Deprived of manpower, Israeli kibbutzim turn to French Jewish scouts
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On Monday, February 19, in the early afternoon, some 30 young people wearing the Jewish Guides and Scouts of France crests boarded an Israeli El Al flight to Tel Aviv. Aged between 18 and 25, they set off on the second volunteer trip organized by Eclaireuses et Eclaireurs isralites de France (“Jewish Guides and Scouts of France,” EEIF). On the agenda: a week of agricultural work, meetings with hostage families and visits to Jerusalem, which most of them have never seen.
“The program was designed in November-December [2023], in response to the labor shortage in Israel. There are no more Palestinian workers, no more foreign workers, and many reservists have taken up arms again. Farmers need help. Faced with this situation, we set up these trips with our young adults, but it wasn’t easy to convince them to go at first – they were a bit terrified,” said Karen Allali, the EEIF’s general commissioner. She did her extremely to ensure that the movement was able to cover half the cost of the trip, ie, around €600.
The discreet security system of the building on Avenue de Ségur in Paris, where the EEIF occupies the second floor, is a reminder that the site also houses the Alliance Isralite Universelle (“Universal Israelite Alliance”). A large plaque in the lobby bears the names of its leaders, tracing the history of the Jewish scouts. Launched in 1923 by Robert Gamzon on the model of the Protestant scouts, the movement was the first major group of Jewish youth in France.
The aura of founder Robert Gamzon
Scout values such as autonomy, concern for others and respect for nature were combined with a vision that its founder sought to root in a pluralistic spirit open to every Jew, girl or boy, practicing or not. The Scouts were key figures in the Jewish Resistance in France against Nazi Germany, helping to hide thousands of children, printing large quantities of false papers and facilitating many crossings into the free zone. Gamzon, a Resistance fighter, was appointed captain of the French Forces of the Interior in 1944 and awarded a medal at the Liberation. Even today, the aura of this mythical founder gives the 6,000 young scouts of France the feeling of being “in the lineage of a splendid movement,” as 20-year-old Jacob, wearing a yellow and green scarf, explained. He belongs to the Golda Meir group in the 15th arrondissement of Paris.
After a first trip to Israel in January, Jacob was helping to prepare the young people who were about to leave. “We arrived at the beginning of January and were immediately taken to see Kibbutz Kfar Aza, one of the victims of the October 7 massacre. It was a very intense, moving moment,” recounted the young man, wearing a jacket and a cap over his curly hair. Anouk, 18, was also there. On her laptop, she scrolled through the photos she took during her visit to the kibbutz. “I also wanted to capture the life that continues,” she said.
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