The Chief Rabbinate does not consider the Bnei Menashe to be Jewish according to Halacha (Jewish norms), but the members of the community consider themselves to be of Jewish ancestry and are committed Zionists and observant Jews whose goal is to return to the land of their ancestors, Freund said.
He said Bnei Menashe are unable to convert in India and have come to Israel in small groups at irregular intervals to convert here.
Some 2,000 members of the Bnei Menashe have arrived in Israel since the 1980s and around 7,000 members of the group still live in India.
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