Iran's Jews reject cash offer to move to Israel (7/12/07)

[Poll_Blind]

Iran's Jews reject cash offer to move to Israel

The incentives — ranging from £5,000 a person to £30,000 for families — were offered from a special fund established by wealthy expatriate Jews in an effort to prompt a mass migration to Israel from among Iran's 25,000-strong Jewish community. The offers were made with Israel's official blessing and were additional to the usual state packages it provides to Jews emigrating from the diaspora.

However, the Society of Iranian Jews dismissed them as "immature political enticements" and said their national identity was not for sale.

"The identity of Iranian Jews is not tradeable for any amount of money," the society said in a statement. "Iranian Jews are among the most ancient Iranians. Iran's Jews love their Iranian identity and their culture, so threats and this immature political enticement will not achieve their aim of wiping out the identity of Iranian Jews."

The Israeli newspaper Ma'ariv reported that the incentives had been doubled after earlier offers of £2,500 a head failed to attract any Iranian Jews to leave for Israel.

  Well, no one expected that! And fewer remembered...

PB

[TheWraith]

1. Look at it this way: would you accept money to move from the US to Iran?

Doubtful, no matter how much you disagreed with the US government, particularly when you know that the offer is mainly being made for propaganda reasons.

[Igel]

2. It's a tough call.

The Jewish population's less than 1/2 of what it was when the Islamic Revolution started--pogroms and the like were acceptable then, Khomeini's fatwa guaranteeing protection for loyalty notwithstanding.

But if the reports of having Hebrew schools allowed as long as they're open on Saturday are true, then there's a bit of sadism involved.

Along with some of the more hairy problems. If you apply to immigrate to Israel, you've broken the law; your family won't be allowed to go with you, or have contact. There may be charges against them. There have been executions and trials for Zionism. So you have a very strong reason to show your loyalty to the regime and utterly reject anything that might furnish grounds for suspicion. Typical Soviet thing, as well, for the same reasons.

On the other hand, they have reason to be happy with their Judaized version of Persian culture (or Aryanized Jewish culture), and may well not want to give it up. They're more religious now than they were under the Shah, and their customs aren't Ashkenazi or Sephardic. While they have their token seat in the Majlis (showing that communalism wasn't just an Ottoman thing), they're also prohibited from holding positions of authority; on the other hand, they mostly keep to themselves, so it's not a problem.

Odds are that for some people it's one reason, for others it's the second reason, and for yet others it's the third. Like I said, tough call.

[Behind the Aegis]

3. So what?