Immigration to Israel is up this year but the dropout rate among Soviet Jewish emigres reaching Vienna is still running high, according to a report presented to the expanded World Zionist Organization Executive meeting here over the weekend. The report placed the number of olim since the beginning of the year at 5,869, a 26 percent increase over the some period in 1977.
A total of 1,988 immigrants arrived in March, most of them from the USSR. This was a 35 percent increase over March, 1977. But the drop-out rate-Jews who leave Russia with Israeli visas but opt to settle in other countries-was 55 percent compared to 53 percent in February, the report said.
ACTION ON WZO CHAIRMEN
Meanwhile, the WZO Executive decided to postpone the appointments of chairmen of a number of WZO departments because of political disagreements over portfolios. Acting chairmen will continue to head the treasury, aliya, youth aliya and settlement departments until a “committee of ten” representing the WZO and non-Zionist members of the Jewish Agency select permanent chairmen for the disputed posts.
Leon Dulzin, chairman of the WZO Executive has named Haim Zohar secretary general of the Executive. Zohar was formerly advisor to the Jewish Agency and WZO Executive chairman. Nessim Gaon, a member of the Executive and president of the World Sephardi Federation, was appointed to head a committee for implementation of the resolutions adopted at the 29th World Zionist Congress in February.
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