Moscow’s former head rabbi now living in exile in Israel on Thursday warned of “dark clouds on the horizon” for Russian Jews as ties between the two countries deteriorate over the Ukraine war.
Pinchas Goldschmidt, who left Russia in March over opposition to the conflict, told reporters that “the Jewish community was pressured ... to openly support the war. Our community did not support the war.”
“The situation is worrying” and there are “many dark clouds on the horizon” for Russian Jews, he said, adding that their “security and future ... is dependent on Israel-Russia relations.”
Photo: AFP
Israel has been trying to walk a cautious line to maintain ties with Moscow — seen as crucial to preserving the Jewish state’s ability to carry out airstrikes in Syria, where Russian forces are present.
“Right now, it would be impossible for me to return,” the Swiss-born rabbi told an online briefing, adding: “If I would have [remained] the chief rabbi of Moscow, I wouldn’t be able to speak out openly without endangering my community.”
“I decided to stay in exile until the political situation will change,” he said.
Following the Feb. 24 invasion, then-Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett withheld criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s actions and stressed the need for close ties with Moscow.
However, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid, who succeeded Bennett, has condemned the Russian invasion.
Analysts say Lapid’s rhetoric has partly driven Moscow’s move to close the Russian branch of the Jewish Agency, which processes the immigration of Jews from the diaspora to Israel.
Lapid has warned Moscow the closure would be a “serious event” that would threaten bilateral ties.
The Kremlin has said the move should not be “politicized,” calling it a purely legal matter.
The Jewish Agency said that 16,000 Russian Jews have immigrated to Israel since the invasion began.
Goldschmidt estimated that more than 30,000 other dual passport holders had left Russia for Israel since Feb. 24.
Jews were leaving Russia in high numbers partly over fears of a new “Iron Curtain — that one day [it] will be impossible to leave,” the rabbi said, articulating what he described as concern among Jews that Putin’s government could ban outbound travel.
Moscow’s moves against the Jewish Agency, among other incidents, had fostered “fear of rising anti-Semitism,” he said.
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