Ethiopian Jews gather at a makeshift synagogue in Gondar, Ethiopia, to see if they have been given a date to move to Israel on November 19, 2012. There are about 2,000 Jews in Ethiopia, after about 35,000 were airlifted out of the country in the 1980s and 1990s. The remaining 2000 are hoping to move to Israel in the next year and a half. Ethiopia’s Jews, called the Falash Mura, practice a unique strain of Judaism rooted in Christianity. AFP PHOTO/JENNY VAUGHAN (Photo credit should read JENNY VAUGHAN/AFP via Getty Images)

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Some 34 immigrants from Ethiopia arrived in Israel, bringing to 269 the total of Ethiopians to make aliyah since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

The new olim who arrived early Thursday morning were immediately placed in isolation as a requirement to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Haaretz reported.

They are among 400 Ethiopians who claim Jewish heritage who were approved for immigration three weeks before Israel’s March 2 election.

Forty-three Ethiopian immigrants arrived less than a week before the election. The rest of the  arrivals were put on hold due to the coronavirus crisis.

Meanwhile, 73 Ethiopian immigrants arrived on a flight at the end of March. And another group of 119 arrived in mid-May.

The potential immigrants are part of the Falash Mura community, who claim links to descendants of Jews who converted to Christianity generations ago under duress but now seek a return to Judaism. Some 8,000 Falash Mura in Ethiopia are awaiting permission to immigrate to Israel, most of whom have some family members in Israel.

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