The Israeli Government are to start moving more than 18,000 Ethiopian Jews to the Middle East, says Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom. At the end of a two-day visit to Ethiopia, Mr Shalom said the emigration of the Falasha Mura community would start by the end of next week. The Falasha Mura are the last remaining Jewish community in Ethiopia and have long been persecuted for their beliefs. The last mass emigration of Ethiopian Jews to Israel was in 1991. There are around 80,000 Ethiopian Jews living in Israel, many of them airlifted there during times of crisis. Mr Shalom told reporters: “We would like to bring all Falashas to Israel beginning next week. We believe they should live in Israel.” However, Ethiopian Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin, speaking alongside Mr Shalom, said a mass migration was not needed as Ethiopians were free to travel wherever they wished. Full Story
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