Soviet Jewry will be without matzoth this Passover again, according to a cable received here from Moscow from authentic sources. The cable said that Moscow bakeries are neither prepared for the baking of matzoth nor have they received any Passover flour rations as yet. Unless the Soviet authorities permit Passover food from abroad, there will be no matzoth in the Soviet Union this year, the cable emphasized.
Dr. Nahum Goldmann, addressing today the opening session of the General Zionist Council, said he received a report revealing that Chief Rabbi J. L. Levin of Moscow informed the members of his synagogue last week that matzoth will not be available in the Soviet Union this year. “This change in the tradition of Jewish life under the Soviet regime for decades, during which matzoth were previously provided, points to the tendencies of the present Soviet rulers with regard to the Jewish problem,” Dr. Goldmann stated.
The Soviet Government, Dr. Goldmann stressed, must realize that the Jewish people which lost a third of its number in the present generation cannot and will not be able to renounce 3,000,000 Jews who, although not threatened by physical extermination, face the serious danger of spiritual, religious and national assimilation.
If the Soviet Government is sincerely opposed to anti-Semitism, its duty is to halt anti-Jewish publicity which is replete with dangers for Soviet Jewry, the leader of the world Zionist movement declared. “The Soviet Government cannot deny the fact that in comparison with other national minorities and religions in the Soviet Union there is a blatant discrimination against Soviet Jewry, “he emphasized.
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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.
