Israel launches major aliyah initiative as antisemitism surges in Western countries

The Israeli Ministerial Committee on Immigration and Absorption on Tuesday approved a large-scale Jewish immigration (Aliyah) initiative titled “Nevertheless – Aliyah of Renewal,” amid rising antisemitism in Western countries. Anti-Jewish and anti-Israel incidents have surged across the West following Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, massacre of 1,200 Israelis.

The new national program offers housing assistance, grants, and fast-tracked bureaucratic processes for prospective Jewish immigrants from countries such as Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and France.

Antisemitic incidents between 2022 and 2023 soared by 562% in Canada, 450% in the UK, 350% in France and 387% in Australia according to new data released by the Israeli Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Ministry in cooperation with the World Zionist Organization and the Jewish Agency. 

The rise in antisemitic incidents have also led to a dramatic increase in Aliyah applications opened in these Western countries. For instance, the data indicates that immigration applications increased by 384% in France and 218% in the UK. However, officials admit that there is a considerable gap between immigration applications and actual number of immigrants intending to move to the Jewish state. 

“This is a historic opportunity to strengthen the State of Israel precisely at a time of crisis for Jewish communities abroad,” the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration stated, adding “through smart, rapid and inclusive absorption.”

The national plan is expected to be implemented through an interministerial team, which will likely be led by Israel’s Aliyah and Integration Minister Ofir Sofer. The budget of the ambitious immigration program is expected to amount to hundreds of millions of shekels between the years 2026 and 2029. 

The Jewish state has traditionally absorbed Jewish immigrants from Muslim-majority countries in the Middle East region as well as Eastern Europe and former Soviet republics. By comparison, the number of immigrants from Western countries have been quite moderate. 

Last year, Israel absorbed some 21,900 immigrants according to the country’s Immigration and Absorption Ministry. This constituted a decline in immigration by a third compared to the previous year. The decline in immigration was attributed to a 50% decrease in immigration from Russia, a country.

However, despite the overall decrease in immigration to Israel, immigration from France rose by 45% and from the United States and Canada by 13% in 2025. There was also an increase in Jewish immigration from the UK to Israel. 

“These new Olim are already helping to address Israel’s national needs and strengthen its future, and we recognize the significance of their decision to establish their lives in the State of Israel at this pivotal moment in the country’s history,” assessed Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, the co-founder and executive director of Nefesh B-Nefesh, an NGO that specializes in promoting Jewish immigration to Israel from the United States and other select Western nations. 

Israel absorbed more than one million immigrants from the former Soviet republics in the early 1990s. Immigration levels declined in the years that followed. In 2022, however, Israel welcomed approximately 70,000 new immigrants – the highest annual figure in two decades. That increase was largely attributed to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the resulting surge in immigration from both countries.