26 Feb 2020; MEMO: In an attempt to win votes in the upcoming elections, current Likud government brought 43 Jews from the Falashmura community in Ethiopia, Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported yesterday.
The new immigrants travelled from Addis Ababa airport to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport in Israel, where they were reunited with family members who are already in Israel.
Immigrant Absorption Minister Yoav Gallant, Likud candidate Gadi Yevarkan and former lawmaker Avraham Neguise accompanied the new immigrants, Haaretz said, pointing out that both Neguise and Yevrakan are of Ethiopian origin.
According to the paper, the Israeli cabinet, led by Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu, unanimously approved the relocation of 400 Falashmura Jews from Ethiopia to Israel.
However, Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit opposed the move over suspicion it was a ploy to win the votes of Israelis of Ethiopian origin.
Haaretz noted that the Israeli government promised in 2015 to relocated 9,000 Jews from Ethiopia and in September 2018, the Israeli cabinet decided to relocated 1,000 whose family members are already in Israel.
