Bnei Menashe:
Israel’s government recently approved a proposal to bring all the remaining 5,800 Jews from India’s north-eastern region, commonly referred to as Bnei Menashe, over the next five years.
- Bnei Menashe is an ethnic community that hails from the northeastern states of Mizoram and Manipur.
- They claim to be the descendants of the biblical tribe of Manasseh, considered one of the “lost tribes” of Israel.
- They are Christians converted into Jews and observe traditional Jewish practices and celebrate holidays such as Sukkot.
- Historians believe this community may have arrived in India within the last 300–500 years.
- Their ancestors were exiled long before the Roman dispersion, but they continued to practice Judaism across the generations, even if not in a contemporary Orthodox way.
- Once they came into contact with Israel and global Jewry in the 1980s, they embraced modern Jewish learning and practice.
- Nearly half of the ‘Bnei Menashe’ population migrated to Israel over a period of time and became its citizens.]
- According to the recent Israeli Government plan, approximately 1,200 community members are expected to immigrate to Israel by the end of 2026.
- A second stage, slated for completion by 2030, will bring an additional people, effectively completing the arrival of the entire community.
