January 18, 2006
Moscow's chief rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt, who was banned from Russia for more than nine weeks last year, has been issued a new visa valid for one year. Goldschmidt, a Swiss citizen and Russian resident for 15 years, returned to Moscow last Friday. In late September, Russian authorities canceled his visa at a Moscow airport as he tried to re-enter the country returning on a flight from Israel; security reasons were cited. After the issue had been taken up by Jewish organizations, among the Conference of European Rabbis, Russia granted Goldschmidt a short-term visa in December, and he had to leave the country before the New Year to apply for a one-year permit.
