There are a number of reasons why someone would flee their home. War, persecution, hunger, despair. It turns out all these reasons are relevant when it comes to Afghanistan, and sadly all of them were fundamentally behind Mrs Rafai fleeing her homeland.

As it is widely reported that Russia has 100,000 soldiers on its border with Ukraine, we are in close contact with our local partners in the country and prepared to scale up our support for them at any moment. Today’s report that Russia is pulling back some of its troops is of little reassurance to our client group, particularly in eastern and southern Ukraine, for whom memories of violence in 2014 are still fresh.

On Monday 7 February World Jewish Relief’s virtual annual fundraising event Make a World of Difference 2022 took more than 800 guests around the world to meet individuals we have supported to transform their lives this past year. The event, which raised in excess of £1 million, was hosted by BBC journalist and broadcaster Yalda Hakim.

The world looks on with mounting concern as political and military tensions between Russia and the West, that threaten Ukraine, grow. After 8 years of frozen conflict between the two countries, the horror of war lingers on. Over 14,000 people killed, upwards of 1 million people displaced in Ukraine, access to separatist controlled areas fraught with challenge and now a risk of significant escalation.

World Jewish Relief has relaunched their Afghanistan Crisis Appeal to assist Afghans who have been unable to flee the Taliban and are now stuck in Afghanistan. Drought, conflict, the Covid pandemic and massive displacement mean the situation in the country has become increasingly desperate.

Safi, from Afghanistan, served as an interpreter for the British. Through the UK Government's Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP), he and his family were resettled in Bradford in 2015. He now works with our partner Horton Housing Association to support Afghans who have fled the Taliban, and are starting new lives here. Safi tells us his story:

In the countries where we work, people with disabilities remain one of the most marginalised groups. They are discriminated against and stigmatised by the general public and are often overprotected by their carers. We strongly believe that every person deserves an opportunity to maximise their well-being, independence and potential, whatever restriction their disability might impose on them.

Tragically, instances of people losing their lives whilst making the journey on small, overcrowded dinghies in the freezing cold, are too regularly hitting our news cycle. But this week’s news that at least 27 men, women and children died on the channel marks the largest single loss of life so far.

Over the past 10 years we have invested the UK Jewish community’s generous donations into repairing the most dilapidated and run-down homes in Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia. The primary focus has always been to make homes warmer, drier and safer for inhabitants.