ARUTZ SHEVA
Coming home: Vast majority of ‘lone soldiers’ making aliyah
by Ari Soffer
December 1, 2015

An overwhelming majority of “lone soldiers” – volunteers from the Jewish Diaspora who join the Israel Defense Forces – make aliyah following their service, a new study has revealed – and most of them are bringing their families with them as well. Some 3,000 lone soldiers serve in the Israel Defense Forces each year, and according to the survey, conducted by the Jewish Agency for Israel and the Merage Foundation, fully 90% of discharged lone soldiers say they see their future in Israel…The majority of those who made aliyah did so for ideological or “pull” factors, with 43% saying they made aliyah in order to live in Israel as Israelis, and a further 23% explaining that they did so to live as Jews in the Jewish state. Others made aliyah in order to make a “fresh start” in life (36%), while smaller minorities chose to make aliyah either due to a sense of personal insecurity in their countries of origin (10%), or due to the difficult economic situation in their countries of origin (9%). READ MORE