Originally Posted by
B747-437B
Israel imposes visa restrictions on Indians primarily because of concerns over the large number of Indians who live and work in countries that are potentially hostile to Israel. As long as you haven't done a spell working in Saudi or Syria or similar, you'll probably be fine.
I think that is only part of it. I would also think that it has something to do with the fact that a fairly large percentage of India's population is Muslim. I saw a similar constellation in Singapore. Singaporean citizens (who can even enter the US without needing a visa beforehand) must apply for a visa if they want to visit Israel. Singapore is fairly rich and prosperous, so illegal immigration is not really a credible threat. However, roughly 15% of Singapore's citizens (mostly ethnic Malays) are Muslim and thus suspect.
I don't like the fact that they draw general conclusions based on religion, but I suppose that if there's one country out there that's allowed to be paranoid, it's Israel.
Originally Posted by
B747-437B
The Israeli missions in India are among the most helpful visa offices I have dealt with and can often get a visa processed within 24 hours without many hoops to jump through. Just be straightforward with them and they will always assist.
I'm not so sure
UA Fan's cousin is actually in India. He mentioned earlier that his cousin is working for GM. If this means he's living in the US or some other country rather than India (and thus has a valid long-term visa for that country) it would also help to convince the embassy that he's not likely to try to overstay to immigrate illegally.