Israeli group searches for Arabs with Jewish ancestors
A campaign by Yad L’Achim that features Israeli liturgical performer Ziv Yehezkel calls upon Arabs with Jewish roots to return to Judaism.
An Israeli online campaign in Arabic has been a surprising success. The campaign, which was launched just before the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, which started on June 8, encourages Muslims with Jewish roots according to Jewish law to return to Judaism. This unusual and unprecedented effort was launched by the group Yad L’Achim, which describes itself as doing everything so that "we do not give up even on a single Jew." The organization fights against "missionary activities," loss of identity and assimilation of Jews, seeking instead instilling Jewish values.
According to Jewish law, a person’s identity as a Jew is passed on through matrilineal descent. This means that if the mother or the maternal grandmother are Jewish, so are the children and grandchildren. The organization is now attempting to reach Muslims who are Jewish according to the principles of Jewish law, so that they can be led back to the Jewish people. The campaign has made waves across social media, with Muslims from countries like Jordan, Lebanon and Yemen approaching the organization in response.
