Iranian Jews will not trade their identity for money

I readily admit my cluelessness about this situation but it sure caught my eye.

From Mehr News: Iranian Jews will not trade their identity for money

The Society of Iranian Jews issued a statement on Tuesday dismissing reports that Iranian Jews have been offered money to immigrate to Israel. The statement said Iranian Jews would not “exchange their Iranian identity for any sum of money.”

“The Iranian Jews are the oldest Iranians, and if a group has embarked on immigration, it is not an issue separate from other normal migrations by other Iranians,” it added.

The statement, which was signed by MP Morris Mo’tamed, who represents the Jewish community in the Majlis, and Dr. Siamak Sedq, the chairman of the Tehran Jewish Association, said Iranian Jews love their Iranian culture and identity and “threats and immature political enticements” cannot create a crack in their Iranian identity.

The statement followed a report in some newspapers on Monday saying Israel is trying to lure Iranian Jews to Israel by offering individuals a payment of $10,000.

The Jewish news outlet TJA recently ran a report on its website claiming that Israel has allocated $1 million to encourage Iranian Jews to immigrate to Israel.TJA said the fund was amassed by Jews of Iranian descent living in Israel. To entice Iranian Jews, Israel has increased the payment from $5000 to $10,000, TJA reported.

However, TJA has acknowledged that Iran’s over 20,000 Jews have shrugged off the offer.