Most immigrants to Israel in 2018 were ‘not Jewish’

Figures released by Central Bureau of Statistics show that 17,000 of the 30,300 new immigrants would not halachically be accepted.

Landing in Israel after making aliyah

Most of the immigrants to Israel last year were not halachically Jewish, according to figures released this week by the country’s Central Bureau of Statistics.

Under Israel’s Law of Return, anyone with one Jewish grandparent is entitled to citizenship and of the 30,300 olim last year, 12,600 were Jewish and 17,700 were not.

Most of the new arrivals were from Russia and Ukraine, with France and the US taking up third and fourth spots.

Of the almost one million immigrants from the former Soviet Union who emigrated to Israel under the law of return, 400,000 were not halachically Jewish.

This number is growing every year both due to natural growth and continued immigration, leading to fears in the Orthodox community of a long-term problem of intermarriage between Jewish Israelis and those who are not recognised as such by the rabbinate.

The leader of an Orthodox group which has called for making it easier to convert to Judaism said that Israel was now facing a “demographic crisis”.

Rabbi Shaul Farber, the chairman of the Itim movement and the Giyur Kehalachah independent Orthodox rabbinical courts, said: “Israel is creating a demographic crisis of its own making. These people are part of the body of the Jewish people around the world, and the Jewish people have a responsibility to provide them with a homeland for historical reasons, this is part of the justification for state of Israel,” said Farber.

“Instead of trying to tamper with moral, historical, and political realities, we should spend time trying to encourage conversion and not eliminate it,” he added.

The Israeli Rabbinate and Orthodox parties have for years been blocking attempts to resolve the issue and help these newcomers become Jewish.

For example, Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi David Lau has suggested passing legislation so that only halachic Jews could be granted Israeli citizenship through the Law of Return.

02/01/2018 by JEWISH NEWS

https://jewishnews.timesofisrael.com/most-immigrants-to-israel-in-2018-were-not-jewish/