Approximately 120 Holocaust survivors immigrated to Israel during the Israel-Hamas War, the Aliyah Ministry announced on Sunday, but their aliyah comes amid a decline in immigration by the aging demographic.
Two Holocaust survivors made aliyah in 2026 – a 96-year-old American and an 88-year-old French woman. The French national moved to Ashdod.
The ministry told The Jerusalem Post that three survivors from Russia, Ukraine, and Mexico, aged 84 to 87, made aliyah in 2025. They settled in Ashkelon, Rishon Lezion, and Bat Yam, respectively.
Since 2016, 2,316 Holocaust survivors have made aliyah, rising to a peak of 815 immigrants in 2022.
The ministry believes that the decrease in immigration of Holocaust survivors is due to the increasing difficulty in moving to Israel at an advanced age and because more survivors are dying.
Aliyah Minister Ofir Sofer said in a statement that even with the fading generation of Holocaust survivors, Israel would continue to be a home for them.
“Every survivor who chooses to immigrate to Israel is living testimony to the triumph of the Jewish spirit and the resurrection of the people in our land,” said Sofer.
Israel set to commemorate Holocaust Remembrance Day
The Aliyah Ministry noted that 40,136 Holocaust survivors who had immigrated to Israel since 1989 still live in the country. The information was published as Israel is set to remember the victims of the Holocaust on Monday night through Tuesday.
“On Holocaust Remembrance and Heroism Day, we are committed not only to remembering but also to acting – to ensuring that the Holocaust survivors living among us will be granted a life of dignity, security, and human warmth,” said Sofer.
“The Aliyah and Absorption Ministry will continue to accompany them with dedication, out of deep recognition of our moral and national debt to them.”