Nepal Chabad Forced To Relocate Following Months of Harassment
Chabad of Nepal, a central hub for Jewish life in Kathmandu for many years, is being forced to relocate after a series of escalating demands and restrictions placed on it by its landlord, according to Chani Lifshitz, who runs the Chabad House together with her husband, Rabbi Chizki Lifshitz.
In an emotional Facebook post, Lifshitz shared that the past several days have been marked by upheaval and pain, as the family was suddenly required to vacate the building that had long served as both their home and a center for Jewish life. “These are tough days. We’re in a crisis — but we’re not abandoning our mission,” she wrote.
The Kathmandu Chabad House has for years been a place of Shabbat meals, holiday celebrations, counseling, and connection for thousands of Jewish travelers, particularly Israelis, passing through Nepal. Lifshitz described the home as “the work of our lives — a place of Shabbat, holidays, tears, hugs, and conversations that lasted until the night was over.”
According to Lifshitz, the difficulties began months ago, with what she described as a steady tightening of pressure. Requests from the landlord turned into demands, followed by increasing restrictions and financial requirements. At one point, the family was instructed to remove all Hebrew signage from the property so as not to indicate a Jewish presence. The explanation given, she wrote, was that neighbors might suspect the landlord of being a spy for Iran.
“As the financial demands kept increasing, again and again, it became impossible to meet them,” Lifshitz wrote. “Slowly, it became clear to us that we were being led to one place: they don’t want this place to be a home for Jews.”
She added that the message became unmistakable — that Jewish presence was seen as “unnecessary” and “disturbing.” Behind it all, she said, was “a clear sense of antisemitism, one that could no longer be ignored.”
The situation came to a head when the Lifshitz family was told to leave immediately. With little time to prepare, they packed the contents of the Chabad House into a storage space in the Balaju neighborhood of Kathmandu and began urgently searching for a new location.
“We’re now facing empty walls,” Lifshitz wrote. “And I quietly say to myself: how do you leave a house that is all soul?”
Despite the emotional toll, the Lifshitzes have made clear that their shlichus will continue. “Chizki says that everything is for the best,” she wrote, “and all I have are tears in my eyes.”
