Immigration to Israel Lowest in 20 Years
December 25, 2007
Immigration to Israel has reached its lowest number in 20 years, with only 19,700 people applying for citizenship in 2007, the Israeli Ministry of Immigrant Absorption said on Monday.
Immigrant inflow decreased by 6% compared to 2006, while the number of immigrants from former Soviet republics has dropped by 15%.
Israel’s Law of Return allows anyone who has a Jewish spouse or ancestor to gain citizenship. Immigration to Israel, often referred to as Aliya (ascending in Hebrew), is seen by many as a major factor of Israel’s survival as a state. Aliya reached its peak in 1989-1991, when over 400,000 people applied for Israeli citizenship.
Yaakov Edri, the country’s immigration minister, called the numbers “alarming,” and said that Israel would allot considerable resources to boost the inflow of migrants.
However, it is not all bad news for Israel. A 99 year-old U.K. national recently applied for Israeli citizenship, becoming the oldest person to immigrate to the Middle East state in the past 12 years.
Source RIA Novosti
Hi guys,
I made Aliya from France 2 years ago.
I had good times in Irsael and less good times, but I know it was the right decision to come here.
I will be happy to answer any questions from people who think of doing it and give my advise to them.
Having relatives in Israel already is a big asset.
In case someone wants to find new relatives and stay in touch with the old ones, I can recommend the Israeli website http://www.jworld.famillion.com
Famillion is a worldwide family project connecting people across the globe, transcending borders and languages. you simply build your family tree and the system matches it with related trees and that way you connect to new or old relatives and make your family tree grow. you can also upload pictures and exchange family stories.
It s a great tool to find relatives and stay in touch with them.
So, guys, let s get all connected!!!
looking forward to receiving your comments…
Stay in touch,
Deborah