More than £70,000 was raised for Israel's needy by 40 supporters of Eshel Colel Chabad, the Israel-based humanitarian aid agency.

Rabbi Sholom Duchman, chief executive of Eshel, updated the guests on the charity's activities. These include: the Blavatnik food bank, a new 25,000 sq ft warehouse in Kiryat Malachi, which packed food for over 27,000 families at Rosh Hashanah; the 19 Eshel food halls which served one million meals last year; and 3,000 meals on wheels which are delivered each day.

Rabbi Duchman said: "The work that Eshel does in alleviating hunger and improving the lives of desperate Israelis is vital – and the help of our UK supporters is crucial to it continuing."

Manchester-based Mark Adlestone, national president of Eshel, chaired the 40-strong audience at the meeting at the Athenaeum Hotel in London's Piccadilly.

He was presented with a plaque commemorating the event.