Speaker Profile Arieh King

Arieh King, director and founder of the Israel Land Fund (ILF), realized the desire of Diaspora Jews to take a more active role in redeeming the land of Israel, especially in Jerusalem. Born on Kibbutz Alumim, Arieh, 38, is one of the ten original residents of Ma’ale Zeitim (Ras-Al-Amud), on the Mount of Olives, where he currently resides with his wife and six children. Bringing more than ten years of experience in redeeming the land of Israel, Arieh started the Israel Land Fund while trying to recover land for the community on the Mount of Olives in 2007. Since then, he has been active both in recovery and preservation of Jewish land in East Jerusalem as well as throughout the Land of Israel. He has become the foremost expert on the Mount of Olives and is behind many of the efforts to preserve and block illegal building on the site. His sphere of influence extends throughout Jerusalem and nationally, where he is a well-known personality throughout all levels of municipal and national government. He is the only entity working, through Israel's own legal system, to identify and restore Jewish-owned 'abandoned' (usually either in 1948 or 1967) properties to their rightful owners and is thus credited with having redeemed entire neighborhoods of Jerusalem, such as Beit Chanina, as well as helping to 'turn the tide' in mixed Arab-Jewish cities such as Akko (Acre), and in agricultural areas of the Galil. He has been featured in numerous highly-publicized news articles and has been featured internationally on various radio, television, and media broadcasts. Arieh started the Israel Land Fund to offer unique opportunities for any Jew to personally acquire a piece of the land, part of a building or a number of buildings in Israel. His work encompasses empowering the donor or investor to become an active and eternal part of the land and the aims of the organization; to combat what has been dubbed the 'Silent Front' of land encroachment in Israel. Arieh endeavors to acquire land of strategic national importance as well as areas of historical and religious value to the Jewish people.