Recently, there has been a growing chorus of Israelis threatening to leave the country if Benjamin Netanyahu wins the next election.
Those making the threat argue that they make up roughly half of Israel's "productive core," and that ignoring their outcry will turn Israel into a third-world country without a thriving high-tech industry, advanced medical services or a modern, high-quality military. To support their case, they point to the increase in the number of people leaving Israel since the current government took office. Their claims deserve examination ahead of the upcoming Independence Day.
The Central Bureau of Statistics has published full data for 2023 and 2024. The figures show that 55,300 people emigrated from Israel in 2023. In the same year, however, 46,069 new Olim arrived in Israel and 27,800 returning Israeli residents came back to live in the country. That amounts to a positive balance of about 18,859.
In 2024, the number of emigrants rose to 82,700, while the number of Olim fell to 32,800 and the number of returning residents stood at 23,800, producing a negative balance of 26,100. In view of these figures, which are fairly negligible relative to Israel's overall population, it would not be serious to declare that the country is on the verge of collapse because of those leaving. Nor is there any basis for the claim that the people leaving constitute Israel's "productive core" and that their departure therefore poses a danger. The latest Central Bureau of Statistics data, published in 2023 on the educational breakdown of Olim to Israel, clearly shows that they are more educated than those who leave. Some 78% have more than 13 years of schooling, and nearly half of that group have more than 16 years of education.
A breakdown of the Olim' occupations shows that 67% are in academic professions, including science, engineering, technology and medicine. The new Olim are passionate Zionists, eager to contribute to the country in every possible way. It is also reasonable to assume that returning residents are in no way inferior in terms of "productivity" to those who leave. Most went abroad for study or work and are now returning to their homeland equipped with the experience and education they acquired overseas.
An unloaded gun
In other words, those threatening to leave the country if democracy does not "fall in line" with their wishes are brandishing an unloaded gun. The government should focus on strengthening ties with Diaspora Jewry and encouraging the Aliyah of Zionist Jews. Olim are the guarantee of Israel's future. The antisemitic climate experienced by many Jewish communities abroad in recent years will inevitably bring significant waves of Olim in the years ahead, and we must invest in absorbing them.
Those who choose to leave should be wished well. But they should bear in mind that the State of Israel will remain a Jewish and democratic state in which every citizen has an equal voice, and the elitism in whose name they demand special rights cannot coexist with genuine democracy.
In the 2021 social survey published by the Central Bureau of Statistics, it emerged that most Jews in Israel define themselves as religious or traditional, at 55%. That finding was also confirmed in a Pew survey conducted in 2025. Some may fear that Israel is becoming more traditional, and the current coalition, in their eyes, symbolizes that change. But Israeli citizens must be allowed to shape the content of the definition of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, rather than have the will of the majority constrained by the tyranny of the minority.
We are living in a generation of the ingathering of the exiles, as the prophet Jeremiah foretold: "Therefore, behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when it shall no more be said, 'As the Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt,' but, 'As the Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north and from all the lands where He had driven them.' For I will bring them back into their land which I gave to their fathers."
The State of Israel is the miracle of the ingathering of the exiles, and according to the words of the prophet Jeremiah, this is an even greater miracle than the Exodus from Egypt. Israel will succeed even without those who leave, who do not wish to be part of this wonder.
