As she touched down at Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, Keren Daniely was stepping into a new adventure with a very specific, yet unique mission.
“So it actually starts from the airport,” said Daniely. “We know how to recognize Israelis.”
The 30-year-old from Jerusalem served as a commander in a combat intelligence unit for several years, conducting operations in the field. In 2020, she set out on her own journey and exploration, traveling the world for two years, and later pursued studies in psychology and exploration.
Following the October 7 attack, Daniely returned to service to offer support in the aftermath of the bloodshed and massacre that caused trauma to thousands of Israelis, but she decided to take her skills, passions, and abilities to tackle a new challenge: helping Israelis traveling in India who may be experiencing their own mental health challenges.
“I think they are not running away. I think they are trying to give themselves some freedom and some space to see what’s happening to them inside,” she said.
Since the October 7 attack on Israel, thousands of Israelis have left the country and traveled all over the world, but many of them find themselves in India. Some travelers have served hundreds of days in the military or experienced their own traumas from October 7 and its aftermath.
“India is one of these target countries because India has such a history of spiritual peace,” said Alice Miller, the CEO of the nonprofit NATAN Worldwide Disaster Relief. “Many times when you run away from something, you find that you’re running away with yourself, no matter what you do.”
Daniely was selected, out of hundreds of applicants, to volunteer and search for Israelis in India who are looking for a meaningful connection and a safe space to process their traumas and experiences.
The brand-new initiative is spearheaded by the Israeli nonprofits NATAN, an organization with a long history of providing aid in third world countries in the aftermaths of devastation and disaster, and Hamakom (The Place), a project that began more than a year ago to create safe spaces with therapists and volunteers who offer emotional support for Israeli travelers.
The organizations identified that a gap existed for Israeli travelers who may be struggling emotionally, especially during wartime, but also in a country that is interconnected to spirituality and peace.
“Once we noticed the existing gap, we flew to India to assess whether there was a real need for a space like this – and the answer was a clear yes,” said Hezi Shochat, one of the founders of Hamakom and a former IDF officer. “The events of October 7 were particularly hard, as they happened at home – not ‘over there,’ but in Israel itself. People’s fundamental sense of the world as a safe place has been shattered.”
The connection between Hamakom and NATAN naturally came together, as NATAN has the volunteers and two decades of experience responding to disasters around the globe, while Hamakom has the experience in treating mental health, and professionals in the field.
Together, the nonprofits created this initiative at this time, as they often say the effects of trauma take time to surface and may show up even months or years after a tragic and traumatic event takes place in someone’s life.
“Trauma takes time to develop. It takes you time to process what you’ve gone through and understand you’re having a hard time dealing with it,” said Miller.
Daniely and the small team of volunteers and social workers, who underwent specialized training for people who experience acute crises, made their way to Dharamshala, a city located on what is known as the Hummus Trail, where Israelis tend to travel to find a sense of community and fellow travelers in India.
As the first group to lead the collaboration between NATAN and Hamakom, they were tasked with setting up a space for people to come to, organizing meaningful activities like making jewelry, Shabbat dinners, and yoga, and visiting cafés and local spots for Israelis.
“The people who belong to NATAN and Hamakom actually are integrated among these travelers, and these travelers don’t necessarily know these people have come to serve them,” said Miller.
While Daniely and the group were in Dharamshala, they knew they needed to bring people together for the second Remembrance Day since October 7. Commemorating fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism, Remembrance Day awakens heartbreaking emotions and memories, often tucked away and disguised.
“My job was to unite everyone to feel like they have a place, especially for this Remembrance Day,” said Daniely.
Daniely believed that creating a safe space for Israelis, even 4,000 km. away from their homes, could provide emotional support for people who may not even know they need it.
Nearly 600 people attended the event, including Supernova music festival survivors, IDF soldiers, and people who were forced to evacuate their homes after October 7.
“It was a gift to be there… really feeling and seeing them letting their emotions out; they were crying,” said Daniely. “We are somewhere in the world, in India, we have mountains all around us, full of green. We are 600 Israelis, and we just pray and we are together, no matter where we are together.”
After the ceremony, Daniely was able to strike up a conversation with Israelis who came to participate in the moving event.
“I started to connect people first with my eyes,” she explained. “It’s not just like you are here and everyone feels comfortable and starts speaking.”
She connected with a 21-year-old Israeli man named Tomer, and after striking up a conversation with him about his experiences, she learned he was called by his commander on October 7 to come to Kerem Shalom, where his unit was fighting. Nearly half of them were killed, Daniely recalled from his story, and she sensed he was interested in telling his story and slowly opening up about the emotional complexities behind it.
“I felt him look at me, and he trusted me. It was the beginning of something I could tell he would continue with others,” she said. “I saw he needed to speak about it, and that was powerful. They’re talking when they feel comfortable and on their own terms.”
Making personal connections to find personal solutions
What is critical about the work of NATAN and Hamakom, according to Miller and Shochat, is that once volunteers and social workers on the ground engage with individuals, they are able to connect them with more resources, which vary depending on the person’s needs.
Shochat said if they identify a serious case, they are trained to provide initial care until backup from Israel arrives. If they identify someone who just needs a place to talk and share, they can come to the space for activities and a therapist, or a volunteer is on site to help. Hamakom is also collaborating with Sheba Medical Center, which can provide psychological or psychiatric support.
“These young people come to us with deeply traumatic experiences we’ve never encountered before in Israel. This has been the longest war in the country’s history,” said Shochat. “Our main job is to normalize and validate what they’re feeling: a normal response to an abnormal situation. We help them name their emotions, calm their fears, and offer them basic tools for emotional regulation and soothing.”
