A medical rescue plane carrying elderly Holocaust survivors, as well as sick and wounded people who were rescued by ZAKA volunteers from the combat zones in the heart of Ukraine, landed on Wednesday evening at Ben Gurion Airport.
A special team of ZAKA doctors and paramedics accompanied the medical flight from Moldova to Israel. The body of the late Holocaust survivor Aharon Skamorovsky, who was rescued with his wife from Kyiv by ZAKA volunteers and died at a Kishinev hospital surrounded by his family, was also brought on the flight for burial in Israel.
The Olim were greeted by Minister of Aliyah and Absorption Pnina Tamano-Shata, ZAKA Director General Duby Weissenstern, the CEO of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews Ayelet Shiloh Tamir, employees of the Ministry of Aliyah and Absorption, accompanied by ambulances from ZAKA and Ezer Mitzion, who transported the new Olim to hospitals, nursing homes and designated apartments that were prepared for them in advance.
Minister of Aliyah and Absorption Pnina Tamano-Shata said, “Nothing is more symbolic on this eve of Holocaust Memorial Day than welcoming the Holocaust survivors who fled the battles in Ukraine and came to us on a special rescue flight of the ZAKA and the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. 80 years ago, the Jewish people had nowhere to run, and today every Jew in the world has a protected home. It is a privilege and a first-rate task to help Holocaust survivors, accompany them through difficult moments and make sure that at their age they will have physical and mental security. It is our duty to do so.”