Israel–Nepal Relations

Formal relations between Israel and Nepal began in 1960, when Nepal became the first South Asian country to recognize Israel.[1][2] Nepalese Foreign Minister Kamal Thapa later presented that decision as evidence of Nepal's independence in foreign affairs, while early accounts of the relationship described a combination of diplomatic ties and practical technical and economic cooperation.[2][3]

Over subsequent decades, the relationship expanded through MASHAV development programs, disaster assistance, tourism, and agreements governing Nepalese employment in Israel.[4][8] It also acquired a new humanitarian and diplomatic dimension after October 7, 2023, when Nepalese students and workers were killed, injured, abducted, or evacuated following the Hamas attack.[5][6]

Nepal recognized Israel on June 1, 1960, and diplomatic relations were established that June.[1][9] The establishment of ties has been connected to an official visit to Israel by Nepalese Prime Minister B.P. Koirala, after which further two-way visits followed.[10] Nepal's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Kamal Thapa, speaking at a 2016 Jerusalem forum, described Nepal's early recognition as evidence of his country's independence in foreign affairs.[2]

A 2022 Jerusalem Post commentary reported that Israel opened an embassy in Kathmandu in March 1961. Nepal did not establish a resident embassy in Israel until 2007; before then, its ambassador to Egypt was also accredited to Israel while remaining in Cairo, and the countries maintained consular connections.[11] A review of Moshe Yegar's diplomatic history noted that Israel already had a nonresident ambassador in Nepal by the end of 1960, as part of a wider effort to expand Israeli diplomatic representation across Asia despite Arab obstruction.[12]

A 1987 survey archived by the American Jewish Archives gave 1960 as the year full diplomatic relations were established and described the early relationship as warm, with cooperative technical and economic projects, some of which remained active when the survey was written.[3] The survey reported that Arab pressure after the 1973 Yom Kippur War strained the relationship. It also estimated that Nepal voted with Israel at the United Nations about 25 percent of the time and noted that Israel valued Nepalese participation in UN peacekeeping forces in Lebanon. These were period-specific assessments rather than current measurements.[3]

A 2000 study by P.R. Kumaraswamy identified a further aspect of Nepalese diplomatic activity. During an official visit to Israel in November 1993, Nepalese Agricultural Minister Ram Chandra Poudel disclosed that Nepal had "indirectly brokered" relations between Israel and Pakistan. The study also reported that archival materials indicated Israeli and Pakistani ambassadors in Kathmandu had met regularly.[13] Bilateral trade was characterized by the 1987 survey as small-scale.[3]

Early diplomatic ties were followed by technical and economic development projects, establishing practical cooperation as a recurring element of the relationship.[3]

In February 2010, MASHAV and the United Nations World Food Programme signed a Memorandum of Cooperation in Nepal on water management, including irrigation and drinking-water systems. The agreement created a framework for programs based on Nepal's development priorities and included capacity-building and the strengthening of institutional capabilities.[4] In December 2010, MASHAV, UNICEF, UNESCO, and Save the Children signed another memorandum in Kathmandu, in cooperation with Nepal's government, establishing a framework for programs focused on Early Childhood Education and Development.[4]

In mid-2012, Israeli medical students from the Medical School for International Health at Soroka University Medical Center, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, donated medical books to the Patan Academy for the Health Sciences at Patan Hospital. The books were delivered to Dr. Rajesh Gangol, and the account described continuing professional cooperation and knowledge exchange between the two countries.[7]

In 2020, Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi signed an agricultural cooperation agreement between MASHAV and Nepal's Agriculture Ministry. It provided for an Israel–Nepal agricultural excellence center intended to demonstrate Israeli technologies suited to Nepal's climate and terrain. The center was designed to use Israeli agricultural equipment and expertise, strengthen Nepal's agricultural sector, and support Israeli exports. The agreement was also presented as a response to food-security challenges during the coronavirus pandemic.[14]

At a 2022 Nepal National Day reception, speakers reported that more than 1,500 Nepalese professionals had enhanced their skills through MASHAV courses in agriculture, early education, and public health. Nepal's ambassador also cited trade and tourism connections and noted that many young Nepalese came to Israel to work as caregivers.[11]

