Thousands of Jews have left Israel since the October 7 attacks
Source: CBS News/AP
Updated on: December 20, 2024 / 7:00 AM EST
Leaving Israel is easier, Shira Z. Carmel thinks, by saying it's just for now. But she knows better. For the Israeli-born singer and an increasing number of relatively well-off Israelis, the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack shattered any sense of safety and along with it, Israel's founding promise: to be the world's safe haven for Jews. That day, thousands of Hamas militants blew past the country's border defenses, killed 1,200 Israelis and dragged 250 more into Gaza in a siege that caught the Israeli army by surprise and stunned a nation that prides itself on its military prowess. This time, during what became known as Israel's 9/11, the army didn't come for hours.
Ten days later, a pregnant Carmel, her husband and their toddler boarded a flight to Australia, which was looking for people in her husband's profession. And they spun the explanation to friends and family as something other than permanent — "relocation" is the easier-to-swallow term — acutely aware of the familial strain and the shame that have shadowed Israelis who leave for good.
"We told them we're going to get out of the line of fire for awhile," Carmel said more than a year later from her family's new home in Melbourne. "It wasn't a hard decision. But it was very hard to talk to them about it. It was even hard to admit it to ourselves."
Thousands of Israelis have left the country since Oct. 7, 2023, according to government statistics and immigration tallies released by destination countries such as Canada and Germany. There's concern about whether it will drive a "brain drain" in sectors like medicine and tech. Migration experts say it's possible people leaving Israel will surpass the number of immigrants to Israel in 2024, according to Sergio DellaPergola, a statistician and professor emeritus of Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/thousands-jews-leave-israel-after-october-7-attacks/
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Years ago Israelis who finished their compulsory military service would trek to India for "R & R," described by many as a "Rite of Passage." This began in the late 1960s or early 1970s.
But every year, some Israelis would remain in India and a "hippie" colony was established in Goa, so to speak.
Many of the expatriates said they were tired of Israel's militarized society, alerts, drills, and violence. Similarly, many Americans ended up in Canada (and some in Mexico) during the Vietnam War.
Anxiety, depression, and PTSD increased in both the Jewish and Arab communities in Israel after the 7 Oct 2023 attacks and counterattacks, so this report of a potential brain drain makes sense. Violence is exhausting.
Sources:
https://www.newstatesman.com/world/2013/01/why-are-there-so-many-israeli-ex-soldiers-india
https://www.tripoto.com/india/trips/why-israelis-in-india-love-india-897940
https://homegrown.co.in/homegrown-voices/tracking-down-flipped-out-israelis-in-india
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-01-ptsd-depression-anxiety-israel-aftermath.html