“Dear Mr. Ambassador! My family and I appeal to you with a fervent plea for help. You are our last hope” Those are the opening words of a letter received by Israel’s permanent representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Yosef Tekoah, from Shmaya Abram Elyovich Liberman, 55, a resident of Ivano Frankovsk in the Ukraine, who has been vainly seeking permission to emigrate to Israel for the past three years. A translation of the letter was made public today by the Israel UN Mission. Mr. Liberman, who described himself as a “poultry slaughterer” and a “deeply religious person,” said his family’s one desire is to be reunited with relatives in Israel whom they have not seen for years. He wrote that a migration permit issued to him on May 23, 1967, was rescinded without explanation following the June, 1967 Arab-Israeli War. He said that he, his wife and their two daughters suffer from multiple illnesses and have been living out of valises since May, 1967, after disposing of their property in anticipation of going to Israel. “It is only our hope to embrace our dear ones that is supporting us. Do not let this hope become extinguished,” the letter to Ambassador Tekoah said.
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.
