Photo: Jerome Starkey/Getty
Efforts initially put toward evacuating the mandescribed asthe “last Jew in Afghanistan” have instead helped dozens escape from the country’s capital following the Taliban takeover after the man refused to leave, according to a report.
An attempt to extract Zebulon Simantov had been underway up until Rabbi Moshe Margaretten — president of theTzedek Association, a nonprofit dedicated to humanitarian cases that has been helping rescue high-risk individuals out of Afghanistan — got word that the 62-year-old did not want to flee, theJewish Telegraphic Agencyreported earlier this month.
“He didn’t give a get, a divorce, to his wife; she lives in Israel. And because of that, he’s scared to go to Israel,” Margaretten told the outlet. “That’s a very fun story. And he wants money.”
Moti Kahana, an Israeli-American businessman who is working with Margaretten to extract people from Afghanistan, previously toldThe New York Postthat Simantovwanted $50,000 as a condition of his departure, which put a wrench in their plans.
When Simantov refused to leave, the rescue mission then pivoted toward helping others such as thenational women’s soccer teamget out of the country.
People wait to board a plane at Kabul International Airport in August, 2021.MSgt Donald R Allen/AP/Shutterstock
“Moti told me, ‘My people there on the ground are telling me there is a group of soccer players, and they are very scared for their lives,’ " Margaretten recalled to JTA. “They believe they will be a big target for the Taliban to get killed. Maybe you want to get involved to save their lives.”
Margaretten said his team was able to raise $80,000 within a day. By last Wednesday, they were coordinating the extraction of 23 people — including four soccer players, a judge, a prosecutor and their families — Kahana said.
As for Simantov, Margaretten “told Moti Kahana, ‘Please have someone to watch on him.’ He doesn’t want to leave but we’ll have some people keeping an eye on him that no one shouldn’t harm him,” according to JTA.
Simantov had been living in Kabul’s only remaining synagogue as its caretaker. He became the property’s sole resident when its other caretaker, Issac Levy, died in 2005,The Los Angeles Timesreported in 2009.
“I’m the only Jew in Afghanistan,” he told the newspaper then. “It’s a big responsibility. Yes, I wish there was a larger community. But I keep kosher and maintain the tradition.”
If you would like to support those in need during the upheaval in Afghanistan, consider:
Donating toUNICEFto aid Afghans in the country or
Donating to theInternational Refugee Assistance Projectto help those fleeing.
source: people.com
