The Head of Department for Combating Antisemitism and Enhancing Resilience, Dr. Racheli Baratz, met with UPEACE Rector, Prof. Francisco Rojas Aravena. UPEACE strives to promote the value of education for peace and is dedicated to fostering a spirit of understanding, tolerance and living in harmony among all human beings. The university is particularly noted for is excellence in the areas of environmental conservation and building cross-cultural bridges. Their conversation addressed how best to foster community resilience and the need for mutual assistance in time of crisis. The Rector received the gift of a yellow ribbon pin from the Head of Department, symbolizing the campaign for the release of the Israeli hostages being held in captivity, and heard her request for UN involvement on their behalf.
Dr. Racheli Baratz, the Head of Department for Combating Antisemitism and Enhancing Resilience, delivered a lecture in Florida, where she presented a snapshot of Israeli resilience since the outbreak of the ‘Iron Swords’ war. She also gave an overview of levels of Antisemitism for 2023-2024, as well as an update on the upsurge in Antisemitism prevailing across US college campuses, parallel to the war in Israel. Her lecture was attended by dozens of representatives from Jewish communities in the region.
The Vice-Chairman and Acting Chairman of the World Zionist Organization, Dr. Yizhar Hess, moderated a public briefing with Maj. Gen. (Res.) Avichai Mandelblit, former IDF Chief Military Advocate and Israel Attorney General. The online event was attended by 400 people worldwide and addressed a number of focal issues related to the war in Gaza as well as additional developments in Israel. Prof. Mandelblit, who is one of Israel’s leading lawyers and a specialist in International Law, refuted the oft-heard allegations against the IDF and combatant soldiers, giving a detailed explanation of the intricacies of warfare in Gaza and Israel’s endeavors to uphold International Law.
The Head of Department for Organization and Israelis Abroad met with Pope Francis at his office in the Vatican City, where she presented His Excellency with a photographic album by photographer Ziv Koren, documenting the October 7 massacre, and requested his support and influence in the campaign for the release of the hostages.
This photographic exhibit about Israel’s Gaza border region, framed in the spirit of hope and renewal, has been displayed in Israeli and Jewish communities around the world. Originally intended as a feature display for Yom Ha’atzma’ut (Israel Independence Day) events, it is currently being exhibited in many centers worldwide and is also planned to appear at the special ceremonies being organized by the World Zionist Organization to mark one year to the date of the massacre. The exhibit is currently on show at Limmud Buenos Aires.
Testimonials from Israel - This umbrella enables survivors to continue sharing personal narratives about the events of October 7. In conjunction with the project, Ayelet Tibi and Idan Kriaf visited small communities in Canada together, including Winipeg and Calgary. To read further about this project, please click on the following link: Testimonials from Israel.
Another facet of this project is the recent USA tour by members of the Shufuni Rock band. These young musicians from Sderot and the Gaza border area played to an audience of 300 in San Rafael, performed and joined a Kabbalat Shabbat ceremony in Orange County, attended by some 350 people, and closed their tour with a performance before an audience of 4,000 in San Diego, as part of the Israel Festival.
Through this special World Zionist Organization campaign to mark 100 days since the October 7 massacres, an appeal was launched to institutions, organizations and the general public to join a worldwide bell-ringing event. The target is to ring one million bells around the world in remembrance of the October 7 victims – the murdered, the wounded, their families and their loved ones – and leverage a public appeal for the immediate release of all the hostages, men, women and children, still held captive by Hamas in Gaza. It is also a call to build a world without terrorism, Antisemitism, fanaticism and racism. Dozens of events and cooperative programs took place across Israel at this time, to mark the passage of 100 days since the black Shabbat. These include one event at Hostages’ Square, another at the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, and a series of events at hotels and universities across Israel.
Project website: 1,000,000 Bells (1000000bells.org)
The World Zionist Organization continues to be involved in efforts to release the captives, demonstrations of support for Israel, fundraising for various initiatives in Israel, advocacy through social networks, television, and printed media worldwide in diverse communities, in all languages and regions.
YouTube -FAQ Videos: Israel, International Law & War Against Hamas
Israeli Women’s Leadership Delegation - As a response to the delegitimization and sidelining occurring by women's organizations, a new women’s leadership initiative was started in Israel. The preparatory meeting for the delegation took place at the President's House with the First Lady, Mrs. Michal Herzog, a well-known, loyal and courageous partner in the fight to promote gender equality and the eradication of violence. As a part of the program, a delegation of thirteen female activists and leaders in their field will go on a trip to the USA, where they will participate in a debate at the United Nations. They will meet with prominent Jewish figures who lead the Jewish-American community today, as well as with Jewish and non-Jewish leaders who lead struggles for the status of women and Zionist values in the national and urban arena in order to strengthen the State of Israel at this time.
A Broadcast in the Memory of the Murdered and the Martyrs - There was a special 24-hour broadcast on YouTube in memory of the murdered and martyrs of the Black Shabbat. The broadcast was intended for people worldwide and featured leaders and community members from all over the world. Over 4,400 people watched the broadcast.
Bad Sobernheim Conference - Two female volunteers flew on behalf of the World Zionist Organization to participate in a conference in Germany and spoke about Israel and the war with about fifty local youth activists in the ZWST organization. In light of the events of October 7th, many have spoken out on the situation in Israel, calling for the return of the hostages immediately and dealing with their Jewish identity and Judaism as a culture. Beyond the added value of the personal meeting, the volunteers gave the participants tools and methodologies for leadership in general as well as leadership in the Jewish world.
International Children’s Day - In preparation for International Children's Day which took place on November 20th, a campaign was organized for administrators and educators around the world to contact UNICEF, and protest that they are not demanding the release of the Israeli children kidnapped in Gaza.
Hundreds of people in Madrid gathered in front of the UNICEF building to demand the release of the kidnapped children in Gaza. In Copenhagen, 800 teddy bears were displayed in the city squares in a display of solidarity for the release of the kidnapped children.
A Letter to Jewish Donors in Academic Institutions Worldwide -The widespread support for Hamas on university campuses all over the world is sickening and deplorable. Thousands of university students and professors alike openly praise Hamas and call for violence against the Jews. The World Zionist Organization has published a letter to university donors calling for the halting of financial support to universities, especially universities in the United States who have seen unprecedented rates of antisemitism and support for Hamas, and do not condemn supporting terrorism and Hamas.
