by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – Israeli lawmakers have called on the government to allow the immigration of around 5,000 members of the Bnei Menashe community in northeast India, the Jerusalem Post reports.
While the Bnei Menashe do not qualify for immigration to Israel under the country’s Law of Return, the community claims descendency from the Lost Tribes of Israel and has long sought acceptance and recognition from the wider Jewish community to allow them to make Aliyah to the Land of Israel.
Indicating that members of the Bnei Menashe are in danger amid local sectarian violence, Members of Knesset from the Aliyah and Absorption Committee on Wednesday (October 22) reminded the government that around half of the community have relatives already living in Israel, JPost said.
“According to data presented to the committee, 4,121 community members have made aliyah so far, with 1,421 having done so in the past five years. Approximately 1,000 of them receive government welfare services,” JPost said in its report. Around 100 Bnei Menashe families have settled in the southern Israeli city of Sderot near the Gaza border.
Because the Bnei Mensahe have a unique claim to membership of the Jewish people and do not automatically qualify for Israel’s Law of Return, a special cabinet decision is required to allow their immigration, JPost said. If approval is given they would then have to undergo formal conversion to Judaism by Israel’s Chief Rabbinate.
Copyright 1999-2025 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
Latest News from Worthy News
China on Monday warned it will retaliate against countries that align with the U.S. in ways that harm Beijing’s interests, as the escalating trade war between the world’s two largest economies increasingly entangles other nations. Beijing specifically cautioned against trade agreements with Washington that come at China’s expense, vowing countermeasures in response.
The United States will reduce its military presence in Syria to fewer than 1,000 troops in the coming months, Pentagon officials said Friday, as it consolidates forces to reflect the evolving mission to defeat ISIS.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed into law the ratification of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement with Iran, solidifying long-term military and diplomatic ties between the two allies, according to Russian state media.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance, a devout Catholic and the last known foreign leader to have met Pope Francis before his death, has expressed sadness about the pontiff’s passing at the age of 88.
Pope Francis died on Easter Monday, April 21, 2025, at the age of 88, at his residence in the Vatican’s Casa Santa Marta, the Vatican confirmed Monday.
“Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling celebrated Easter by welcoming a British Supreme Court ruling that trans women are not legally considered women under British law.
Iran and the United States held a second round of nuclear talks Saturday in Rome, where both sides agreed to begin drafting a potential deal. Iran’s foreign minister confirmed the move, while a U.S. official reported “very good progress.”