Israel approves immigration of 2,000 Ethiopian Jews

The Israeli government has approved the immigration of 2,000 Ethiopian Jews, a quarter of the approximately 8,000 members of the community waiting to make the move. 

The Falashmura have not been able to claim automatic citizenship under the country’s Law of Return due to their historic background. 

Despite being descended from the Beta Israel – a community of Jews that settled in Ethiopia – many were converted to Christianity in the 1800s by European missionaries. They have since returned to practising Judaism, but some question their faith. 

Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef – a former Sephardi chief rabbi for Israel and founder of the Shas party – declared in 2002 that the Falashmura had converted out of fear and persecution and therefore should be considered Jews.