Tel Aviv: The Israeli government has approved a plan to repatriate centuries-old Jewish communities living in India. Under this program, the first group of 1,200 individuals will relocate to Israel next year. The Israeli Immigration Department will oversee their resettlement, providing financial assistance, Hebrew language training, and employment opportunities.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the initiative as “essential and Zionist,” emphasizing that it will strengthen northern Israel. By 2030, nearly 5,800 members of the Bnei Menashe community, residing for centuries in the Indian states of Mizoram and Manipur, are expected to return and settle gradually in the Galilee region of northern Israel.
The Mystery of Israel’s Lost Tribes
Historians believe that around 720 BCE, when the Neo-Assyrian Empire conquered the northern Kingdom of Israel, 10 of the 12 tribes were exiled to preserve their existence. These tribes—Reuben, Simeon, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Manasseh, and Ephraim—gradually disappeared from history. Only the tribes of Judah and Benjamin survived, forming the foundation of modern Jewish populations.
For thousands of years, communities worldwide—including Beta Israel in Ethiopia, Bnei Menashe in India, Lemba in Africa, and even certain Native American and Japanese groups—have claimed connections to these lost tribes. Most of these claims are based on oral histories, traditions, and cultural similarities, with scientific verification still inconclusive.
Are Pakistan and Afghanistan’s Pashtuns Linked to Israel?
Israel has shown particular interest in the Pashtuns of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Many Pashtun tribal names and oral traditions strikingly resemble those of the ancient Israelite tribes—for example, the Yusufzai (sons of Joseph) and Afridi (possibly linked to Ephraim). Muslim, Jewish, and Christian scholars have historically speculated on such connections.
While certain cultural markers—dietary laws, marriage customs such as the “Kanopi” practice, Sabbath-like candle rituals, and traditional clothing—hint at ancient Israelite roots, the modern Pashtun population identifies strongly with Islam and rejects the notion of Israelite ancestry.
Despite this, genetic studies have been conducted to explore the historical roots of these communities, but no definitive scientific conclusion has been reached—neither fully confirming nor entirely refuting the theory of a Pashtun connection to Israel’s lost tribes.