Where did Israelis come from?

by GiantDuarf
The_Manchurian

Everywhere that Jews lived; ie, all over Europe and North Africa. The biggest group were Jews from Central and Eastern Europe who'd fled the Nazis, or been put in camps, and didn't wish to go back to their old homes (perhaps because they were destroyed, or because they feared the other people who lived in the area). Some Jews had actually already moved there in the inter-war period, as the area was controlled by the British government, who were broadly supportive of Zionism (ie the concept that Jews should have their own nation-state), but the majority arrived post-WW2. Of course, Jews have continued to emigrate to Israel since then. For example, there was a large amount of Jewish immigration to Israel in the 1980s from the USSR, which was convinced to let those who could prove they were ethnic Jews (or 1/4 Jewish at least) leave. Some went to America, others to Israel. These Jews were not generally very religious, just ethnic Jews. A small number weren't even Jews at all, but had forged papers to say they were so they could leave the USSR.