As 2020 comes to an end, a year of deep crisis across the world, we reflect on how it affects us all in profound ways. We know that this is a tough time for everyone. Covid has slowed down the rhythm of lives everywhere, but it has also exacerbated existing problems. The virus has revealed inequities and vulnerabilities in all of the societies and revealed a very real threat to democracy and social and economic inequality is only increasing.

In 2020 the New Israel Fund’s task to build a more just, more democratic, more equal society in Israel continued in this time of unprecedented challenges. With your support, we’ve achieved so much this year. With your support, we have empowered Israel’s change-makers and civil society leaders to defend the rights of minorities and fight injustices of all kinds. With your support, NIF’s projects on the ground in Israel continue to be productive and impactful.

I wanted to share with you this video by NIF Israel Director, Mickey Gitzin. The video was originally produced for NIF’s growing supporter base in Israel and tells the story of how NIF responded to the pandemic and the impact we have had. The video is in Hebrew with English subtitles.

The impact that Mickey explains NIF has been able to have is down to your support and that of thousands more – Israeli, Brits and others.

Together, we are standing guard to make sure that this terrible pandemic is not used as cover to advance an anti-democratic agenda. We are making sure that in this hour of crisis, no one is left out or left behind. Not on our watch. We will stand together, shoulder-to-shoulder, together we will continue to fight for a better Israel.

Here are just three stories from the projects we fund which demonstrate that support for NIF is the best way to shape a more inclusive, equal and democratic Israel:

• At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Israel’s Ministry of Health was publishing urgent public health regulations, but only in Hebrew. After advocacy by PHRI and Adalah, government websites began publishing public health information in Arabic, Amharic, Tigrine, and other languages.
• We partnered with three Israeli organisations to distribute much-needed food, toiletries, health care and other basics to thousands of families of refugees and people seeking asylum. It started when the Covid-19 pandemic first hit Israel but still continues as the economic fallout rolls on.
• For the first time, 2,300 residents of Khasem Zaneh, a Bedouin village in the Negev, are receiving water and electricity, just like nearby Jewish towns, having for years been denied those basic services by the government.

Thanks for all that you do.

Wishing you and your family a safe and happy new year.
Adam Ognall