Last Jew in Afghanistan arrives in Israel, ending a yearslong saga

Afghanistan’s last Jew, 72-year-old Zebulon Simentov, has finally arrived in Israel after fleeing the Taliban three years ago.

Simentov, who was rescued from Kabul along with 30 Afghan neighbours by American-Israeli businessman Moti Kahana in September 2021 following the Taliban takeover, is reportedly settling in Ashdod with the help of the Jewish Agency.

It was a long-awaited outcome for the man who claimed to be the last remaining Jew in Afghanistan; the JC reported in August 2021 that Simentov was refusing to leave his native land on Kahana’s private plane because going to Israel would mean granting a divorce to his wife, according to Kahana, who said he spent “two days of resources and a huge amount of money” to organise the plan.

It reportedly took Simentov just over half an hour to change his mind and reject the chance to leave Afghanistan, even though he had already packed and begun reciting the prayer for travellers. But a month later he would concede, crossing the Afghan border with Kahana’s help and arriving first at a safe house in Islamabad, Pakistan, before deciding to go to Turkey rather than Israel.

During this period Simentov granted his wife, who lives in Israel with their two daughters, a Get after refusing for more than 20 years.

In April of 2021 he told AFP: “I’m the last, the only Jew in Afghanistan… It could get worse for me here. I have decided to leave for Israel if the Taliban returns.”

The Taliban took over shortly after, though Simentov would put off making Aliyah for another three years.

Simentov, who looked after the country’s dilapidated synagogue in Kabul’s Flower Street, took pride in being the last Jew in Afghanistan after Isaac Levi, another Jewish resident of Kabul, died in 2005, reportedly charging foreign journalists for interviews.

During a phone conversation with Kahana while he was staying in a hotel in Istanbul, Simentov refused to move to Israel unless he was paid a staggering $10 million, claiming he “lost a lot of money” in leaving Afghanistan, and also asked for additional cash to buy a winter coat.

“The hardest thing I ever did was dealing with that guy,” Kahana told JNS at the time, adding that he’s dealt with many crazy people in his line of work, but Simentov was “definitely on the top of the list.”

Simantov’s older brother Binyamin told the Walla news site he was surprised to receive a call last week that his brother had arrived in Israel.

“I couldn’t believe what I heard. On Saturday evening we drove to see him in the place he lives in southern Israel,” Binyamin said. “We haven’t seen each other for almost 25 years.”

Simantov reportedly has five siblings in Israel.