ICEJ joins efforts to rebuild Kibbutz Be’eri following devastation from Oct 7 Hamas attack

The International Christian Embassy-Jerusalem (ICEJ) has long supported Israel through various humanitarian aid projects, assistance to vulnerable communities and initiatives aimed at strengthening the nation during times of crisis.

Nicole Yoder, ICEJ vice president for Aid and Aliyah, recently spoke with Christian journalist Paul Calvert about the scale of destruction left behind by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, assault on Kibbutz Be’eri in southern Israel. She detailed both the profound trauma inflicted on the community and the determined efforts now underway to rebuild and restore life in one of the hardest-hit towns.

The Be’eri community, home to roughly 1,200 residents, suffered catastrophic losses, with 101 people murdered on Oct. 7 alone. Entire sections of the kibbutz were destroyed, homes were burned and families were uprooted, and that “10% of the community was wiped out in the massacre that happened there,| Yoder said. “It was very, very devastating.”

Yet amid the trauma, resilience quickly emerged. Within a week, the Be'eri's printing press – one of the largest in Israel – resumed operations, allowing limited activity to normalize even while most residents were evacuated to the Dead Sea and other locations.

Yoder noted that despite the dispersion of residents, the Be’eri community remained unified, making collective decisions about rebuilding and returning. She said roughly 80% of residents are expected to come back.

At a June 2024 groundbreaking ceremony marking the start of reconstruction, a community leader challenged the residents to decide how history would remember them – as victims of tragedy or as a new generation willing to rebuild and pioneer once again. Yoder said she was struck by the community’s shared resolve, as the leader reflected that many had thought the era of pioneering spirit was long past, but that this moment demanded a choice.

Yoder recalled him saying, "We thought that the pioneering generation was past and that those days were done,' he said. Today we have to make a decision. We have to decide, who are we going to be in the history books?”

“This is a community that's only four kilometers from the border. There's not any change in its location," Yoder reminded Calvert. “It takes a lot of courage to get back up after such an event and to say, ‘No, we're going to rebuild. We're going to reclaim our lives. We're going to look towards the future with hope.’”

Today, the ICEJ is directly involved in Be’eri’s reconstruction efforts. A youth activity center and a dental clinic that were destroyed in the attack are being rebuilt, and a rehabilitation center for the elderly is undergoing renovation.

Yoder also told Calvert that residents of Be'eri are getting the counseling support that they need.

"That's been a part of the process, whether it's enough, I mean, I don't know how to say, you know, I think that's something that you see one step at a time and hopefully they will continue to get it into the future. And there could always be more done, because I know that all the regions in the south that were affected, the needs in terms of healthcare, like mental health care and support and counseling support are 10 times what they were.”

The ICEJ is also assisting Kibbutz Kfar Aza, another community heavily impacted on Oct. 7, with a focus on addressing trauma and supporting its most vulnerable residents, including children and the elderly. The organization is helping renovate a kindergarten to serve therapeutic needs and remodeling a central building into a music therapy and community center aimed at fostering resilience and healing after the loss of dozens of residents.

Yoder explained that Israelis are often surprised that it is a Christian organization that is helping them. "On the other hand, I felt that they were very, very appreciative... There were so many communities around the world that were immediately kind of, you know, demonstrating against Israel, and they maybe didn't take the time and the effort to really understand fully. And there's been a lot of false information, twisted information."

In that climate, she added, it is deeply encouraging for Israelis to see friends who do not rush to judgment but instead choose to stand with them and offer practical support, because facing a crisis without that solidarity can feel profoundly isolating.

Yoder described her main motivation, which is rooted in her faith and appreciation for the Jewish state.

“It really boils down to the fact that, as a Christian, I feel like I have gained so much from the Jewish people. We share the Bible. And so, it's because of my faith. I want to bless this nation that I have been so blessed by.”

Click below to listen to Nicole Yoder’s full interview with Paul Calvert.

For more interviews and coverage about Kibbutz Be’eri, click here and here. Watch this video featuring the delegation of Evangelical Christians that visited Kibbutz Be’eri with ALL ISRAEL NEWS Editor-in-Chief Joel Rosenberg.