As thousands flee Africa on flimsy boats, just one ship operates in the area between Libya and Italy. A Jewish aid group is partnering up with others to help its operators

BERLIN — There is currently a single rescue ship operating in the central Mediterranean to aid the thousands of refugees and migrants attempting to cross on their own from northern Africa over to Europe, according to its operators.

The rescue ship, dubbed the Ocean Viking, set sail early last month from Marseilles. It is run by the nonprofit humanitarian organization SOS Mediterranee, and the Central Welfare Board of Jews in Germany has joined a number of other aid groups in supporting its efforts.

The Ocean Viking made headlines across Europe last month when, less than two weeks after its launch, it had already collected 356 migrants, mostly from Sudan, from boats in distress off the Libyan coast. Over capacity, the ship was then forced to idle in international waters for nearly two weeks as European countries reluctantly hashed out an agreement to absorb the asylum seekers.

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“We as a Jewish organization feel obliged not to be bystanders in a situation where there’s a humanitarian crisis taking place in front of our eyes, especially when it’s so close to Europe,” Central Welfare Board executive director Aron Schuster told The Times of Israel.

“Everything that we do as a social and welfare organization is on the one hand based on of course humanitarian rights, but also on Jewish values,” he said. “And as the Talmud says — when one saves even a single life, it’s like saving all of humanity.”

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Enter the Jewish community

The Central Welfare Board’s participation comes by way of Aktion Deutschland Hilft (ADH), an umbrella aid group made up of 23 member organizations. ADH issues calls to action for various causes it thinks members may support. Member organizations may then choose whether to respond to that call to action in the form of financial aid.

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