Six Chicago area synagogues donating ambulance to Israel
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Synagogues in the Chicago area have been stepping up to help the relief effort in Israel amid the war against Hamas.
Six local congregations joined together to purchase an ambulance to send to Israel. Fundraising started more than a year ago to donate the ambulance in honor of Israel's 75th anniversary, but the effort took on new urgency after Hamas' surprise attack earlier this month.
Magen David Adom (MDA), Israel's emergency medical service partnered with the Red Cross, said contributions like this can be the difference between life and death.
"We are so grateful for the initiative of the reform synagogues here to think about us, and the response of the community members, because all the ambulances that we have are manufactured here in the U.S.," said Yoni Yagadovsky, director of international relations at MDA.
The synagogues will ship the ambulance overseas later this week. It should arrive within a month.
According to the Associated Press, more than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed since the Hamas attack, and at least 222 people were captured. More than 5,000 Palestinians, including 2,000 children and around 1,100 women, have been killed in Gaza, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said Monday. That includes the disputed toll from an explosion at a hospital last week.
This is the deadliest by far of five wars fought between Israel and Hamas in less than 15 years.