Thousands of Ethiopian Jews mark holy day of Sigd in Jerusalem

Thousands of Ethiopian Jews gathered in Jerusalem on Monday to mark the holy day of Sigd.

Ethiopian Jewish religious leaders, known as Kessim, lead the Ethiopian Jewish community in the holiday of Sigd, which was meant as a day of introspection and prayer pleading to return to Israel.

Now that most of the Ethiopian Jews live in Israel, the community gathers in Jerusalem to commemorate the day and celebrate their culture.

“There is good integration today, blessed be God. Our people are successful this generation made progress,” said Michael Maharat, a Kes religious leader.

He added that some Ethiopian Jews have yet to immigrate to Israel and expressed hope that they would be able to do so in the future.

In 1991 while Ethiopia was in the midst of civil war, Israel carried out the dramatic Operation Solomon, airlifting out some 14,500 Ethiopian Jews in less than two days.

Ethiopian Jews are often referred to in Ethiopia as “Falashas,” a derogatory word which translates into “strangers” or “migrants.”

Today, the Ethiopian Jewish community in Israel numbers 180,000.

A small number of Jews remain in Ethiopia, barred from moving to Israel by bureaucratic red tape, despite activism on the side of their family members in Israel to bring the whole community over.