Council for the Prevention of Yerida is Established

The Council for the Prevention of Yerida was established here today following the publication of a report prepared by the Jewish Agency that between 300,000 and 500,000 Israelis are now living in the United States.

The Council was formed by the Zionist Council in Israel and the founding session was attended by Absorption Minister David Levy, Jewish Agency Director General Shmuel Lahis, Knesset members and other public figures.

Ephraim Urbach, professor of Talmud and Midrash of Hebrew University, blamed the government and the Jewish Agency for having failed to take action to prevent yerida. He called for public action to implement the values and norms necessary to prevent yerida. But be warned, such action should be limited to Israel and not among yordim overseas.

The Jewish Agency Executive will discuss the Lahis report next week and once it discusses this report, which was made available to Executive members yesterday, its conclusions will be presented to the government and Agency coordinating body in mid-February.

Leon Dulzin, chairman of the Jewish Agency and World Zionist Organization Executive, welcomed the public airing of the problem of yerida. He said the report was a clarion call to solve the problem and has already caused waves.

Rafael Kotlowitz, head of the Agency’s immigration and absorption department, questioned the accuracy of Lahis’ figures. He said that according to the Central Bureau of Statistics there were some 300,000 yordim throughout the world. Therefore, he said he failed to understand where Lahis got the figure of up to 500,000 yordim in the U.S. alone.