One hundred thousand persons in Georgia, a part of the Soviet Union, declared themselves as Jews during the last USSR census, and the Jews in that region are believed to number 150,000, according to Soviet Georgian scientists who have been conducting a study at a Christian monastery here.
The Soviet scientists met with a group of Israelis who had come originally from Georgia, and discussed the situation of the Jews in that region of the USSR. The scientists were the first group from Russia ever to meet with Jews here.
According to the visitors, there are “several synagogues” open in Tiflis, capital of Georgia and birthplace of Stalin. They said the Jews visit the synagogues “frequently.” They said also that several Jews in Georgia hold high positions. They named among these Raphael Eligolashvili, who is deputy Minister of Commerce in Georgia, and a Professor Chikwashvili who, they said, has relatives in Israel. The scientists invited Israeli Jews of Georgian origin to visit Georgia.
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