In July 2020, the Israeli Embassy in Kathmandu sent supplies to the Ministry of Social Development in Province 2, described as the Nepalese province worst affected by the coronavirus pandemic. The shipment included 400 units of personal protective equipment, 1,000 KN95 masks, 10,000 surgical masks, 5,000 pairs of surgical gloves, and 500 liters of sanitizer.[7]

Israel's response to the earthquake that struck Nepal on April 25, 2015, was one of the most consequential episodes in the bilateral relationship. The collected sources report the earthquake as magnitude 7.8 and 8.1; an early account recorded more than 6,200 deaths while aftershocks complicated relief work.[15][16]

On April 26, Israel dispatched 122 doctors, nurses, and paramedics aboard two Boeing 747s. The aircraft carried 95 tons of humanitarian aid and medical supplies, along with more than 100 additional aid workers, soldiers, and disaster-relief experts. The IDF also deployed a 260-member search-and-rescue team. Magen David Adom sent paramedics, medical supplies, and baby formula, and its personnel established aid stations at local Chabad houses and other community locations.[16]

The Israeli field hospital in Kathmandu began operations with 60 beds and an obstetrics department. It worked with the Nepalese military hospital and included operating rooms, orthopedic facilities, and maternity rooms.[17][18] On its first day, the hospital treated more than 100 patients and delivered a baby.[16] Within the first several days, it had treated close to 300 people, most of them Nepalese residents injured in the earthquake. Israeli teams performed 15 life-saving operations in one day, and three births took place during the opening period, including a Caesarean delivery.[19]

Nepalese Prime Minister Sushil Koirala visited the hospital and thanked the Israeli medical teams, saying: "We are inspired, proud of you and thank you."[18] After approximately 17 days, the Israeli delegation returned home having treated about 1,600 patients, performed 85 operations, and assisted with eight births, including six Caesarean deliveries.[20] IDF engineers remained after the hospitals closed to assist with infrastructure evaluation.[16]

Israeli teams also worked to locate and assist Israeli nationals. Four Israelis stranded by the Mount Everest avalanche were rescued on April 26 with non-life-threatening injuries, while the government believed approximately 50 Israeli tourists were stranded elsewhere in the country. Evacuation efforts included Israeli couples and babies born through surrogacy; the first returning aircraft carried three newborns and their families, and officials said on April 27 that approximately 22 other surrogate children and their parents were awaiting rescue.[16]

During the emergency, the Israeli Foreign Ministry's situation room and embassy in Nepal operated in emergency mode. Around 150 Israelis sheltered in the embassy courtyard and approximately 100 stayed at the Chabad House while officials gathered information and assisted those seeking to return to Israel.[21]

The body of Or Assraf, the last unaccounted-for Israeli in Nepal, was found on May 3, 2015. Assraf had been hiking in Nepal, and his IDF unit launched a search mission that included his father. He had served in the IDF's Egoz unit during Operation Protective Edge and had been lightly wounded while helping more seriously injured comrades during fighting in Shuja'iyyah.[16]

At a 2016 Jerusalem forum, Nepalese Foreign Minister Kamal Thapa thanked Israel for its response to the earthquake, which he said had killed about 9,000 people. He stated: "At that crucial hour, Israel was first to send relief and rescue teams. After India, Israel sent the largest such operation."[2]

Israeli humanitarian involvement continued after 2015. In August 2017, AJC supported IsraAID's response to floods and landslides that had left at least 120 people dead and affected more than six million in Nepal. The account also reported Israeli medical, psychosocial, and sanitation assistance.[15]

Nepal and Israel have developed bilateral labor agreements that have brought Nepalese workers into Israel's caregiving and agricultural sectors.

In August 2015, Israel signed an agreement with Nepal to regulate recruitment to the home-care sector. The U.S. Department of State described it as the first agreement of its kind in that sector and reported that employers had recruited 50 Nepalese workers through it.[8] The 2016 State Department report characterized the arrangement as a small pilot program within home care, Israel's largest foreign-labor sector, which employed tens of thousands of migrant workers, predominantly from the Philippines and the Indian subcontinent. Apart from the Nepal pilot, no other bilateral work agreements had been signed in that sector at the time.[22]

By 2021, Nepal was among the countries with which Israel had bilateral work agreements for institutional caregiving. The agreements required that foreign workers receive information about their labor rights and translated copies of their employment contracts before arrival. The Israeli government also helped fund a hotline for migrant workers, and enforcement bodies said they investigated all complaints received.[23]

