On the 2nd of July, during the work of III Congress of World and Traditional-National Religions, in Kostanay city a new synagogue Beit Rahel-Habad Lyubavich was opened. The synagogue is named in honor of the mother of the main sponsor and organizer of synagogue construction, the President of the Eurasian Jewish Congress, Alexander Mashkevich.

  In the opening ceremony many officials took part including the Head of the Kostanay Oblast Sergey Kulagin, who recited congratulating words of the President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Minister of Religious Affairs Yakov Margy, Ambassador of Israel to Kazakhstan May-Amy, the Chief Ashkenazy Rabbi of Israel Iona Metsger, the Chief Rabbi of Kazakhstan Eshaya Kogen, President of the Association of Jewish National Organizations of Kazakhstan Mitsva Alexander Baron and other officials from Kazakhstan and Israel.

  The opening ceremony was led by the Chief Rabbi of Israel Iona Metsger and the President of the Eurasian Jewish Congress Alexander Mashkevich. After the red ribbon was cut, a Torah scroll was brought into the synagogue. The honorary right to inscribe last letters in the sacred manuscript was granted to the President of Israel Shimon Peres and President of the Eurasian Jewish Congress Alexander Mashkevich.

  Newly built synagogue can hold up to 100 people at a time, its overall space is 893 square meters. Rabbi Levy, who is coming from Israel soon, will lead the work of the Kostanay Synagogue under the guidance of Eshaya Kogen.

  The President of Mitsva Association said "over 50,000 Jews live in Kazakhstan. We are certainly very happy that Kostanay now has a sacred place where Jews can come and be closer to God. There are already synagogues in Astana, Almaty, Pavlodar, the day before yesterday a new synagogue was opened in Ust-Kamenogorsk." The opening of the fifth synagogue in Kazakhstan became a remarkable event in the life of Kazakhstani Jews.

Jewish Community of Kostanay