JEWS OF ETHIOPIA

There are approximately 12,000 Jews living in Ethiopia, most of whom are waiting to immigrate to Israel. The largest community is in Gondar, with a smaller Jewish community in Addis Ababa. Most of the families live below the poverty line, with a typical home being one room and made of mud / straw, and without running water, kitchens, or toilets.

The volunteer trip that inspired us to start Operation Ethiopia included a four day visit to the Gondar Jewish community, where we ran activities for hundreds of children. We were shocked to find out that there were Jews still living in Ethiopia waiting to come to Israel (we'd been living in Israel for 10 years and thought they'd all been brought to Israel decades prior). We were struck to see hundreds of adults and children attending Jewish prayer services in Gondar, wearing kippot  and practicing Hebrew, and living in horribly impoverished conditions -  with limited food, clothing, clean water, and access to medical care.

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The Gondar Jewish community centers around the "HaTikvah" Synagogue which is a space with a corrugated tin roof and open sides, benches for seating, and some rooms sectioned off by tin walls. They meet for prayer services three times a day, and due to the generosity of SSEJ there are Jewish classes and Israeli volunteers who run programs to teach Hebrew language and Jewish studies. There is a similar center for the smaller Jewish community in Addis Ababa.