A RECORD SIXTEEN DAYS

New book shines light on Israeli entrepreneur’s dogged effort to send medical supplies

When Raz Gal Or was waiting at the Beijing Capital International Airport to board a flight to Tel Aviv ahead of the Spring Festival, both the 26-year-old entrepreneur and his friend Brian O’shea were struck by the number of people wearing masks in the airport. Having been preoccupied with their businesses, they were not aware that an epidemic was spreading in Wuhan, Hubei Province in central China.

Several days later, they collected 229 boxes of medical supplies in Israel in a day, and donated them to Huanggang, east Hubei, on February 9 to assist the fight against the epidemic.

The whole donation process of 384 hours, is recorded in a book, China, We Got Your Back, published in Chinese and English by New Star Press, a Beijingbased publishing house under the China International Publishing Group. The book, which is the first on the subject of fighting against the novel coronavirus, also shows the selfless assistance to Hubei and

After arriving in Tel Aviv, Gal Or and O’shea, from Argentina, were concerned about the situation in China. The spike in the number of patients in Wuhan and the reported shortage of medical equipment led them decide to collect surgical masks for Chinese hospitals in need.

“My dad always tells me that the Chinese helped us Jews a lot in history,” said Gal Or, believing it was time to repay the kindness.

Referring to himself as a “Foreigner in China 2.0,” Gal Or is a famous foreigner Internet star in China.

The first-born of a successful Israeli entrepreneur who has business in China, Gal Or has lived in Beijing for about 12 years. In 2014, he became the first Israeli undergraduate student at Peking University.

He is co-founder of Ychina, also known as the Foreigner Research Institute, a business development company specializing in China. Uploading videos that share thoughts of the young generation of foreigners in China, Ychina attracted millions of fans after releasing its first video in January 2017.

On January 25, Gal Or and O’shea went to pharmacies in Tel Aviv to buy face masks but found they only had a couple of thousands in stock, which was far off their goal. They turned to Gal Or’s father for help.

set sail from Tel Aviv on February 1. The ship passed through Moscow and arrived in the city of Guangzhou in south China four days later. The hospital received the supplies on February 9.

“It seemed like the whole world was going against us, but we still managed to get to this point,” Raz Gal Or said in relief, “Hang in there guys, we are behind you.”

A unique memory

Though what was to be a holiday trip turned out to be something else, the two friends created unique memories. They posted the videos on social media and video-sharing websites, which won tremendous appreciation on the Internet.

New Star Press was looking for heart-warming stories during the period of the epidemic. Ding Ning, a senior planner with the publishing house, was keen on tales of people working together for a common goal, putting race and other differences aside. Raz Gal Or’s initiative was proof that each individual can contribute something as long as people get started.

“This faith is very important for people fighting the virus, which will lead us out of all difficulties,” Ding told