INDIA, January 8, 2026 (Religion News Service): The Bnei Menashe are a small community from India’s northeastern states of Mizoram and Manipur who believe they are descendants of the biblical lost tribe of Manasseh and see their migration to Israel as the fulfillment of prophecy. For decades, members of the community have sought to immigrate despite not qualifying under Israel’s Law of Return. Since 1989, around 4,000 have migrated through special government permissions, while thousands more have waited, often for generations. In November 2025, the Israeli government announced that the entire community—about 5,800 people—would be allowed to immigrate by 2030, with about 1,200 expected to arrive next year. Israeli leaders framed the move as strengthening Jewish settlement in northern Israel, and delegations of Israeli rabbis have begun vetting families in India for religious practice and eligibility.
The story also traces the complex historical, religious, and political background of the Bnei Menashe, who are ethnically part of the Kuki-Mizo-Chin peoples and were largely converted to Christianity by missionaries during British rule. The belief in an Israelite origin emerged in the mid-20th century and was later encouraged by Israeli religious activists and organizations such as Shavei Israel, which has helped facilitate migration. The movement remains controversial in India, especially among Christian leaders who view it as a threat to Mizo Christian identity. Recent ethnic violence in Manipur has added urgency to the desire to emigrate. At the same time, the approval of the Bnei Menashe migration comes amid rising emigration from Israel itself, highlighting a striking demographic and ideological contrast between new religious immigrants arriving and many secular, educated Israelis choosing to leave–80,000 a year recently.
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