January 19, 2017, Updated January 22, 2017

Israeli and Jewish American humanitarian aid organizations have launched an emergency mission to deliver warm clothing to Syrian refugees suffering from sub-zero temperatures and heavy snowfall in Greece. The extreme wintry weather has made life in the refugee camps even more difficult than usual.

The non-governmental international humanitarian aid organizations, Amaliah (based in New York) and iAID (based in Tel Aviv) are currently in Greece with a team of five Israeli and Jewish American relief workers. The relief workers are bringing winter clothing, rain gear, sleeping bags and blankets to refugees on the island of Lesbos.

The 1.5 tons of supplies were gathered via donations from ordinary Israelis and sorted, packed, and readied for shipment.

European humanitarian agencies put out a distress call and the new Israeli organization iAID together with Amaliah answered.

Moti Kahana, founder of Amaliah, said photos showing children walking barefoot in the snow in Lesbos triggered him to launch the emergency relief mission.

“That reminded me of how I grew up poor in Jerusalem,” said Kahana, “and it broke my heart that this was happening to these children. In only five days, our friends in Israel made a miracle happen.”

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