100-year-old woman from Uruguay becomes Israel’s oldest new immigrant this year

A 100-year-old great-grandmother became the oldest person to immigrate to Israel this year, according to a statement from The Jewish Agency on Thursday.

Sara Unterberg, the Lithuanian-born grandmother of six and great-grandmother of 15, said the global rise of antisemitism since Oct. 7, and a desire to be closer to her family, motivated her to make the move from Uruguay last week.

“I realized I may not have much time left, and I want to spend it with my many grandchildren and great-grandchildren in Israel,” Unterberg said. “I believe all Jews should live in Israel. The world is becoming less safe for us.”

Unterberg was born in Lithuania in 1925 and immigrated to Uruguay with her mother when she was 15 months old, joining her father who had arrived earlier.

“The truth is that Uruguay gave me everything since I was a child,” she said. “But what happened on Oct. 7 and afterward only confirmed to us that our place is in Israel – and now Israel is welcoming me with open arms.”

Unterberg was deeply involved in the small Jewish community of Uruguay, both at the Ashkenazi-founded community synagogue and the Sephardic synagogue in Montevideo.

“I had a strong connection with people in both communities,” she explained. “I visited the sick, went to the Jewish retirement home and organized plays and games for the residents… I helped found the Yiddish Club and even served as its president for 30 years.”

“There were many bar mitzvahs and weddings – I never wanted to miss a family gathering,” she said. “I was always connected to Israel and believed in it as the homeland of the Jewish people, but I never thought of immigrating myself until recently.”

After years of visiting her family, who are mostly located in Israel, she moved to the coastal town of Hadera with assistance from the Jewish Agency and the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews.

“Sara Unterberg’s Aliyah at age 100 is a living reminder that there is no age limit to the Zionist dream,” said Maj. Gen. (res.) Doron Almog, chairman of the Jewish Agency. “In every new immigrant who arrives in Israel, we see the triumph of spirit, belonging and unconditional love.”

More than 53,000 people have made aliyah since Oct. 7, 2023. Of that total number, 31,000 moved to the land of Israel in 2024 alone.