Israel and Nepal signed a separate agreement in 2023 to bring Nepalese workers into Israel's agricultural sector, addressing shortages associated with reduced migration from Thailand. Approximately 1,200 Nepalese agricultural workers arrived in early 2024, and plans called for thousands more to work on farms, particularly in the Negev and Galilee.[6]

State Department reporting also documented persistent problems in the wider home-care recruitment system. These included excessive recruitment fees, false descriptions of contract terms, exploitative live-in arrangements, gaps in legal protections, and insufficient inspections. Local NGOs filed hundreds of complaints alleging underpayment, physical violence, sexual harassment, and unsuitable employment conditions affecting migrant caregivers.[8]

Tourism and cultural connections have been among the most visible people-to-people dimensions of the relationship. A 2017 account reported that more than 10,000 Israelis visited Nepal annually.[15] Nepalese Foreign Minister Kamal Thapa said Israeli tourism had brought the two peoples closer and expressed hope that direct flights between Tel Aviv and Kathmandu would increase tourist flows.[2]

A distinctive expression of the Israeli and Jewish presence in Nepal is the annual Passover gathering in Kathmandu, informally called the "Seder on Top of the World." The tradition began among Jewish travelers in the mid-1990s. Rabbis are sent to prepare for thousands of backpackers, bringing kosher matzah, food, and Haggadahs; in 2006, nearly 1,500 Israelis celebrated Passover in Kathmandu.[7]

A National Library of Israel catalogue page on Nepal includes an item describing a visit by the Queen of Nepal to Israel accompanied by representatives of the OSE health and welfare organization. The displayed description does not provide a date for the visit.[24]

The Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, directly affected Nepalese nationals studying and working in Israel.

Nepal's government condemned the attack, expressed solidarity with Israel, and offered condolences to the victims and their families.[5] Nepal was among the Asian countries identified as expressing explicit support for Israel in the immediate aftermath.[25] Its statement reported that a farm where 14 Nepalis were working had been attacked and that nine were injured, including two seriously.[5] An October 11 Washington Institute account listed 10 Nepalis among the foreign nationals confirmed dead in Israel.[25] A Hebrew Union College transcript also described Nepalese and Thai agricultural students as among those murdered by Hamas, without giving names or a total.[26]

Bipin Joshi, a Nepalese agricultural student, was abducted from Kibbutz Alumim during the Hamas-led attack.[6] Nepal's ambassador called for the return of the hostages, while Nepal's foreign minister and embassy officials arranged for 254 Nepalese students to be evacuated from Israel and returned to Nepal.[6]

At a Buddha Jayanti celebration hosted by Nepal's ambassador in Herzliya in May 2025, Ambassador Dhan Prasad Pandit again called for the return of the hostages. Nepalese officials also urged the public and Israeli authorities not to spread unverified rumors about their condition, explaining that some information was sensitive and unavailable publicly.[6]

On October 14, 2025, Israeli Foreign Ministry Director-General Eden Bar-Tal spoke with Nepalese Foreign Ministry Secretary Amrit Bahadur Rai following the recovery of Joshi's body and before the repatriation of his remains. Bar-Tal conveyed Israel's condolences, said memorial ceremonies would be held in Israel and Nepal, and stated that Israel would continue providing Joshi's family with the assistance available to the family of an Israeli murder victim. Rai expressed his government's appreciation for Israel's care and handling of the case.[7]

The attack and its aftermath added shared loss, hostage diplomacy, evacuation, and repatriation to a relationship previously shaped primarily by development cooperation, labor, tourism, and disaster relief.

Sources differ on the start date of formal Israel–Nepal diplomatic relations. A Jewish Virtual Library recognition table records Nepal's recognition of Israel on June 1, 1960, while its diplomatic-missions listing gives June 1960 as the establishment date for relations.[1][9] Kamal Thapa and a survey archived by the American Jewish Archives also dated the relationship or full diplomatic relations to 1960.[2][3]

A 2020 American Jewish Committee article, however, stated that Nepal established full diplomatic ties with Israel "as early as 1955." The article did not identify the event represented by that date, and the collected sources do not reconcile the 1955 and 1960 accounts.[27]