Polish Jews who are now being repatriated from the U.S.S.R. to Poland are bringing with them 300 torahs in addition to many other religious books, which they acquired during their stay in the Soviet Union.
Representatives of Jewish groups recently asked the mixed Polish-Soviet repatriation commission for permission to take the torahs and prayer books with them when they were repatriated. The commission agreed and issued orders to that effect to all frontier stations.
The majority of the torahs were obtained in the Altai region of southern Siberia. Many purchases were made in the cities of Irkutsk and Tobolsk. Some of the religious books were donated by the local Jewish residents. Polish Jews who lived in Bukhara are bringing with them 30 torahs, most of which were the gift of Bukhara Jews. The torahs have a great historical value. Jews from Samarkand are returning with more than 50 torahs.
More than 1,400 Jewish children from Polish children’s homes in the U.S.S.R. are among the repatriates, the Central Committee of Polish Jews announced here. They will be placed in Jewish institutions in Poland. A new evacuation home for Polish and Jewish Polish orphans living with Russian families has been established at Zagorek, near Moscow. From Zagorek the children, who are chiefly Jewish, will be sent in parties to institutions in Poland.
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
