Small Suburb of Moscow Was Center of Jewish Underground Activity in the Soviet Union

Before the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the small town of Malakhovka -- less than 10 miles from Moscow -- was the center of Jewish underground activity. In 2005 its old wooden synagogue was burned down in a fire for the second time, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) website.

Five years later, the shared effort of local authorities and wealthy Moscow Jews have enabled the building of a new synagogue.

The synagogue was built with the financial backing of Moscow businessman Alexander Kaplan, who said he felt a break in tradition upon learning that the old synagogue had been burned down.

The synagogue sits in this Moscow suburb for two major reasons: Malakhovka has played host to the summerhouses of many famous artists, and historically it has been populated primarily by Jews.