Last Jew of Kabul heads to Israel after this 'strange condition' for hassle-free entry

Zebulon Simentov, the last member of Afghanistan’s Jewish community who fled the country last month after the Taliban takeover landed on Sunday, October 17 in Turkey. Simentov could be soon heading to Israel as he has agreed to give a 'religious divorce' to his estranged wife in a zoom call. He would be giving his estranged wife a divorce in a video conference call to avoid any problems in Israel. 

Simentov agrees to divorce his estranged wife 

According to AP, as per the Jewish religious law, a husband must agree to grant his wife a divorce, something he had refused to do for many years. In order to avoid legal action in Israel where his ex-wife lives, Simentov agreed to divorce his wife last month in a special zoom call under the supervision of Australian rabbinical authorities. As per the AP report, during the discussion which was conducted through an interpreter, Simentov gave his consent to sign the divorce documents, called 'get' after he was assured that he would not be facing any trouble in Israel.

Rabbi Mendy Chitrik, chairman of the Alliance of Rabbis in the Islamic States, greeted Simentov at the airport in Istanbul on Sunday, reported AP. Chitrik informed that he had to take Simentov to the Israeli consulate on Monday, October 18 to arrange his arrival to Israel. Furthermore, Chitrik asserted that he had been working with Margaretten and other volunteers for months to get Simentov out of Afghanistan. 

Tzedek Association arranges Israel as Simentov's final destination

As per the AP report, a nonprofit group Tzedek Association founded by Rabbi Moshe Margatetten has paid for the journey of Zebulen Simentov. Reportedly, Simentov for the last weeks has been living in Pakistan. He said his group was thinking about sending Simentov to the US, however, they later chose Israel as his destination as they would face difficulties in arranging a US entry visa. Furthermore, Simentov has many of his relatives already living in Israel. Simentov was living in a 'dilapidated synagogue' in Afghanistan's capital Kabul and had kept 'kosher' and used to pray in Hebrew. However, after the Taliban takeover, the man known as the last jew of Kabul fled the war-ravaged nation. 

(Inputs from AP)

(Image: AP)