Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has rejected a proposed amendment by Chief Sepharadi Rabbi Shlomo Amar to change the Law of Return so that converts would not be recognized as Jews, Haaretz learned Tuesday.

Follwoing an address by the Conservative Movement in Israel to the premier in December expressing its deep concern with Amar's proposal, Prime Minister's Office director general Ra'anan Dinur informed the Conservative Movement of Olmert's decision.

In a short letter dated January 29, Dinur wrote "the Prime Minister's Office does not intend at this point to promote any amendments to legislation pertaining to this matter, including the amendment put forth by the Chief Rabbi in Israel."

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Haaretz reported in November Rabbi Amar sought to change the definition of Jew in the Law of Return.

Under the law, a Jewish person is deemed to be the descendant of a Jewish mother or a convert into Judaism, and only persons meeting these criteria are eligible for immigrating to Israel and automatically receiving Israeli citizenship.

Under Amar's proposal, the revised law would omit the word "convert" so that persons who converted into Judaism, via either a Orthodox or non-Orthodox institution, would not be recognized as Jewish for the purposes of the law.

It is believed that Amar is motivated by fears that the Supreme Court would require the state to recognize non-Orthodox conversions, leading the way to recognizing non-Orthodox marriages. The Chief Rabbi is also concerned about non-Orthodox rabbis conducting mass conversions of non-Jews abroad, thus allowing them to immigrate to Israel.

Amar's bid has sparked wide protests from Jewish organizations and non-religious institutions, which claimed the law would cause a rift between Israel and world Jewry.