World Mizrachi announced this week that it has helped secure 5 million shekels (about $1.6 million) in funding to assist hundreds of yeshiva and seminary students in MASA programs who are unable to leave Israel for the Passover holiday due to the war.
The funding includes 2.5 million shekels from Keren Kayemet LeIsrael, or KKL, in partnership with the Jewish Agency, with a matching amount from the Israeli government, the organization said.
The initiative was led by Roi Abecassis, deputy chair of KKL and a World Mizrachi representative to Israel’s National Institutions, following requests from program administrators and students. In a typical year, many participants leave Israel during Passover when programs close or dormitories are unavailable.
The funding will be used to keep programs and dorms open at dozens of yeshivot and seminaries, while maintaining academic and social programming for students remaining in the country.
“As soon as we understood the extent of the crisis, where hundreds of students would remain in Israel without a supervised framework during a period they would normally be on vacation, we knew we needed to find a solution,” Abecassis said.
World Mizrachi CEO Rabbi Danny Mirvis said the effort was made possible through coordination with partners in Israel’s National Institutions.
“We were able to turn a difficult situation into an opportunity to provide practical support and meaningful programming for students unable to travel,” he said.
The organization thanked KKL, the Jewish Agency, MASA and the Israeli government for their cooperation.
Separately, World Mizrachi said it will provide more than 800,000 shekels ($256,000) in grants to about 400 married students enrolled in Hesder yeshivot across Israel, a program that combines advanced religious study with military service.
The grants were funded by the Lamm family of Melbourne, Australia, and other donors, the organization said.
Mirvis said the support was intended to recognize students balancing religious study with military service during a time of heightened security challenges.
“We hope these funds provide relief and a sense of support for these individuals and their families during Passover,” he said.