Naama Barak
March 22, 2022

By now, we’ve gotten used to the images of millions of people fleeing Ukraine as their homes turn to rubble. But what about the people who can’t physically flee, such as the elderly and people with disabilities?

Non-profit Access Israel has decided to spotlight this issue and created a crowdfunding campaign to help extract people with accessibility needs.

“Following requests received at Access Israel since the start of the war in Ukraine, it became clear to us that the issue of accessibility is not properly addressed and that people with disabilities and the elderly are being left behind or suffer further hardships than their fellow refugees because of their disability and lack of accessibility and inclusive thinking,” the organization notes on its crowdfunding page.

“Access Israel is currently finding focused solutions to extraction and evacuation requests that are being received from people with disabilities and the elderly in Ukrainian war zones. The solutions include accessible transfer for all types of disabilities to the safety of neighboring towns and cities.”

To date, some 200 donors have raised more than $17,000, and with over three weeks remaining for the campaign, donations are set to grow. Donations are tax-deductible in Israel, Canada, France, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Earlier this week, Israeli national emergency response service Magen David Adom sent four armored ambulances to Ukraine to help treat the wounded and evacuate them from the field. They were flown to Poland and will be driven into neighboring Ukraine for evacuation operations.

Multiple Israeli aid organizations are operating in Ukraine or in neighboring countries to aid refugees. An Israeli field hospital set up in the city of Mostyska in western Ukraine began accepting patients on Tuesday, while groups such as Dream Doctors and United Hatzalah are also working in neighboring Moldova to bring relief to Ukrainians in need.

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Jason Harris

Jason Harris

Executive Director

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