A first-of-its-kind charter flight from Mexico carrying new immigrants, a group of Masa Israel Journey volunteers, and Israelis returning home landed at Ben-Gurion International Airport on Tuesday.
Dubbed "Operation Home," the flight was organized by the Jewish Agency for Israel and Hanoar Hatzioni, with support from Keren Hayesod.
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The flight, which took off from Mexico City, was carrying 50 new olim and 150 Hanoar Hatzioni graduates who will take part in Masa, a project co-founded by the Jewish Agency and the Israeli government.
"Operation Home" also provided air transport for several dozen Israelis who were stranded due to the limited availability of flights during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Aliyah has never stopped, even during the most difficult crises the state of Israel has experienced," said Jewish Agency Chairman Isaac Herzog.
"Even now, during a global crisis, Jews from all over the world are realizing the Zionist vision and making their new home in Israel. This is a story that touches all Israelis, as most of us are part of our family's first, second, or third generation here in Israel," Herzog said.
Mexico is home to the third-largest Jewish community in Central America (after Argentina and Brazil) with approximately 50,000 Jews, most of whom live in the capital of Mexico City. Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, many of Mexico's synagogues and other Jewish institutions have closed, while schools and youth movements have moved to virtual operations.
The olim on the flight included Carlos and Miriam and their four children, who decided to make aliyah after visiting Israel last year.
"Here, I feel truly at home," Miriam Mercado said. "In Mexico, we are always viewed as 'those Jews' and never felt safe to go out with a kippa. We knew we would always be a minority."
In the first seven months of 2020, the Jewish Agency organized aliyah for 2,269 olim from Latin America, compared with 1,839 during the same period last year, an increase of 23.3%. In Mexico alone, the Jewish Agency has opened 493 aliyah files since January, an increase of 32% from 2019.
The new arrivals were sent directly into the two-week quarantine required by the Health Ministry. Once released, the olim will be integrated into local communities and absorption centers throughout the country.
The members of Hanoar Hatzioni will begin Masa's Israel Challenge and Shnat Hachshara programs, during which they will volunteer on kibbutzim and for Magen David Adom, among other organizations.
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