Jewish community treats expulsion of Sochi Rabbi as outrageous

The verdict of the Territorial Court, which has upheld the decision to expel Ari Edelkopf, the Rabbi of Sochi and his family members, from Russia was a blow to the entire Jewish community of the country, said its representatives Berl Lazar and Mikhail Chlenov.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that in December 2016 the Russia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) cancelled the residence permit of Ari Edelkopf, and then his wife Khanna was deprived of the right to reside in Russia. The courts upheld the MIA’s decision; and on March 28, the Krasnodar Territorial Court rejected Edelkopf's appeal.

The decision of the Krasnodar Territorial Court causes "extremely warning feelings," Berl Lazar, the Chief Rabbi of Russia and the leader of the Federation of Jewish Communities, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

According to his version, the situation with Edelkopf’s deportation was a blow to the entire Jewish community of Russia.

Mikhail Chlenov, the secretary general of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress, has treated the Edelkopf’s case as "really outrageous."

According to his version, this incident may indicate the desire of Russian authorities to get rid of clergymen, who are foreign citizens or who received their religious education abroad.

After the court decision, Ari Edelkopf himself published two posts in the Facebook, where he thanked all those who had supported him, stressing that he would continue seeking the cancellation of his verdict.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.