64 Ethiopian immigrants brought to Israel
As part of a government plan to eventually bring 9,000 Ethiopian immigrants of the Falash Mura community to Israel over the next five years, 64 immigrants arrived in Israel Monday at a welcoming ceremony held at Ben-Gurion Airport.
Soweto Ekel, 39, couldn't hold back the tears as he was reunited with his mother whom he hadn't seen for 14 years. "I waited years for this moment," he says after taking part in the ceremony welcoming new Falash Mura immigrants from Ethiopia.
Hundreds came to Terminal 1 at Ben-Gurion International Airport to welcome the 64 new immigrants waving Israeli flags and singing. Many had emotional family reunions with relatives between whom their most recent encounter was more than a decade ago.
As first reported by Ynet, following a three-year hiatus, immigration from Ethiopia resumed Monday as the first phase of the government's November 2015 plan to bring 9,000 Ethiopian immigrants within five years. However, the Prime Minister's Office decided to suspend the decision for more than seven months.
The renewal of the plan was only made possible as a result of a crisis within the coalition government led by MKs David (Dudu) Amsalem and Avraham Neguise. Following pressure from the two MKs, the government decided in August 2016 to bring 1,300 immigrants out of the planned 9,000 waiting in transit camps in Addis Ababa and Gondar to Israel within the year. The 64 who arrived Monday are the first to arrive since the government approved the decision.
The fate of the rest of the Falash Mura community, who are yet to immigrate, remains unclear however, as a result of budgetary constraints. Public figures and activists have called in recent weeks for the implementation of an emergency plan to bring the rest of the community to Israel as a result of the unstable security situation in Ethiopia.
A group of Ethiopian IDF soldiers also arrived at the airport in uniform to greet family members who arrived from Ethiopia. "I have mixed feelings," says A, an officer who has not seen her two sisters for nearly 20 years. "I'm happy there is finally some progress, but also really sad that none of my family arrived."
Kibert Ezra, a recently discharged soldier whose five brothers and sister are currently waiting in a transit camp in Addis Ababa, is one of the activists who arrived to welcome the immigrants. "The big question is what will happen with the thousands who are still waiting in extremely difficult conditions. The government has brought dozens, but thousands are still waiting in deteriorating security conditions. The government has not kept its commitment and the increase was delayed for six months and we are now demanding that broader action be taken."
Minister of Immigration and Absorption, Sofa Landver, also attended the ceremony and promised the government would soon implement the plan. "They are on the way," Landver told reporters. Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky told immigrants "Everything is now in your hands. After 2,500 years of prayers, you can expect a big future."
