Yedioth Ahronoth: Number of Those Fleeing Israel Due to War Reaches One Million

The Hebrew newspaper “Yedioth Ahronoth” revealed an increase in the number of settlers leaving Israel for abroad, in light of rising threats, the ongoing war in Gaza, a declining standard of living, and worsening internal divisions. It indicated that the number of those fleeing the country has reached one million since last October.

The newspaper said, “These reasons have led many Israelis to reconsider staying in Israel and to fear for their future.”

It quoted data from the Central Bureau of Statistics indicating a 20% increase in the number of emigrants compared to the previous year, apart from the phenomenon of Israeli communities forming abroad in the past two years.

While statistical reports pointed to an increase in reverse migration from Israel after the outbreak of the war on Gaza, announcements have been noticed regarding the establishment of movements and associations under the slogan “Let’s Leave Together,” which have attracted tens of thousands of Israeli settlers.

Previously, former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett urged settlers not to leave Israel and expressed deep fears about the consequences of this migration, confirming that Israel is going through its toughest period since its founding, with the confusion of war, international boycott, damage to deterrence, 120 Israelis held captive, thousands of bereaved families, thousands of displaced, loss of economic control, and a deficit. Bennett said, “All this is entirely true, but one thing worries me, and that is the talk of leaving the country.”

A public opinion poll among Israelis revealed that 40% are considering reverse migration, i.e., leaving Palestine and returning from where they came, citing various reasons for the deterioration in Israel, such as the economic situation, inequality, and disappointment due to the stalled settlement with the Palestinians.

In the same context, according to a study issued by the “Begin Center of Heritage,” 59% of Jews in Israel have approached or are considering approaching foreign embassies to inquire and apply for foreign citizenships, while 78% of Jewish families expressed support for their young people’s travel abroad.

Amid growing Israeli concerns about mass emigration, the right-wing writer Kalman Liebskind wrote in an article in the Hebrew newspaper “Maariv” that “we are witnessing an increasing phenomenon in Israeli society represented by a growing left-wing Israeli class distancing itself from Zionism and Israel, showing less and less interest in the Jewish state. They themselves are conducting an active and vigilant discourse against the entire Zionist project, calling for revisiting the events of the Nakba, the Palestinian state, and the reality of the 48 and 67 borders,” as he put it.

He added, “Most of these activists are engaged in Israeli civil organizations that receive donations from foreign countries, with the goal of tarnishing the reputation of the Israeli army and its soldiers. Now, they realize that the Israeli and Zionist community they belong to is fundamentally wrong, and they have adopted slogans like the green line, which separates Jews and Palestinians, being a symbol of the distinction between what is legitimate and illegitimate. They have started differentiating between Kiryat Arba settlement in Hebron and the city of Ramat Aviv in Tel Aviv, and they believe that the state’s attempts to maintain a Jewish majority are undemocratic,” as confirmed by the right-wing writer.

In a study prepared and published by the Israeli Ministry of Absorption, it was found that a third of Jews in Israel now support the idea of emigration, especially after the “Sword of Jerusalem” battle in May 2021. It was expected in both Palestinian and Israeli statistics that the number of Jews in historic Palestine would have reached, a year before, 6.9 million, compared to 7.2 million Arabs.

According to Ministry of Absorption figures, a total of 720,000 Jewish settlers have left Israel and settled abroad since early 2021, while the same year recorded a surplus in the reverse migration balance of Jewish migrants who primarily came from abroad.