Israeli Prime Minister says thousands of Ethiopian Jews will immigrate to Israel

Airlifting of Ethiopian Jews, 1991. Photo BBC.

ESAT News (July 8, 2016)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa that his government is committed to reuniting thousands of Ethiopian Jews with their families who are now in Israel, according to a BBC report.

Netanyahu who was in Ethiopia as part of his tour in Africa said the remaining 9,000 Ethiopian Jews will be immigrated to Israel, joining the 130,000 who are already in Israel since 1984.

However, the Ethiopian Jews in Israel have been protesting discrimination and marginalization by the mainstream Israelis. A video that surfaced a year ago where an Israeli soldier of Ethiopian origin being beaten by Israeli soldiers triggered a widespread protest by immigrants.

In Addis Ababa, an Ethiopian Jew member of the Knesset who is travelling with the Prime Minister decried that Netanyahu snubbed leaders of the Ethiopian Jews. Avraham Negusie expressed disappointment that Netanyahu’s visit did not include meetings with the local Jewish community, according to Times of Israel.