American Miklat Committee, Inc.

There are two women's shelters, Miklat-Bat Melech, which are located in Israel. There is also a hostel for teenage girls' called Meshivat Nefesh. The shelters were established in response to the growing awareness that spousal and family abuse within the Orthodox Jewish community in Israel was not being adequately addressed by existing services. Ordinary shelters could not provide the religious environment that these women and children need, and communal denial of the existence of such abuse left many women and children without help from within the orthodox world. American Miklat Committee("AMC") is the only organization that is providing shelter, support and counseling, in an Orthodox environment, for women and children who have suffered physical, sexual and/or emotional domestic abuse. In addition to this crucial mission, AMC is also encouraging the Orthodox world and its leaders to acknowledge and address the issue of domestic abuse within their communities. Through educational programs and successful interventions, AMC is working to build trust between the Orthodox community and the Israel Welfare Department and is providing short and long term solutions for domestic abuse situations.