On the morning of October 7, 2023, Dr. Daniel Bral, 36, was in Israel visiting relatives when the Hamas-led attack began. “It took me a few seconds to understand what was happening,” Bral said. “I knocked on doors in the house to wake everyone up and we ran together to the safe room. I was in shock when I realized what was going on. It was like a nightmare becoming reality.”
Bral is among the most recent immigrants to Israel from North America, arriving in 2025, and his personal story reflects a broader trend. According to year-end data from Nefesh B’Nefesh, 4,150 new immigrants from North America moved to Israel in 2025, the highest number since 2021 and a 12% increase from the previous year. The average age was 31, underscoring the appeal of Aliyah among young adults and families.
Although Bral was born in the United States, when the war broke out he wanted only to remain in Israel and help in any way he could. Instead, a new medical position he had already accepted forced him to return to the U.S., a decision he described as painful and conflicted. “My workplace told me I had to return and not delay my arrival,” he said. “It took several days to find a flight back. The journey was not simple and included many stops, but once they knew I was coming from Israel, people made sure I had food and water at every stop.”
Upon landing in Miami, Bral said he faced a moment of reckoning. After 15 years of medical education and training, he had landed the job he had dreamed of yet found himself leaving Israel during a moment of national crisis. “I felt it was wrong to leave Israel while Jewish blood was being spilled,” he said. “My priorities changed.”
He struggled to resume work in the United States and soon realized his life needed to take a different direction. “What happened on October 7 made me understand that I needed to accelerate my plans for Aliyah,” Bral said. “I could not accept treating patients in the United States instead of helping in Israel.”
'Leaving is a mistake because antisemitism is on the rise'
Bral recently immigrated to Israel with the assistance of Nefesh B’Nefesh, in cooperation with the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, the Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael and Jewish National Fund-USA.
He said his connection to Israel has always been deeply rooted in his family. “My bond with Israel was always there. It’s something I grew up with in my parents’ home, not as an abstract idea but as part of who we are as a family,” he said.
Bral first visited Israel at age 10. “The first time I came here, I felt the air was different. That feeling stayed with me,” he recalled. Encounters with Israelis and friendships with peers, he said, created a much deeper and more personal connection. After high school, he spent a year in Israel studying at a yeshiva, a stay that evolved from a one-year plan into a lasting commitment and a dream of eventual Aliyah.
An anesthesiologist who treats adults and children in private practice, Bral currently works on a travel basis between Israel and the United States. That flexibility, he said, allows him to support himself by working periodically in the U.S. while settling in Israel and building a local career. He has received approval to practice medicine in Israel and is now seeking a position that will allow him to maintain that balance. Fluent in Hebrew and also a Spanish speaker, he said language will not be a barrier.
Family members and close friends greeted him at Ben Gurion Airport upon his arrival. He plans to live in the Tel Aviv area and is currently searching for an apartment.
At a time when emigration from Israel is higher than usual, with about 69,000 Israelis leaving the country in 2025, Bral said he has a clear message. “Many who leave think the grass is greener elsewhere, but they will quickly realize that it is not,” he said. “Israel has many problems, but other countries have problems too. Leaving is a mistake because antisemitism is on the rise. Home is Israel. You cannot give up on it.”
Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Nefesh B’Nefesh, sees Berl’s story as reflective of the deep bond between Jews in the Diaspora and the State of Israel.
“It was precisely out of the trauma and pain of October 7th that Daniel chose not to distance himself, but rather to draw closer, transforming his personal connection to Israel into a courageous, life-defining decision to make Aliyah,” Rabbi Yehoshua Fass says. “Physicians and professionals like Daniel strengthen not only Israel’s healthcare system, but also the country’s overall national resilience. At Nefesh B’Nefesh, we are proud to accompany immigrants who arrive with a sense of mission and a sincere desire to be partners in building the future of Israeli society.”
First published: 11:56, 01.08.26