Jewish community leaders have praised the Trump administration for its international efforts to ensure those who observe the Sukkot holiday have full access to the Four Species necessary according to Jewish tradition.
According to Fox News, international travel restrictions imposed over the global coronavirus pandemic have sparked concern among leading rabbis in the US they could not travel to Italy to retrieve the citron, one of four plants the Jewish people are bound to use in a special ceremony on each day of the Sukkot festival.
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The citron, which is grown in Italy, must be harvested under strict rabbinic guidance to be eligible for use in the festival.
Jewish community leaders contacted White House adviser Avi Berkowitz, who serves as the special representative for international negotiations, over the predicament. According to the report, Berkowitz immediately reached out to the US embassies in Italy and Israel, which confirmed that unless something is done, over 100,000 observant Jews would be unable to fulfill their religious obligation.
"We are extremely grateful to the Trump administration for immediately responding to our request for assistance after we learned that Esrog importers would not be able to enter Italy due to reciprocal COVID Travel restrictions," Rabbi David Niederman, president of United Jewish Organizations of Williamsburg and North Brooklyn, told Fox News in a statement.
"The Trump administration acted at once when learning of the issue and reached out to the Italian Embassy to ensure that Esrogim for the Sukkos holiday can be secured this year, as in years past," Niederman continued.
"These efforts directly enabled American Jews to utilize the famed and beautiful Italian Esrogim that have been used by Jews for centuries."
Aryeh Lightstone, a senior adviser to US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, told the media outlet that he has been receiving calls from Jewish religious leaders, as well as Evangelicals ones, who wish to thank the Trump administration "for saving their Sukkot."
"This summer many of them called with grave concerns that Sukkot would be another casualty of COVID-19 as they wouldn't be able to access the famed Italian citrons this year. I knew if anyone could accomplish this it would be Avi Berkowitz at the White House," Lightstone said.
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