At the opening of the weekly cabinet session on Sunday, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon declared, "The US has stood by us during difficult times, and it is our duty to assist it in the areas in which we can help. We will do everything in our power to render assistance in the difficult situation in which so many US citizens find themselves."
Sharon reiterated condolences and "sharing in the grief" to the American people in the cabinet meeting as he did last week in a letter sent to US President George Bush.
Sharon asked Defense Minister Sha'ul Mofaz and Health Minister Danny Naveh to verify what aid for the US victims could be readied within a short time. The two ministers responded with answers within a few hours. The next step will be the dispatching of a Defense Ministry and Health Ministry aid delegation to coordinate what may be done in the southern US states.
The Jewish State is preparing to send extensive medical assistance, including the dispatch of medical teams numbering hundreds of people, considerable medical equipment, medicines and additional necessary equipment.
In addition, Israeli companies operating in the United States are organizing relief efforts for Katrina hurricane victims. Israeli-American Chamber of Commerce director Tamar Guy said it is Israel's turn to assist America which "has helped Israel for years."
The organization is considering a government proposal that it send a plane with diapers and toys, Guy said. He noted that food and medical equipment are not top priority because of customs barriers. The Federal Express office in Israel has offered to help with logistics, and El Al cargo will help fly goods to the U.S.
In response to Prime Minister Sharon's offer of aid to the Katrina victims, Binyamin Regional Council Head Pinchas Wallerstein suggested that the government of Israel send an aid delegation to check into the welfare of the Israeli citizens expelled under the Disengagement Plan. "Before extending aid to our ally," Wallerstein said, "the most powerful country in the world, it would be appropriate to first take care of the victims of the not-natural disaster, the one initiated by the Prime Minister himself in the State of Israel. The government failed to properly prepare for the evacuation of 1,800 families. How do they plan to take care of hundreds of thousands of disaster victims?"
Sharon reiterated condolences and "sharing in the grief" to the American people in the cabinet meeting as he did last week in a letter sent to US President George Bush.
Sharon asked Defense Minister Sha'ul Mofaz and Health Minister Danny Naveh to verify what aid for the US victims could be readied within a short time. The two ministers responded with answers within a few hours. The next step will be the dispatching of a Defense Ministry and Health Ministry aid delegation to coordinate what may be done in the southern US states.
The Jewish State is preparing to send extensive medical assistance, including the dispatch of medical teams numbering hundreds of people, considerable medical equipment, medicines and additional necessary equipment.
In addition, Israeli companies operating in the United States are organizing relief efforts for Katrina hurricane victims. Israeli-American Chamber of Commerce director Tamar Guy said it is Israel's turn to assist America which "has helped Israel for years."
The organization is considering a government proposal that it send a plane with diapers and toys, Guy said. He noted that food and medical equipment are not top priority because of customs barriers. The Federal Express office in Israel has offered to help with logistics, and El Al cargo will help fly goods to the U.S.
Binyamin Regional Council Mayor Pinchas Wallerstein