President of one of Russia's three largest Jewish organizations, Gaidamak has already helped evacuate around 800 families from Sderot, which was hit by about 50 Qassam rockets in the past two days, to a hotel in a nearby city of Beersheba. The businessman said he was ready to pay for further rescue efforts and willing to cover the expense of reinforcing roofs in Sderot so that they are better able to withstand rocket attacks.
Gaidamak, 55, whose assets include publishing house The Moscow News, became very popular in Israel last summer during the brief war with Lebanon when he paid for refugee camps to be set up for thousands of north Israeli residents caught up in the conflict. Gaidamak paid more than $100 per night for each refugee staying in the comfortable camps on the seaside.
