Tatarstan Jews regain synagogue

KAZAN, Russia, Dec. 10 (JTA) — Hundreds of Jews in Kazan celebrated this week the return of the city’s 100-year-old synagogue to the Jewish community. The synagogue is the only Jewish house of worship in Tatarstan, a predominantly Muslim republic in the Volga region of Russia. Some 10,000 Jews live in Kazan, the republic’s capital. Leaders of the Russian Jewish community and Tatarstan government officials participated in Tuesday’s ceremony. The synagogue was confiscated by the authorities after the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. Five years ago, the local community initiated efforts to reclaim possession of the building.