Longtime refusenik Vladimir Raiz picked up his visa Tuesday in Vilnius, and expects to leave the Soviet Union early next week.
Raiz, who has been waiting 17 years for permission to leave, is scheduled to fly out on the private plane of Albert Reichmann, the Toronto real estate magnate.
Raiz, who will be accompanied by his 7-year-old son, Shaul, will fly direct to Israel, according to the Greater New York Coalition for Soviet Jewry.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
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.