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By TPS<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The number of\nindividuals in Israel diagnosed with the COVID-19 coronavirus rises daily, and\npro-Israel Christian organizations have joined the struggle to help contend\nwith the pandemic in the Jewish state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ)\nhas decided to lend a hand in Israel\u2019s fight against the pandemic and approved\nover the weekend $2 million in special grants to 15 hospitals for respiratory\nequipment and other lifesaving machinery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Additionally, The IFCJ purchased 20 special testing devices\nfor Magen David Adom (MDA), Israel\u2019s emergency medical response organization.\nThe devices will help the staff test patients and reduce the burden on\nhospitals, preventing unnecessary contact between Coronavirus patients and\ntheir surroundings. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The organization says\nthat it has received dozens of requests over the past week from hospitals\nfinding it difficult to manage without some of the required medical equipment.\nThe IFCJ has expedited grant approvals and the hospitals have already begun the\nprocurement process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The IFCJ has put\nemphasis is prioritizing hospitals in Israel\u2019s periphery which are at increased\nrisk of collapse in the event of a Coronavirus patient overload.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The assistance to\nhospitals is part of a $5 million emergency fund that the Fellowship announced\nearlier this month. The fund also provides basic needs to the elderly who are\nmore vulnerable to the Coronavirus than other age groups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In support of this\neffort, the Fellowship started a fundraising campaign, mobilizing thousands of\nits donors from around the world to raise money for Israelis in need as they\ncope with the pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yael Eckstein,\nPresident and CEO of the IFCJ, said that \u201cIsrael is dealing with an emergency\nlike it has never known, and we are all committed to enlisting and assisting\nthe medical teams that are at the forefront in this struggle. This is an urgent\nneed, and we will go above and beyond in order to help in every way possible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Similarly, the\nInternational Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ) is helping to care for elderly\nIsraelis confined to the homes, including hundreds of Holocaust survivors.\n\u201cWhile the government\u2019s measures to fight the Coronavirus is impacting the\nwhole country, I am glad we are still able to help Israel pull through this\ncrisis in a number of ways,\u201d said ICEJ President Dr. J\u00fcrgen B\u00fchler.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The ICEJ has seven\nChristian staff and volunteers in Haifa who have been helping to pack and\ndeliver food boxes to hundreds of senior citizens in the city who are confined\nto their homes as a health precaution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The ICEJ team also was\nspecially tasked with providing food and daily care, including medical checks,\nfor the 70 residents at its Haifa Home for Holocaust survivors, who must stay\nin their rooms as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In addition, ICEJ staff\nin Jerusalem packed and delivered food boxes this past week to a number of\nelderly and disabled Israelis who are regularly cared for by its team of\nnurses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This coming week, the\nChristian Embassy will have staff working with the Israeli charities Latet and\nEzrat Avot to pack and deliver food boxes to the front doors of hundreds of\nIsraeli senior citizens who must remain in their homes to avoid the virus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe are working within\nthe rules set by the Health Ministry to help Israelis as much as we can in this\ntroubling time confronting the whole world,\u201d said Dr. B\u00fchler. \u201cWe know it is in\ndifficult moments like these when our efforts to bless and comfort Israel count\nthe most.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n