130 French Jews arrive in Israel; more than 3,000 expected this summer

Some 130 French Jews, including 46 children and two babies, landed at Ben-Gurion International Airport yesterday, marking the start of a wave of French immigration expected over the course of the summer. Additionally, some 80 French Jews who had been in Israel on tourist visas became Israeli citizens and received their Israeli identity cards during a ceremony hosted by The Jewish Agency for Israel at the organization’s Jerusalem headquarters building earlier today.

According to data compiled by The Jewish Agency and the Ministry of Immigration Absorption, more than 3,000 French Jews will immigrate to Israel this summer, including many young families whose children will enter Israeli schools at the start of the new school year. Some 400 French Jewish immigrants are expected to arrive by the end of this week alone.

The current wave of French immigration comes in the midst of a joint effort by the ministry and The Jewish Agency to maintain the high rate of immigration from France and increase immigration from around the world. Immigration from France has risen steeply in recent years and France has become the number one source of immigration to Israel for the first time.