Feeding the elderly has been the core of Jewish welfare activities in many post-Soviet countries. Now, in Moldova at least, it’s time to feed the children. Two years ago, a survey of Moldovan Jewry found that 4 percent of children here go to bed hungry and one child in five lives below the poverty line…. More ▸
In Jewish memory, the city of Kishinev is closely linked to a terrible pogrom. But the pogrom, whose 100th anniversary was marked earlier this month, is only a part of the city’s Jewish past and present. Forty-nine Jews were killed and more than 500 injured on April 6-7, 1903 — the first day of Easter… More ▸
The mostly elderly Jewish community of Moldova joined much of the country in backing the Communist Party’s stunning electoral victory this week. The ongoing economic crisis in Europe’s poorest country fueled the Communists’ victory in Moldova, a former Soviet republic of approximately 4.5 million people that lies between Ukraine and Romania. “I don’t really believe… More ▸
As a new century dawns, the Jews of Moldova — unlike their impoverished compatriots — actually have something to celebrate. After four decades of communism during which there was barely a pulse of Jewish life, Jews in this ex-Soviet republic are enjoying a remarkable renaissance. It’s about more than schools and meals-on-wheels. There are Jewish… More ▸
The language laws of two former Soviet republics are blocking employment opportunities for their respective Jewish communities and in one case impeding their chances of obtaining full citizenship rights. In Estonia, most of the country’s Jews do not have passports and are not eligible for citizenship, according to a human rights group based in the… More ▸
The town of Gander, Newfoundland, has become an unlikely destination for Jews, Ukrainians, Russians and other ethnic minorities fleeing the conflict-ridden former Soviet republic of Moldova. Those hoping to win asylum in Canada fly from the Moldovan capital of Kishinev to Moscow. There they catch a four-times-a-week Aeroflot flight to Havana, Cuba — once a… More ▸
Several hundred refugees from the battle zones of Moldova are due to arrive in Israel this month, as part of a special rescue operation by the Jewish Agency. Jewish Agency Chairman Dinitz told the Knesset Immigration and Absorption Committee that 100 Moldovan Jews are expected to arrive this Thursday. There are approximately 40,000 Jews currently… More ▸
Several Jews were reported among the casualties of this week’s violence in the former Soviet republic of Moldova, where fighting between ethnic Russians and Moldovans has killed at least 400 people. Aron Shafirov, 43, was crushed by a tank in the city of Bendery, according to the National Conference on Soviet Jewry. Bendery, the center… More ▸
Six cities in the Soviet Union have become accessible to Israeli telephone users by direct dialing. Until now, calls to the USSR had to be booked through the international exchange operators, with frequent delays. Starting Thursday, Israelis may reach Moscow, Leningrad, Kiev, Tbilisi, Tashkent and Kishinev by dialing the prefix 001, followed by 00 for… More ▸
Worldwide commemorations of the 40th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising will obscure the fact that Easter and Passover this year also mark the 80th anniversary of the Russian pogrom in Kishinev, immortalized by Chaim Nachman Bialik’s poem, “In the City of Slaughter.” Following malicious reports that Jews were using Christian blood for their Passover… More ▸
