In a change of fortune, a Jewish teenager from Ethiopia participating in the International Bible Quiz in Israel is granted residency enabling him to stay in the country, a week after he was reportedly asked to deposit thousands of shekels as a guarantee that he will leave Israel when the contest is over.
Interior Minister Aryeh Deri has given residency status to Sintayehu Shafrao, 18, from Gondar in Ethiopia.
As a resident, rather than full citizen, Shafrao will not have an Israeli passport or the right to vote in elections, the Hadashot news channel reports.
Shafrao, who reportedly has siblings living in Israel, reached the final stages of the annual bible competition and will be representing Ethiopians who claim Jewish descent, known as Falashmura, in the event held as part of Israel’s Independence Day celebrations.
Sintayehu Shafrao from Ethiopia, who is competing in the annual International Bible Quiz in Israel, receives a National ID form Israel Minister of Interior Affairs Aryeh Deri during a ceremony at the Interior ministry office in Jerusalem on April 16, 2018. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
On Giving Tuesday, support quality journalism
Is the fast, fair and free journalism of The Times of Israel important to you?
If so, today - Giving Tuesday - is the right time to join The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6/month, you will support our independent journalism, enjoy an AD-FREE experience and unlock exclusive content available only for members of The Times of Israel Community.
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel eleven years ago - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
From the Liveblog of
Monday, April 16, 2018
