Jewish Community Evicted

Jewish Community Evicted

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A Jew from the Lev Tahor community carries a stove on his back as he prepares to leave the Guatemalan village where his community had been based for just a few months.

The ultra-Orthodox Jews previously moved from Canada to Guatemala to find religious freedom, but have been forced out of their homes in a bitter conflict with hostile villagers.

. San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

Women and children board buses bound for the capital, Guatemala City, after weeks of friction with some of the local population.

Verbal abuse and threats to cut off power and eject them by force were the last straw for the Jews who began arriving in March from Canada, where the Lev Tahor group's strict religious ways had clashed with authorities.

. San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

Lev Tahor leader, Rabbi Uriel Goldman, who answered questions on behalf of the group, insisted most of the Guatemalan villagers were friendly toward the Lev Tahor’s black-clad men, women and children. But the group was pushed out by an aggressive minority motivated by local politics, he said.

. San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

Founded in the 1980s by Israeli Shlomo Helbrans, the Lev Tahor practice an austere form of Judaism. Eschewing technological trappings such as television and computers, daily life among the Lev Tahor is steeped in religion.

. San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

Miguel Vasquez Cholotio, a member of the elders' council, said the villagers decided to expel the group because they refused to greet or have physical contact with the community.

"We felt intimidated by them in the streets. We thought they wanted to change our religion and customs," he said.

. San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

The Lev Tahor community reject the state of Israel because it views the Jews as people in exile. They hope to find land elsewhere in Guatemala to build 30 houses to resettle the 200-odd strong community.

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Slideshow

A villager offers oranges to Jewish children.
. San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

A villager offers oranges to Jewish children.

Children of the Lev Tahor gather on a street with an older member of the community.
. San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

Children of the Lev Tahor gather on a street with an older member of the community.

A Jewish girl peeks through the door of her home as she and fellow members of the community prepare to leave the San Juan La Laguna village.
. San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

A Jewish girl peeks through the door of her home as she and fellow members of the community prepare to leave the San Juan La Laguna village.

A Jewish woman bids farewell to villagers.
. San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

A Jewish woman bids farewell to villagers.

A young girl stands near packed bags.
. San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

A young girl stands near packed bags.

Men load furniture onto a truck.
. San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

Men load furniture onto a truck.

A Jewish man receives help from a villager to carry a mattress.
. San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

A Jewish man receives help from a villager to carry a mattress.

A man of a Jewish community unloads luggage from a bus after he and fellow members arrive in Guatemala City.
. Guatemala City, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

A man of a Jewish community unloads luggage from a bus after he and fellow members arrive in Guatemala City.

Members of a Jewish community sit on a bus while preparing to leave.
. San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala. REUTERS/Jorge Dan Lopez

Members of a Jewish community sit on a bus while preparing to leave.