WZO asks owners of empty apartments to offer them to displaced Israelis

All those who own empty apartments in Israel should make them available to the residents of the South displaced by the war, the World Zionist Organization said, appealing to Jewish communities in Israel an abroad.

Within the framework of the project, the owners of the apartments transfer responsibility for them to the World Zionist Organization, which is responsible for housing families who lost their homes.

These days there is a tremendous need for long-term temporary housing for hundreds of families who lost their homes and in the meantime have moved to hotels on a temporary basis which cannot be continued in the long term and will be extremely expensive.  

The World Zionist Organization has already thought about the day after and is immediately implementing the project that will be called "My Home is Your Home" at the initiative of Chairman Yaakov Hagoel.

“The World Zionist Organization uses all the means at its disposal to help IDF soldiers, Israeli citizens and Diaspora Jews,” said Hagoel. “Alongside the organization's employees who are now serving the State of Israel on the battlefield, other volunteers and employees of the organization have mobilized fo the home front and are responsible for dozens of initiatives for the security of the State of Israel and its citizens.”

In recent days, the World Zionist Organization has begun to make inquiries among Jews in Israel and the Diaspora who own apartments in Israel that are not occupied and to build an operational and professional setup that will be responsible for accompanying the project, which includes a dedicated website, contacts and advertisements around the world in Hebrew, English, French, Spanish and more.

Mutual responsibility

The World Zionist Organization will take full responsibility for the process of handing over the apartment and will ensure that the apartment is returned in the same way as it was received. 

A contract will be signed between the World Zionist Organization and the owners of the apartments, and another contract between the World Zionist Organization and the family that will live in the apartment, which makes it legally binding for the World Zionist Organization to be the guarantor.

“The 'My Home is Your Home' initiative is an example of the mutual responsibility between the Jews of the Diaspora and the citizens of Israel," Hagoel said. "We are happy to be able to carry out an emotional joining of hearts and further promote the unity of Israel in this difficult time. We want to thank the Jews in Israel and in the Diaspora who join the initiative and everyone who provides a roof over the heads of their brothers in Israel who now need a home where they can find safety, calmness and shelter from the fierce fighting. We are one people and united we will win."

This article was written in cooperation with the World Zionist Organization.