Despite travel-related obstacles posed by the recent Iran-Israel war, the Jewish Agency for Israel has sent its largest-ever delegation of 2,050 Summer Camp Shlichim (“emissaries”) to 190 camps across North America this season.
“Operation Rising Lion” forced the unprecedented closure of Israeli airspace for seven days; 1,200 of this year’s Israeli shlichim had already reached North America, and 850 remained in Israel.
Beginning on June 20, as part of what was termed “Operation Aqaba,” 120 shlichim boarded buses in Haifa and Tel Aviv, made a brief stop in Beersheva, and journeyed through the night until they reached Eilat. From there, they crossed the border into Jordan and boarded a charter flight to Athens. The next day, they headed to North America.
The under-the-radar operation was executed by more than 30 Jewish Agency staff and partners across three countries.
Subsequently, the agency also secured 700 seats that were designated for summer-camp shlichim on special flights, rerouting them via Athens and through limited-capacity direct flights to New York.
“It was not a matter of ‘if’ the Summer Camp Shlichim would arrive in North America, but ‘when,’ ” said Mark Wilf, chairman of the board of governors of the Jewish Agency. “We made this commitment because the relationship-building value of our Summer Shlichut Program is unparalleled. As they foster genuine relationships with young Jewish North Americans and with their fellow staff members at camp, the shlichim themselves undergo an immersive experience with the Jewish community outside of Israel. Each summer, the Jewish communities on both sides of the Atlantic are forever transformed by this journey.”
The Jewish Agency sends young Israelis ages 19 to 25 to Jewish summer camps, where they impart their experience and skills, creating lasting bonds with campers and forging connections to Israel. These emissaries bring their Israeli perspective to camp communities as a vehicle for cultivating genuine relationships with campers and staff. Shlichim hail from all over Israel and come from a variety of backgrounds in a true display of the country’s diversity. The summer 2025 delegation is up 31% from the 1,565 shlichim who served at North American camps last year, and breaks the previous record of 1,608 emissaries from 2022.
“Summer camps are a magical cornerstone of North American Jewish life and provide the perfect setting for creating the special bonds between our summer shlichim and the camp communities,” said Maj. Gen. (res.) Doron Almog, chairman of the Jewish Agency. “This is a time for the Jewish people, including our young people, to understand and support one another.”
Yehuda Setton, Jewish Agency CEO and director general, said “having served as a shaliach myself, I can attest to how powerful this experience can be in building lasting relationships between Israelis and North Americans. I am proud and grateful to our partners that we are increasing the impact of our shlichim this summer.”
Once abroad, they interact with more than 150,000 campers, staff and community members across the continent.
Hanoch Greenberg, director of the Summer Shlichut Program at the Jewish Agency, reported that “while nobody could have anticipated just how complex things would become for getting shlichim to North America this summer, the enduring power of our mission has guided us through immense challenges.”
He added that “there is no substitute for how shlichim bring firsthand accounts from Israel to North American campers and staff. This relationship-building also goes both ways. Being at camp allows shlichim to form real bonds within the North American community, and they return home to Israel with a deeper connection to world Jewry.”