Fifty Soviet Jews–the largest contingent of Soviet Jews to arrive in Israel–landed at Lydda Airport Thursday night after a stopover in Vienna. They included families, young couples, single men and women and youths from Moscow, Riga and Kishinev. They appeared visibly moved as they stepped on Israeli soil for the first time, telling reporters that they had waited two or three years for their emigration applications to be approved. Many of them said they had despaired of ever getting to Israel. Many said they had been dismissed from their jobs and forced to live for months on savings or assistance from relatives.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
