[Jabba the Nutt]

The study seems to suggest that most European Jews are paternally descended from Israelites and maternally descended from European converts....

I don't think that's what they're saying. Mitochondria is passed down through Mothers with no paternal contribution. So, you can trace the female line back into time.

[ek_hornbeck]

I don't think that's what they're saying. Mitochondria is passed down through Mothers with no paternal contribution. So, you can trace the female line back into time.

Yes, and the fact that the mitochondrial haplotype is similar to those of Europeans rather than to Middle Eastern peoples suggests that the maternal ancestors of Ashkenazi Jews were European rather than Middle Eastern.