Nearly three years after Oct. 7, Israeli donations keep climbing as philanthropy shifts to recovery

Nearly three years have passed since the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 massacre, and Israel's philanthropic sector is experiencing a shift in charitable giving. While the initial surge in donations was driven by immediate wartime relief, the landscape has evolved, with donations continuing to rise as the country transitions from emergency response to long-term rehabilitation.

Ori Ben-Shlomo, CEO of Israeli donation platform JGive, notes that the numbers have remained high: in the year before October 7, NIS 160 million passed through JGive's platform, rising to NIS 330 million after the attack. As of this year, the platform has already surpassed NIS 400 million in donations.

In the immediate aftermath of October 7, donors focused on providing food, supplies, assistance for evacuees, and support for soldiers. Ben-Shlomo explains that while an influx of foreign donations initially fueled the surge, the majority of funds still came from Israeli donors. This trend suggests that Israelis themselves have become more engaged in charitable giving, with a growing willingness to contribute directly to specific nonprofits rather than relying on intermediaries.

The war has also strengthened the bonds between Israel and Jewish communities abroad, although these relationships have grown more complex. Ben-Shlomo attributes the rise of direct giving to changing consumer behavior, with donors increasingly seeking to support specific organizations or projects directly through digital tools. While established communal institutions still play a significant role in philanthropy, particularly in large donations, direct giving has become more prevalent, especially in the United States.