Addressing a select group of global Jewish leaders, philanthropists, and prominent business personalities at Sunday’s Jerusalem Post Gala in New York, Haim Taib, founder and president of the Mitrelli Group and the Menomadin Foundation, said that Israel can help connect Africa and the Gulf states in a shared mission. Taib, who has developed infrastructure, hospitals, and education in Africa through the Mitrelli Group for more than 34 years, said, “Israel can help bridge America, Africa, and the Middle East.”
At the same time, he pointed out that the Menomadin Foundation has been applying the lessons learned abroad to strengthen Israel from within, launching a transformative national welfare program, leading recovery work in Southern Israel after October 7, building visionary leadership programs for the North and the Druze community, and strengthening local municipalities from Tiberias to Netivot. “These are not just projects,” he shared. “ They are the building blocks of national resilience and national pride.”
Taib expressed his thanks to the Jewish community in the Diaspora for its friendship and support in Israel’s darkest hour. “You have reminded the world that Am Yisrael is one,” he continued.
“Your connection to Israel is not only a source of pride — it is a strategic asset.”
He said that despite the difficulties and the tragedies of the war, the people of Israel have united as one. “That is our victory. That is our revival,” said Taib, who lauded Israel’s spirit of unity and national pride.
Taib paid tribute to the ZAKA organization for its dedication during the war in identification and retrieval of the deceased under difficult conditions. “You remind us that resilience is built not just with strength, but with compassion,” said Taib.
Recalling his participation in the March of the Living at Auschwitz, together with survivors of the October 7 attacks, Taib said that Holocaust survivors at the March hugged young IDF soldiers who had just been freed from Hamas captivity. One, a 90-year-old survivor, held a young soldier close and said, “You will overcome. You will be OK.” “We are not just survivors,” concluded Taib. “We are builders. Not just mourners, but dreamers.”