The Knesset Immigration and Absorption Committee on Tuesday agreed that 12 Ethiopian religious leaders should be granted approval to immigrate to Israel to serve as spiritual guides, or Keisim, within the Ethiopian community.

The committee will refer its decision to the government for approval. The move would allow Ethiopian religious students to immigrate to Israel to complete their training and become community spiritual leaders.

According to the panel, the new immigrants would be ordained and certified by current Ethiopian community leaders in Israel, rather than by the general Rabbinical council.

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Committee members argued that the move was necessary in order to give Ethiopoan religious students a chance to finish their training in Israel.

Meretz Chairman Yossi Beilin said that if the government does not approve the committee's decision, he and MK Reuven Rivlin (Likud) would propose a bill to Knesset for the creation of the extra slots.

"Ethiopian Jews also have the right to have their accepted leader as their religious leader here in Israel," Beilin said at the Knesset meeting.