Memorial Day for Ethiopian Jews

Wednesday, May 24, is being observed as a day of remembrance in Israel for Ethiopian Jews who died in trying to make aliyah.

More than 4,000 Ethiopian Jews died in the process of making their way to Israel, either in refugee camps in Sudan or somewhere along the route. They are remembered as heroes for their inspiration and their sacrifice for Judaism and religious freedom, said Habtnesh Ezra, the president of the Ethiopian Jewry Foundation.

“The magnitude of suffering, struggling, pain, agony, as well as the indignations they went through, especially the women during their exhausting, long journey through the desert and the waiting time in the refugee camps — even with the passage of time, we may never really come to fully know and to truly appreciate the sacrifices they endured for Kiddush HaShem,” or sanctification for G-d, Ezra said.

The Ethiopian Jewry Foundation asks for those 4,000 to be remembered in your prayers May 24.