The new arrivals
The new arrivalsWorld Bnei Akiva spokesperson

This morning, 110 Bnei Akiva members from Australia and South Africa landed in Israel for a one-year program.

The group, which consists of 45 young people from South Africa and 65 from Australia, will split into two according to a choice they made before they arrived.

Some will join the "Limud" project, which is an experiential group that every two months undergoes a different educational experience in Israel as part of their training in the program for leadership in Israel and in communities around the world.

The others will join "Mata," a Torah group based on a training period whereby most of the year they are in yeshiva (Yeshivat Hagush and Yeshivat Eretz Hatzvi) and midrasha (Midreshet Harova and the Maayan Institute) with time off spent at Bnei Akiva seminars as part of enrichment programs on Zionism, leadership, language and the Land of Israel.

This morning, the groups were greeted by representatives of World Bnei Akiva at the airport with signs, flags and music.

World Bnei Akiva said, "despite the challenges created by COVID we did not give up on any task we undertook. The emissaries kept going out, trainees kept coming and plans kept coming together. The large turnout today is the result of Jewish Zionist education at home, in the community, and through contact with the movement and emissaries. We have no doubt that everyone who came will be more connected to the Land of Israel, the people of Israel and the Torah of Israel."