“Zablon Simintov” Last Afghan Jew Seeks Refuge in Israel
“Zablon Simintov” was the last Afghan Jew who sought refuge in Israel after leaving Turkey.
The Jerusalem Post news network reported on Tuesday, November 12, on Zablon’s departure from Turkey to Israel. According to reports from this news network, he entered Israel on Thursday of last week, November 7, and joined his family who had moved to Israel years earlier.
The 65-year-old Simintov, a Jew born in Herat, maintained the only synagogue in Kabul before the Taliban came to power, and in addition was also engaged in carpet trading and restaurant business. Before the Taliban’s return, in an interview with various media outlets, he had stated that he would not leave Afghanistan. Although threats and difficulties separated from his family put pressure on him, he had a strong attachment to his homeland.
After the collapse of the republican government and the Taliban’s return, Zablon left Afghanistan for Turkey in 2021. His brother Benjamin also announced that he entered Israel on Thursday night of last week, surprising his family.
Benjamin Simintov said about this: “My brother called me Thursday around 9 or 10 at night and said: Congratulations, your brother is in Israel. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. We stayed until Saturday night in a place in southern Israel where we reside.”
According to information released by the Jerusalem Post, Zablon left Afghanistan with the help of the Jewish Agency and was supported by this organization during his stay in Turkey. This organization is a non-profit and international organization of Jews around the world established to help Jews. The Jewish Agency initially worked to facilitate the migration of Jews to the Palestinian territories and later to Israel.
