The Times of Israel https://www.timesofisrael.com/topic/soviet-jewry/ News from Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World Fri, 12 Jun 2026 09:54:35 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://static-cdn.toi-media.com/www/uploads/2018/11/toi_icon_512-200x200.png Soviet Jewry | The Times of Israel https://www.timesofisrael.com/topic/soviet-jewry/ 32 32 Ran Gvili’s return marks the end of a movement that united Jews across the globe https://www.timesofisrael.com/ran-gvilis-return-marks-the-end-of-a-movement-that-united-jews-across-the-globe/ Mon, 26 Jan 2026 18:46:53 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=3741929 In an era of polarization, a movement linking Jewish people across differences seemed unlikely, but 'Bring Them Home' activism showed they can still come together

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]]> The semi-true story of two Soviet Jews sent abroad by Stalin to fundraise during WWII https://www.timesofisrael.com/the-semi-true-story-of-two-soviet-jews-sent-abroad-by-stalin-to-fundraise-during-wwii/ Sat, 26 Jul 2025 04:40:25 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=3555515 Avner Landes discusses his new book 'The Delegation,' an account of the adventures - and dark fates - of an actor and poet sent to raise money from coreligionists in the West

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]]> In Georgia, a 23-year-old maintains a venerable synagogue, the last remnant of his community https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-georgia-a-23-year-old-maintains-a-venerable-synagogue-the-last-remnant-of-his-community/ Fri, 18 Apr 2025 05:23:14 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=3512016 Soviet repression caused most Georgian Jews to flee, leaving behind a 2,500-year-old history whose memory is beginning to fade. In his village, one young man seeks to preserve it

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]]> Former prisoner of Zion, anti-Soviet dissident Eduard Kuznetsov dies at 85 https://www.timesofisrael.com/former-prisoner-of-zion-anti-soviet-dissident-eduard-kuznetsov-dies-at-85/ Sun, 22 Dec 2024 11:58:50 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=3444556 Refusenik was one of the leaders of Operation Wedding, a failed attempt to hijack an empty civilian plane to escape Soviet Russia and head to Israel

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]]> ‘How the Soviet Jew Was Made’: A tale of wandering, oppression, language and lore https://www.timesofisrael.com/how-the-soviet-jew-was-made-a-tale-of-wandering-oppression-language-and-lore/ Sat, 11 Feb 2023 06:56:41 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2891000 In his award-winning book, Prof. Sasha Senderovich mixes a rich, centuries-old body of Yiddish folklore with early 20th-century events to define a notoriously nebulous Jewish group

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]]> FBI memo: Bay Area Soviet Jewry protest leaders secretly sought Jews for Jesus’ help https://www.timesofisrael.com/fbi-memo-bay-area-soviet-jewry-protest-leaders-secretly-sought-jews-for-jesus-help/ Tue, 07 Feb 2023 14:17:21 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2945118 Freedom of information request yields stunning revelation that leadership recruited the well-organized but widely loathed proselytizing group to help organize and bolster crowds

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]]> Aiding Ukrainians, immigration official finds what it means for Israel to be a haven https://www.timesofisrael.com/after-fleeing-ukraine-an-israeli-immigration-czar-finds-what-it-means-to-be-a-haven/ Wed, 07 Dec 2022 04:29:01 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2890289 Head of office that checks citizenship eligibility for Ukrainian immigrants reflects on early days of Russian invasion, vows to abide by whatever coalition decides on Law of Return

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]]> Chinese censors ban the printing of Hasidic woman’s memoir for a US publisher https://www.timesofisrael.com/chinese-censors-ban-the-printing-of-hasidic-womans-memoir-for-a-us-publisher/ Sun, 09 Oct 2022 00:03:35 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2847783 Citing 'anti-Communist' content, authorities won't let locals print 'The Queen of Cleveland,' Shula Kazen's story of surviving the Iron Curtain, even though it would be sold abroad

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]]> On Jews and Israel, Gorbachev’s legacy is under threat https://www.timesofisrael.com/on-jews-and-israel-gorbachevs-legacy-is-under-threat/ Thu, 01 Sep 2022 13:29:53 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2827758 The last Soviet leader has passed away precisely as Putin's Russia tangles with the Jewish Agency, moving to shut down the Israeli organization that handles Jewish emigration

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]]> Sharansky: Gorbachev wouldn’t have released Soviet Jews if not for global pressure https://www.timesofisrael.com/sharansky-gorbachev-wouldnt-have-released-soviet-jews-if-not-for-global-pressure/ Wed, 31 Aug 2022 13:02:05 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2827940 Former prisoner of Zion praises late Soviet leader for freeing Jewish prisoners but says his policy was driven by the cost to the Soviet Union, not sympathy

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]]> Gorbachev first seemed regressive, but ultimately opened the gates for Jews to leave https://www.timesofisrael.com/gorbachev-first-seemed-regressive-but-ultimately-opened-the-gates-for-jews-to-leave/ Wed, 31 Aug 2022 09:00:12 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2827737 The numbers allowed to exit actually fell at the start of his rule. But he wound up approving the exodus of millions, freeing refuseniks, ending restrictions on religious worship

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]]> Jewish groups mourn Gorbachev as man who freed Soviet Jewry https://www.timesofisrael.com/jewish-leaders-groups-mourn-mikhail-gorbachev-the-man-who-freed-soviet-jewry/ Wed, 31 Aug 2022 01:30:24 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2827595 Former Soviet president remembered as a humanitarian for allowing Jews to practice their religion freely and emigrate, which they did en masse -- much to his disappointment

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]]> Exiled oligarch in Israel: Putin doesn’t want to annex Ukraine, but to destroy it https://www.timesofisrael.com/exiled-oligarch-in-israel-putin-doesnt-want-to-annex-ukraine-but-to-destroy-it/ Sat, 30 Jul 2022 17:58:01 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2805390 His company dismantled and friends imprisoned, Leonid Nevzlin has lived in Israel for 20 years. He hasn't ceased criticizing the Kremlin - and sees some parallels in his new home

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]]> Relics of a USSR both maddening and sweet emerge in blockbuster Jewish memoir https://www.timesofisrael.com/relics-of-a-ussr-both-maddening-and-sweet-emerge-in-blockbuster-jewish-memoir/ Mon, 25 Jul 2022 22:43:48 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2801552 Yelena Lembersky's 'Like a Drop of Ink in a Downpour' is a surprisingly even-handed tale of escape from the Iron Curtain with her grandfather's famous Babyn Yar massacre paintings

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]]> Documentary showcases the Ukrainian Jew who saved Yiddish music from oblivion https://www.timesofisrael.com/documentary-showcases-the-ukrainian-jew-who-saved-yiddish-music-from-oblivion/ Tue, 22 Mar 2022 00:47:20 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2728524 'Song Searcher,' a new film about Moyshe Beregovsky, the Jewish folklorist and ethnomusicologist who traveled his native Ukraine in the 1930-40s, is all too relevant today

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