Ephraim Kholmyansky

Ephraim Kholmyansky was born in 1950 in Moscow

Ephraim (Alexander) Kholmyansky was born in Moscow in 1950. He was drawn to Zionism after Israel's victory in the Six-Day War. He joined small secret groups that studied Hebrew and marked Jewish holidays together.

In 1979 he, Yuli Edelstein and Yuli Kosharovsky started a network of teachers to bring Hebrew study to Jews in outlying regions of the USSR. Study materials were copied on film and passed between cities in secret. The network reached about 20 cities, and its activists were often arrested and questioned by the KGB.

The KGB arrested him in Tallinn on 29 August 1984, during a summer camp he was leading. A weapon and ammunition were reported found in his home, and his supporters said he was framed. The weapon charge was later dropped, leaving a charge of illegal possession of ammunition.

He went on a hunger strike for 207 days and was force-fed in the prison hospital. He was sentenced to 5 years in prison and 7 years of exile, and the term was later cut to a year and a half after public pressure.

After his release he received an exit visa and moved to Israel with his family. Figures including George P. Shultz, Margaret Thatcher and Bob Hawke had backed his request. He lives in Ma'ale Adumim with his wife and 5 children.