Who Is Waiting in Ethiopia
In Gondar and Addis Ababa, entire Jewish communities live in prolonged waiting. Many left their villages years ago following a call to immigrate to Israel — and since then their lives have stood still: between a past that no longer exists and a future that keeps being delayed.
📷 ליאור ספרנדוYears of life on hold
Entire families have lived for many years in waiting compounds in Gondar and Addis Ababa, having left their homes, land, and livelihoods. The wait stretches for years — sometimes decades.
Families torn apart
Nearly every waiting family has first-degree relatives in Israel: parents whose children are here, siblings separated from each other, grandparents whose grandchildren are growing up without them.
Economic, medical, and social hardship
Life in prolonged waiting brings severe economic distress, limited access to medical care, and crowded living conditions — the daily reality of thousands, including children and the elderly.
Longing for Israel
The yearning for Zion passes from generation to generation. The community sees Israel as its home and its future, and waits for the day it can make aliyah and reunite with family.
Community life, prayer, and identity
Even while waiting, the communities maintain full Jewish life: active synagogues, prayers, Hebrew and Judaism classes, holidays and tradition — a living community that keeps believing.
Waiting on government decisions
The fate of the families depends on government resolutions and budgets. Every bureaucratic delay translates into another year of children growing up far from their parents and families remaining torn apart.
Want to check if a relative appears on the lists?
You can search the waiting lists of Gondar and Addis Ababa.
Check the lists