The Knesset unanimously voted Sunday to bring 899 “lost Jews” from India to Israel at the end of this year. The new olim belong to Bnei Menashe, a group of Indian citizens who believe to be descendants of the Jewish tribe of Menashe, one of the 10 “lost tribes” exiled from the land of Israel nearly 3,000 years ago.
Some members of this group already live in Israel today, with 274 arriving this year. The new immigrants will begin arriving in December in the wake of the Knesset’s approval.
“The government action means that Shavei Israel’s planning for the next wave of Bnei Menashe aliyah, which we have reported on for you here over the past several months, is now kicking into high gear. In 2012 and 2013, we enabled 274 Bnei Menashe to immigrate to Israel and rejoin the Jewish people,” Shavei Israel, a group that works to recover lost Jewish groups around the world, said in a statement.