ZAKA

ZAKA
זק"א
Formation1989; 35 years ago (1989)
FounderYehuda Meshi Zahav
PurposeFirst aid, search and rescue, Jewish burial
Location
CEO
Dubi Weissenstern
Volunteers (2023)
>3,000
Websitehttp://www.zaka.org.il

ZAKA (Hebrew: זק"א, abbreviation for Zihuy Korbanot Ason, זיהוי קרבנות אסון‎, lit.'Disaster Victim Identification') is a series of voluntary post-disaster response teams in Israel, each operating in a police district (two in the Central District due to geographic considerations). They are recognized by the Israeli government. The full name is "ZAKA – Identification, Extraction and Rescue – True Kindness" (זק"א - איתור חילוץ והצלה - חסד של אמת‎). The two largest ZAKA factions are Zaka Tel Aviv and ZAKA Search and Rescue.

ZAKA faced insolvency before 7 October 2023. Given the job of retrieving the dead bodies after the 7 October 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, they started fund-raising on 8 October 2023. By 31 January 2024, they had raised over 50 million shekels ($13.7 million).