He said Jews in Russia are worried about deteriorating civil rights and being trapped on the wrong side of the new Iron Curtain, and that about 30,000 have fled Russia to Israel since the war began. Other prominent Jewish scholars have supported this migration figure. Colin Schindler, professor of Israel Studies at the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies, estimated that up to 4,000 Jews were now leaving Russia each month compared with about 700 before the war began. “This far exceeds the number of Ukrainian Jews who have traveled to Israel,” he said.
No discernible plan to limit immigration?
Analysts said the timing of the prosecution of the Jewish Agency suggests it may be an ill-conceived plan to try to halt immigration or perhaps be used as a way to pressure the Israeli government, despite the fact that it has largely distanced itself from criticism of Russia. actions in Ukraine. Either way, Rabbi Goldschmidt said the trial sparked anti-Semitic sentiment. “If Russia wants to stop the brain drain of its best scientists and creative class, the best way to do that is not to close down the Jewish Agency, but to stop this war,” he said. About a million of Israel’s population of 9.3 million can trace their ancestry to the former Soviet Union. Rabbi Goldschmidt said that Jews in Russia felt they could no longer speak freely. “The Jewish community was pressured… to openly support the war. Our community did not support the war,” he said. “If I had remained the chief rabbi of Moscow, I would not have been able to speak openly without endangering my community.” The Kremlin’s war in Ukraine has strained traditionally close ties with Israel. Israel’s right-wing former prime minister Naftali Bennett concealed criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin and stressed the need for close ties with Moscow.
