A Jewish immigrant from Soviet Georgia who left Israel last week hoping to return to the USSR, was back again today. He told newsmen that he had spent the last five days in Vienna trying unsuccessfully to be re-admitted to the Soviet Union.
Kasmani Shwilli, who is single, said the Russian Consul in Vienna told him “If you wait in Vienna 100 years you will not get permission to return to Russia.” He said he made up his mind then to go back to Israel despite “the difficulties it had for me.” He said there were five other Georgian Jews in Vienna in the same predicament but were ashamed to return to Israel.
Three plane loads of Jewish emigres from Eastern Europe, mainly from Russia, landed today at Lydda Airport. Extra Absorption Ministry personnel were on hand to process them. Some of the new arrivals were sent to hotels pending the availability of flats. One of today’s immigrants was Zalman Ginsberg, of Leningrad, a relative of President Zalman Shazar.
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.
