ISRAEL - 20,000 Olim Arrive

More than 20,000 new immigrants arrived in Israel during the Jewish year 5786 (September 23, 2025 to September 3, 2026), coming from over 100 different countries worldwide, according to a new data report released by the Aliyah and Integration Ministry and the Jewish Agency.

The breakdown of the Aliyah figures for the past year shows that Russia topped the charts with 5,685 olim (immigrants to Israel) arriving in Israel, followed by 4,364 from France, 3,333 from the United States, and 975 from the United Kingdom.

The data also showed that 35% of the olim were people aged 18-35, reflecting significant growth in Israeli society and the economy.

Reflecting the year’s data, the Aliyah and Integration Ministry and the Jewish Agency touched on the Diasporas connection to the Jewish state, stating in the report, “Even in a year marked by a challenging security situation, thousands of Jews from every corner of the globe chose to make aliyah to Israel, build their homes there, and raise their children there – a choice that reflects the deep and enduring connection between world Jewry and the State of Israel.”

-www.jpost.com, 9 September 2026

Commentary: Despite war, Jews from all over the world continue to return to the land of Israel. When we ask why, there is one simple reason: antisemitism. More and more Jews from all over the world are sensing the increasing hatred—a hatred for Jews in virtually every country on planet earth.

Here we must mention that the land of Israel occupies less than 1% of the Middle East, and the country itself is a little larger than the state of New Jersey in the USA. Moreover, 60–65% of Israel is desert. That apparently does not hinder an increasing number of Jews from returning to the land of their fathers. Here is what a Google search states:

Life expectancy: Israel ranks much higher, with an average life expectancy of around 83.8 years compared to the US average of roughly 76-79 years.

Safety: Crime rates and urban street crime are generally lower in Israel, making cities feel safer at night.

Healthcare: Israel features universal healthcare with significantly lower risks of medical bankruptcy compared to the US System.

It seems somewhat contradictory that the people of Israel consistently rank in the top ten of the World Happiness Report. But the real reason is declared by the prophet Ezekiel: “Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel” (Ezekiel 11:17). Verse 19 adds: “And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh.”

That is the deciding point where Israelis differ from Jews in the diaspora. We note the words “a new spirit.” That is the difference. This promise is also given in Ezekiel 36:26, but there is a reason for it, as we can read in verse 27: “And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.” Not “a new spirit” but “my spirit.”

That apparently will happen after the Church is raptured into heaven. “For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob” (Romans 11:25-26).

(See Israel and the Church, Item #2376, $16.99.)