643 children removed from home in 2024 versus 491 in 2019 — while the number of families using community welfare services tripled

The summary report of the government programme for the integration of Ethiopian-Israelis for 2023–2024, published by the Prime Minister's Office in January 2026, includes a chapter on the Ministry of Welfare and Social Security. That chapter carries the hardest numbers in the report.

Three numbers

The report presents a target table comparing 2019 with 2024:

The third row is a declared policy success: since 2021 the welfare ministry deliberately moved away from "programmes unique to Ethiopian-Israelis" toward integration into universal services, expanding the programme to 23 local authorities where programme managers were appointed in the social services departments alongside family accompaniers who help people claim what they are owed. More families are reaching a service they were entitled to anyway.

The first two rows are a declared failure. The report says so plainly: "in 2024 an increase can be identified in the number of children removed to out-of-home and foster settings and an increase in the share of Ethiopian-Israelis handled by the youth probation service. In this respect the target has not yet been achieved."

The explanation the report offers: the reality of Israeli society in recent years — COVID and the "Iron Swords" war — and "a deterioration in the mental state of children and adolescents regardless of their origin".

What is actually running

Participants in the welfare ministry's programmes in 2024:

• Training for professionals — 524 participants (delivered in full)
• Supportive family — 221 participants (delivered in full)
• Integrating/accompanying family social worker — 44 of 56 posts (partly delivered)
• Programmes to increase uptake of welfare services — 9,771 participants (delivered in full)
• Trauma treatment for immigrants who came via Sudan — 70 participants (delivered in full)

The 44-of-56 line matters, because it explains the waiting list. The report writes that the ministry did not fully use its budget "because of difficulty in filling social worker posts". The budget was there; the staff were not.

What this means for you

1. A family accompanier for claiming entitlements exists in 23 local authorities. If you live in one, you can ask your municipal social services department whether there is a programme manager or family accompanier and request a referral. This is not "treatment" — it is help filling in forms and reaching what is yours.
2. Approaching welfare services is not a risk to your children. The entire report is built on the opposite premise: the state is trying to increase use of community services in order to avoid out-of-home placement. The 9,986 line is the goal, not the warning.
3. The trauma programme for those who came via Sudan exists. If you made the journey through Sudan, or your parents did, this is a recognised and funded framework — 70 people took part in 2024. It is worth asking about at your social services department.

On domestic violence

In any situation of domestic violence, the national line of the Ministry of Welfare and Social Security is 118, operating 24 hours a day and including service in Amharic. In immediate danger — 100. We set out the full route in our domestic violence guide.

Going into the holidays: municipal social services departments work reduced hours around Rosh Hashanah, so anything you can bring forward, bring forward. The emergency lines do not close: 118 and 100 operate over the holiday too. The holiday period is also one in which family tensions sharpen; if you are seeing the signs, there is no need to wait until afterwards.

Sources

• Prime Minister's Office, Headquarters for the Integration of Ethiopian-Israelis — "The government programme for the integration of Ethiopian-Israelis: activity summary report 2023-2024", January 2026 — "Ministry of Welfare and Social Security" chapter, pp. 40–41
• Government Decision 787, 17 July 2023 — as cited in the report
• The Tedros family hub