Jewish Descendants of the Chinese Kaifeng Community Immigrate to Israel

Monday, February 29 2016

UPDATES 7 pm Israel time:

–>Palestinian terror in the last 24 hours.

*”Rocks”, Molotovs, and shooting attacks have been the story of the day as Palestinian terrorists have struck more than 30 times throughout Judea and Samaria. The roads of the area continue to be a battleground with all Israelis driving anywhere there likely to find themselves being assaulted.

*Zvika Cohen, the 48-year-old security guard who was axed in the head at the Ma’ale Adumim mall, has been in the neurological intensive care section of Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital ever since–on a respirator and in a medicine induced coma. The slightly good news today is that his condition has finally stabilized into “critical” condition.

*Insofar as shooting attacks are concerned, a major arrest has been revealed. As readers of israelstreet know, recent months have seen a spate of Palestinian sniper attacks in the Hevron area targeting IDF soldiers, Border Guards, and civilians. At least four Israelis were badly wounded.

Two brothers, Nasser and Akram Badwi, are now under arrest for attacks they carried out near the Tomb of the Patriarchs. The brothers–who are members of Hamas–kept their sniper rifle and ammunition in the Al-Mujahideen Mosque in Hebron, secreting it out periodically to shoot Israelis.

The rifle used by the Hebron terrorists.

*Speaking of Hamas, the terror organization continues its attempts to smuggle weapons into Gaza. This morning, the Israeli Navy captured two boats carrying nine terrorists and weapons as they attempted to enter Gaza from the sea.

TODAY’S BLOG:

Gao Yichen (“Weiwei”), Yue Ting, Li Jing, Li Yuan, and Li Chengjin (“Lulu”): the newest immigrants to Israel (photo:Ynet).

Isn’t it amazing how in the midst of unremitting terrorism, thousands of new immigrants arrive in Israel every month?

Some years ago, while your humble servant was teaching a class at the University of California, the subject of religion came up.  Surprisingly, almost shockingly, a student from China in my seminar volunteered that she was a Jew.

When members of the class expressed their incredulity, she proceeded to pull out her passport and show that she was, indeed, identified as a “Jew” on that passport.

It turned out that she was from the Kaifeng area and was descended from Jews who settled in that city in China in the 8th or 9th century CE. In fact, the Kaifeng community grew and prospered–so much so that a beautiful synagogue was built there in 1163. That synagogue still stands.

However, the Kaifeng Jewish community which reached a peak in numbers (around 5,000) during the Ming Dynasty, steadily declined to the point that–except for its descendants being identified on passports–it no longer exists today. It was wiped out by assimilation.