVZ Foundation have jointly founded the Israel Network. The Israel Network sends a signal of solidarity from German society to Israeli civil society and supports democratic civil society actors in the country. The network is a link between people and organizations in Germany who want to provide help and projects in Israel that need support. Other organizations such as the Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Kirche und Rechtsextremismus, Gesicht zeigen! Für ein weltoffenes Deutschland, Makkabi Deutschland, the German-Israeli Society and the Amadeu-Antonio Foundation support the cause.
100% of the donations collected by the network are passed on to the supported projects and thus benefit the people in Israel directly and in full. These include psychosocial support services for survivors of the Shoah and support for a Jewish-Arab emergency aid center in Rahat. Aid for survivors, for a Jewish-Arab emergency aid center and for internally displaced persons are the focus of the network's fundraising campaign. In an interview, Maja Sojref, Managing Director of NIF, explains how we are building bridges between German and Israeli civil society - and also how much agitation the network faces in the process.
The free Matan hotline for Hebrew speakers can be reached daily at 0800-0001642. The hotline is offered by the Counseling Center for Anti-Semitic Violence and Discrimination OFEK e.V. together with the Central Welfare Office for Jews in Germany and in cooperation with the Israeli Community in Europe. More information can be found here and on Instagram: @matan_line.
OFEK e.V. also offers services such as psychological support, counseling and safer spaces. OFEK e.V. can be reached nationwide at + 49 800 664 52 68 or +49 176 45875532. Requests for Safer Spaces for groups, institutions, etc. can be sent to saferspaces@ofek-beratung.de.
Antisemitismus on TikTok
The Bildungsstätte Anne Frank has published an e-book that explains anti-Semitic codes and narratives on TikTok. "Safer TikTok - Strategien im Umgang mit Antisemitismus und Hassrede auf TikTok" was created as part of the project Antisemitismuskritische Bildungsinitiative auf TikTok. It analyzes anti-Semitism on TikTok and shows strategies for taking active action against it.
You can download the E-Book here.