(The pictures you see here are the Israeli Defence Force fighters belonging to Kuki community who had migrated to Israel from North East India. Though hundreds of Kuki Jews (B’nei Menashe) are fighting the present war against Hamas, it is not clear whether the soldiers seen in the photographs are also among them. The photograph is taken from an Israeli website).
————————————————————-
“Yes, we strongly believe that we are of the Jews origin and one of the ‘Lost tribes’ – B’en Manasseh. We are actually the Jews”, said a senior Mizo leader from Jampui Hills when contacted. He then added, “it so happened that in our facial and physical appearance, we have changed. But if you look closely at our society- our pride, strong sense of belongingness, love for roots, fellow feelings etc, as well as some of our rituals and social practices, you can easily correlate with the Jews’ pride and practices”.
“You might have noticed that we the Mizos are in many ways different than our neighbours like Tripuris, Reangs, Jamatia or Bengalis’, maintained the Mizo leader who did not want to be named.
According to a conservative estimate given by the Mizo leader to this writer as many as 15 per cent of the total Mizo population of Jampui Hills in North Tripura believes that ‘they are the Jews’— B’en Menasseh, meaning son of Manasseh -the descendent of those ancient Jews who had been driven away by the Assyrian Empire more than 27 centuries ago. Their ancestors wandered into China – where they were made slaves and forced to even build the Great Wall of China. However, as the legend says, later they could ‘escape through a porcupine hole’ and then they travelled across Central Asia and the Far East for centuries. One section thus came to North East India and got settled in the bordering states of Mizoram and Manipur.
Jampui Hills’ Mizo Convention Vice president and senior Mizo leader J D Mawia, as well as founder of Hospital & Health Care Centre at Behliangchhip, Jampui Hills Dr Zairemthiama Pachuau—also a Mizo leader who spent many years in Glendale, Zimbabwe– agreed that many Mizos and their leaders, including pastors, living in Tripura strongly subscribed to the idea of being originally Jewish.
“ It is true that out of about 10,000 Mizos in Jampui Hills, a considerable section believes that they are one of the Lost Tribes. And they have their arguments in favour of being the Jews- some of the arguments for the claim appear irrefutable, indeed,” said Dr Pachuau.
Nevertheless, the ‘Jews of Jampui Hills’ were still unlikely to convert to Judaism ‘at this moment’. ‘There is no Synagogue in Jampui Hills and no rabbi as there were no practising Jews among the Mizos in Jampui Hills. And since there were no ‘Converted Jews’ in Jampui Hills they would also face difficulties to migrate to Israel under the “Aliyah policy’ due to the country’s some sections of ‘Laws of Return”.
But the efforts were going on for the assisted migration.
“Thus far, Shavei Israel (the organization responsible for helping and encouraging the Jews from India to settle in Israel) has made the dream of Aliyah, immigration to Israel, possible for over 5,000 B’nei Menashe and plans to help bring more members of the community to Israel. Currently, there are 5,000 B’nei Menashe awaiting their return to the Jewish homeland, said the Shavei Israel website.
Another Jewish website leader claimed that about 85,000 Kukis ( including Mizos) had already migrated to Israel.
The website Degel—led by Isaac Thangjom, Project Director, in its editorial wrote : Since 2003, an average of slightly more than 100 B’nei Menashe immigrants a year have reached Israel via Shavei. Close to 5,000 still remain in India. At this rate, it would take 40 more years to bring them all, let alone their children and grandchildren who have yet to be born…It is true that the B’nei Menashe community of northeast India poses a unique problem. Although its members are Jewish in every fibre of their being and lead more Jewishly observant lives than do most Jews in Israel and elsewhere in the world, they are not Jews halachically. This is not their fault. There are no rabbis in India to convert them”.
The editorial also touched upon the problems of migration as the Mizo Jews were not yet converted to Judaism. The Israeli government could not take responsibility directly and give them immigrant status under Israel’s Law of Return. So Israel’s governments to bestowed the responsibility to Shavei. The Degel, however, wanted, ‘Aliyah’ policies must be made subject to public scrutiny and supervision. And alternative routes for
B’nei Menashe waiting to join their families in Israel must be created so that they are no longer dependent on Shavei.
The strong editorials to take the Mizo ( Kuki) Jews ( B’nei Manasseh) to Israel speaks volumes of the non-governmental Jewish organizations’ commitment to Aliyah.
But, the Jampui Hills Mizo leaders rule out any migration to Israel from Tripura in the near future- although they fully support the Israeli cause.
That a section of the Mizos ( Kukis) in Mizoram and Manipur believed in their Jews root was not new. While thousands of them had already migrated to the Promised Land – Israel and got settled in places like in Kiryat Arba, Sderot, Beit El, Ofra, Nitzan, Carmiel, Afula and Maalot
A recent report said at least 206 Kuki immigrants of Israel were fighting the present war against the Hamas as Israeli Defence Force reservists. Most of these fighters came from Sderot areas of Israel close to the Gaza Strip and one of the most affected by Hamas onslaught. It is also one place where a Synagogue was built by Rabbi David Lhungdim, Bnei Menashe community leader, in Sderot where the Jewish prayers and other activities were carried out in the Kuki language. He migrated to Israel from Manipur in 2007.
The Mizo leader while talking to this writer was straight and candid:“All the Mizos in Tripura are Christian and share a common historical belief, and with the worldwide Judeo-Christian brotherhood movement gaining momentum, the Jampui Hills also sympathise with the Jews in Israel and give them unconditional support”.
He said : Yes, we support Israel because it has the right for existence as a nation and country, and has the right to defend itself from any aggression. Israel never started war, or never was the aggressor in all its history. They are God’s chosen people, all the past and present incidences that have happened and are happening in all their history are all prophesized in the Bible and are being fulfilled”.
The Jampui Hills Mizo senior then added, “It’s sad that many innocent Palestinian civilians are killed or hurt or rendered homeless because of Israel’s retaliation, that too despite with utmost care and restrain, and we sympathise with them, but whatever destruction that has happened, the innocent Palestinian public must put the blame and responsibility on the radical Hamas terrorists, and throw them out of their public life and political sphere. It’s time for the Palestinian people to have self-reflection”.
(Also pubished in Tripura Times)
