Soviet Jewish refusenik Aleksandr Kholmiansky is expected to go to trial on August 23, according to information received today by the Greater New York Conference on Soviet Jewry. Kholmiansky, a 34-year-old Hebrew teacher who was arrested on July 25, faces up to one year in prison if convicted on the charge of hooliganism.
In Odessa, refusenik Yakov Levin was arrested on August 12, just five days before his scheduled marriage to Yehudit Nepomniaschy, a prominent Odessa refusenik. According to the CNYCSJ, information about the cause or circumstances of his arrest is not yet available.
In March of this year, Levin’s apartment was searched by the KGB as part of a raid which was directed at several homes in Odessa. At that time, Levin was singled out by the authorities for “special attention,” the CNYCSJ reported. In April, KGB officers visited Levin at his place of work and questioned him for over two hours.
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