Israeli media reported "great tension between Russia and Israel", against the background of reports from Moscow about dissolving the Jewish Agency's operation in Russia, noting that this matter may be related to Prime Minister Yair Lapid's statement about the war in Ukraine.

Relations between "Israel" and Russia have witnessed tension in recent months, as the Russian Foreign Ministry summoned the Israeli ambassador to Russia, Alexander Ben Zvi, against the background of a statement by Yair Lapid when he was foreign minister of the occupation last April, in which he condemned Russia's practices in Ukraine, describing them as "war crimes".

Israeli media reported today that "Israel" considers dissolving the Jewish Agency's operation in Russia a "political punishment" for "Israel's" stance on the Ukraine war.

Israeli Channel 13's political affairs correspondent, Moriah Wahlberg, said that "Russia wants to stop the operation of the Jewish Agency, ostensibly and there is talk of a technical bureaucratic matter, but in Israel, they say that it is a political punishment."

She added that "Israel" tried "not create a diplomatic crisis, but that did not work."

The Jewish Diaspora in Russia indicated that the decision to end the operation of the Jewish Agency in the country is "a setback in relations."

Channel 13 indicated that Israelis consider that such a step "can very quickly develop into a diplomatic crisis with Russia." 

In turn, the KAN channel reported that "the issue of the Jewish Agency is a kind of a yellow card, not only because of the war in Ukraine, but also because of the Israeli operations in Syria."

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In its turn, the Israeli occupation government announced that the Prime Minister will be sending a delegation to Moscow next week "to ensure the continuation of the Jewish Agency's activity in Russia."

Russian Justice Ministry asks for dissolving Jewish Agency

Russia's Ministry of Justice has requested the liquidation of the Russian branch of the Jewish Agency for "Israel", Russian media reported on Thursday.

The Jewish Agency for "Israel", based in occupied Al-Quds, is the world's largest Jewish non-profit organization, assisting Jews in emigrating to "Israel".

Russian new law may make Israeli organizations 'foreign agents'

The Moscow Times reported that Russia expanded its definition of "foreign agents" to include "those who take part in any activity that authorities determine goes against Russia’s national interests or who receive support of any kind, not just money, from abroad."

The Jerusalem Post indicated that "Jewish representatives from the Jewish Agency or representatives of international Jewish organizations may be categorized as 'foreign agents'."

According to the new Russian law, "Anyone who has worked with a 'foreign agent' or received funding from one will be included in a new Justice Ministry list of people and groups 'affiliated with foreign agents.'"

Last Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the law on foreign agents that stipulates the creation of a unified register of individuals affiliated with them, according to the official legal information portal.

It is noteworthy that the international organization "The Jewish Agency of Israel" (Sokhnut) is an organization concerned with ensuring relations between Jews around the world, as well as issues of Jews immigrating to the occupied Palestinian lands. It was established in 1929, and representative offices of the Jewish Agency have been operating in Russia since 1989.