Last night, as it always does for “Mega,” Jerusalem’s Binyanei Ha’uma (International Convention Center) came alive to loudly embrace Taglit Birthright Israel’s 15th anniversary. Participants hailed from Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Russia, Israel and the United States.

The evening’s emotions also ran high as the thousands of participants stood for a moment of silence in memory of Yoav Hattab, one of the victims of the recent terror attack in France, who visited Israel with Taglit, a mere 2 weeks ago.

photos by Orly Eyal-Levy