- Israeli-owned factories in Muslim-majority Uzbekistan employ Muslim workers to produce tallit and tzitzit for IDF soldiers and Jewish communities worldwide.
- After October 7, demand surged sharply, leading to mass production for Israeli soldiers.
In Muslim-majority Uzbekistan, Israeli-owned factories produce tallit and tzitzit for IDF soldiers, as the country continues to strengthen its ties with Israel. About 200 kilometres east of Tashkent, on the edge of an industrial zone, hundreds of Muslim workers gather each morning along production lines. They cut and sew with precision. They handle every detail of the hardware, kippahs, tallit, kilts, and tzitzit vests. Their work is destined for IDF soldiers and Jewish communities around the world.
One of the people behind this partnership is Shlomo Colombo, 39. He is an ultra-Orthodox businessman who divides his life between Bnei Brak and Miami. He owns four textile factories in Uzbekistan. At his side is Avraham Haim, 44, his right-hand man. Haim divides his time between the Uzbek factories and his home in Tiberias.
He says with a smile:
“You know, they say that anyone who keeps the tzitzit commandment will be served by all nations and that when the Messiah comes, he will have 28,000 slaves. I’m not really knowledgeable, but there is some kind of calculation like that. What I do know for sure is that since October 7, we have produced over a million tzitzits for soldiers.
“The Uzbeks are simple people in the best sense of the word. Family-oriented, respectful and proud of what they do.”
For Columbo, the project is more than business.
“The conditions here are better than the local market, and the pay and treatment of workers are excellent,” says Colombo. “They receive training, are free on their own holidays and on Jewish holidays. They are very curious and open to learning. They want to work.”
Both describe a sharp shift after October 7.
“Demand exploded,” Haim says. “We were the first to provide khaki tzitzit vests for regular soldiers and white for reservists. We cleared all the production lines. We flew goods by air train while competitors were stuck with goods.”
Colombo’s wife, Natalie Cashman, began as his interpreter. She is now the production supervisor and acting manager. She also speaks warmly about the workers.
“They themselves say that this is not just another job or another industrial product that they are working on. They are all people of faith and understand that they are part of something bigger. It warms the heart to see and hear that.”
Colombo explains how the project began.
“We were looking for the highest quality cotton in the world,” he says. “Uzbekistan emerged as a powerhouse in the field. But beyond that, I discovered a country with warm people, a lot of respect for investors, zero tolerance for antisemitism and a president who is a fan of Israel who promotes an open economy and welcomes foreign initiatives and investments. As an investor and owner of the only factory in the world owned by a Jew that produces wool outside the borders of Israel, I felt good.”
Haim adds, “A prayer space is provided for our Muslim employees.” The finishing, Colombo says, is “at the level of Louis Vuitton.” Halachic supervision is strict, including the Haredi Badatz and the oversight of Rabbi Shlomo Mahfoud and Rabbi Aryeh Levin. One rule is absolute: tying the tzitzit is done only in Israel. It is done “according to halachic law.”
“The workers here produce and we complete the sanctity in Israel,” Haim clarifies.
“Once, an American donor contacted us and ordered tens of thousands of tzitzits through one of the associations, which of course we made in Uzbekistan. I told her that I was very jealous of her. Because every minute that the tzitzit is worn, they say, is equivalent to 313 mitzvot, which is 613 mitzvot. I told her, ‘Do the math: Let’s say you distributed 50,000 tzitzits, times the minutes in the day of those soldiers, times the mitzvot that thanks to you they are fulfilling. That’s billions of mitzvot.’ I don’t think there is a place where you can list this huge number of commandments and rights you have.”
Shulamit, Colombo’s wife, joins the conversation.
“We are probably getting closer to world peace,” she says. She recalls a message shared during the war in the “Be’er Sheva Together” WhatsApp group. It described a shooting incident involving a Namer armored personnel carrier, from which the soldiers escaped unharmed.
“Most of the Uzbek people are friendly to us,” Haim says. “There is an extreme minority that makes a bit of noise on social media, but the government there and the president, and most of the sane people, do not allow expressions of hatred, and stop the event as soon as it starts.”
