Where Do Iranian Jews Stand?

Many of them have an opportunity to make Aliyah--but will they take advantage of the opportunity:

Evangelical Christians in the U.S. have brought dozens of Iranian Jews to Israel in recent months, offering cash incentives and claiming that Iran's tiny Jewish community is in grave danger.

The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, a charity that funnels millions of dollars in evangelical donations to Israel every year, is promising U.S. $10,000 to every Iranian Jew who comes to Israel, said the group's director, Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein.

...But an Iran expert said the money would not be enough to draw Iranian Jews, who do not perceive themselves to be in grave danger.

But is that true--and if so, why? One place to check the pulse of Iranian Jews is the Iranian American Jews blog. Karmel Melamed has a post on this news, and quotes from a previous post that addresses the question:

Frank Nikbakht, an Iranian Jewish activist and director of the L.A.-based Committee for Minority Rights in Iran, said a substantial number of Jews have stayed in Iran because they feel they will face economic and cultural challenges if they leave the country.

"Some successful and resourceful Jews [in Iran] have either a false sense of security or are willing to take risks, hoping to outlast the regime," said Nikbakht, "while some have converted to Islam or other 'safer' religions such as Christianity to help them survive."

Not a lot of good options there--but there is another issue Melamed touches on: that by openly carrying out this work, The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews is playing directly into the hands of the Iranian government. Should this group publicly fall flat on their face in this plan, Iran can point to their failure as proof that life for Jews in Iran is so wonderful, they refuse to leave to go to corrupt Israel.

Read the whole thing.

Technorati Tag: Israel and Iranian Jews.