By the end of 2007, Israel will bring in the last 20,000 Ethiopians who claim they were forced to convert from Judaism, according to a government decision announced Monday.
Ethiopian immigrants demonstrated in front of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's office as he discussed the issue, demanding that their relatives be allowed to join them in Israel.
According to the decision, the monthly immigration quota will be doubled from 300 to 600 starting in June, with a goal of bringing the rest of the group in 2007. Immigration of these Ethiopians, called Falash Mura, has evoked heated arguments in Israel for years. While Ethiopian Jews have strong ties to Judaism dating back more than 2,000 years, the Falash Mura say they were forced to convert to Christianity in the 19th century and are now embracing their original religion.
However, skeptics, including some in the Ethiopian immigrant community, charge that at least some of the 20,000 waiting to come to Israel are impostors — latching on to the Falash Mura label in order to escape their poverty-stricken country.
