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Jewish Agency chairman warns Israel-diaspora rift will cause ‘historic disaster’

“I think it will be a historic disaster in colossal proportions if the rift causes two Jewish peoples to be formed here,” said Isaac Herzog.

By World Israel News Staff

Jewish Agency Chairman Isaac Herzog warned that failure to address the deepening philosophical rift between Jews growing up in Israel and those growing up in the United States will lead to catastrophic results.

“I think it will be a historic disaster in colossal proportions if the rift causes two Jewish peoples to be formed here, so we have a challenge to form a connection between these two pillars in the strongest way possible, and of course with all other communities,” said Herzog at a Kibbutz Movement conference on Tuesday.

This is not the first time, Herzog warned about the dangerous positional rift forming between diaspora Jewry and the State of Israel.

This past summer, Herzog told Israel Hayom the Jewish people face the “real danger of a serious split that could result in the creation of two different peoples on the two sides of the ocean” and “six million Jews in Israel and six million Jews in North America who are moving further away from one another…would be a disaster for generations.”

According to Herzog, the best way to prevent such a scenario is by encouraging mutual dialog and respect.

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The Jewish Agency is a non-governmental umbrella organization that works closely with the Israeli government to encourage Jewish immigration and the development of ties with diaspora communities.

It is very active in promoting immigration to Israel. It helps thousands of young Jews spend from a few weeks to a year in Israel in various programs, as well as conducts secret rescue operations to bring endangered Jews from their home countries to the Jewish homeland.