Survey Shows 80% of Israelis Living Abroad Don’t Intend to Return Despite Antisemitism

By Aryeh Stern

The Knesset’s Committee for Immigration, Absorption and Diaspora Affairs, chaired by MK Oded Forer (Yisrael Beitenu), convened on Tuesday to discuss the topic of Israelis in the Diaspora, following the publication of a study on Israelis abroad since the Oct. 7 terror attack.

In a recent survey among Israelis living abroad, conducted by the Hebrew University at the initiative of the WZO, 80% of respondents said they do not intend to return to Israel, despite feeling unsafe in their current countries of residence; 70% of those polled reported that they have significantly changed their behavior in public since Oct. 7. They are more reluctant to display Jewish symbols or speak in Hebrew, they removed the mezuzos from their doorposts, they tend to go out less and meet less frequently in city centers. 44% of respondents considered enhancing their self-defense capabilities, citing the purchase of a firearm, carrying pepper spray or tear gas, installing security cameras in their homes, or taking Krav Maga lessons as the preferred means for achieving this goal. 62.5% of respondents said Israel remains the safest place for Jews.

96% of the 1,713 respondents are Israeli citizens who live outside the country; 55% of them have been living abroad for more than 10 years, and another 19% have been living abroad for more than five years.

Gusti Yehoshua Braverman, chair of the World Zionist Organization’s Department for Diaspora Activities, said “The earth shook beneath the residents of the Gaza perimeter, as well as beneath all Israelis who live in the Diaspora.” Israelis abroad, she said, are very fearful of expressing their Jewish identity in public, and the surge in antisemitism on university campuses has brought Israelis abroad to a state of utter despair, without an adequate response.

“We have to form umbrella organizations of Israelis in various places around the world. Most of the Israelis do not plan on returning to Israel, and an adequate response must be provided for them, wherever they may be. We have to find the [young generation of leaders of​ Israelis abroad], nurture them, and provide them with the tools for coping with antisemitism around the world,” Braverman stated.

A resident of Sydney, Australia, told the committee: “Since Oct. 7, we have experienced a 738% increase in antisemitic incidents in Australia. The Israeli and Jewish students do not know how to cope with the antisemitic attacks on the campuses.”

Ofer Tamir, a resident of Miami, said 10% of the citizens of Israel live abroad. “The Israelis do not know how to live in exile alongside antisemitism, and so a natural connection has been formed with the local Jewish community. In light of the events of the war, Israelis in the United States have a great opportunity to connect the Jews of the United States to Israel in a very strong bond,” he said.