Israel is prepared to assist South African Jews who decide to immigrate here because of the mounting unrest in South Africa, Absorption Minister Yaacov Tsur told reporters at a press briefing Monday on his return from a nine-day visit to South Africa. He predicted that some 600 South African olim would settle in Israel this year, double last year’s number.
According to Tsur, South African Jews, like many other white South Africans, are seeking alternative homes in Australia and North America, and only to a lesser extent, in Israel. These include Zionist as well as non-Zionist Jews, he said.
Tsur said he met with more than 3,000 South African Jews on his visit and “I told them I did not come to compete with Australia in offering attractions. There is no way we can do that. But I said that Israel is ready to help those who come to Israel.”
The nature of the help offered, he said, includes special loans for the purchase of homes by South African immigrants to compensate them for the fall in the value of the Rand; an easy transfer system for high school students; and university credits. There are presently about 16,000 former South Africans living in Israel.
Tsur, a Labor Party minister, avoided meetings with government officials while he was in South Africa, a decision that provoked some criticism in Israel.
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