The Jewish history of Yemen is said to date back to King Solomon, who sent merchants out to find gold to build the Temple. But there are other versions as well, and Yemenite tradition suggests that Jews arrived in 629 BCE, after Jeremiah predicted the Temple’s destruction four decades in […]
While smaller than other North African Jewish communities, the population that traces their origins to Libya is just as old, dating back over 2,000 years. The Jews of Libya traditionally spoke many languages, such as Ladino and Judeo-Arabic, but also spoke Italian because of Italian control of Libya from 1911 […]
Kavkazi Jews go by many different names, such as “Gorsky Jews” or “Mountain Jews.” Similar to Bukharian Jews, Kavkazi Jews also descend from those that made their way from the Land of Israel to the area of modern-day Iran thousands of years ago. The Kavkazi Jews slowly migrated to the […]
Bukharian Jews are an ancient community that trace their origins to the Jewish exile to Babylon in the 6th century BCE. After Babylon was absorbed by the Persian Empire, many Jews went back to the Land of Israel, another group chose to stay in Persia, while a smaller cohort — […]
There is an extensive history of Jewish settlement in the area of modern Afghanistan. Ancient sources say that Jews lived in the region dating to the 6th century BCE. Afghani Jews bear many similarities to Persian Jews, speaking a similar language and sharing common cultural practices. From the 7th-8th century […]
Jews have a very deep and storied history in Iran. While communities emerged in various cities throughout Iran and the Persian Empire, the bulk of Persian Jewry existed in the city of Tehran. Jews first arrived in Iran shortly after the Babylonian Expulsion, when Babylonia was subsumed by the rising […]
The history of Jews in Tunisia dates back thousands of years. Some say it began in the days of the Punic Empire, although most trace it to the 2nd century CE. The Jews that descend from this original wave of settlement are referred to as Berber or Amazigh Jews. Later […]
While the nation of Iraq didn’t formally exist until the 20th century, the area making up the nation hosted numerous empires over the centuries. One of these empires was Babylonia, where Jews were exiled during the Babylonian Captivity. This is also where the Babylonian Talmud was compiled. Although many Jews […]
Like other North African Jewish countries, Jewish communities have existed in Algeria for over 2,000 years since the destruction of the First Temple. This original population assimilated with the local Berber/Amazigh population and mixed with the mass of Spanish Jews that arrived in the area after the Spanish Inquisition in […]
Morocco used to contain one of the world’s largest non-Ashkenazi Jewish populations, but it has significantly decreased like all other Muslim countries. However, it still has the largest Jewish population in North Africa, with 2,100 Jews. Moroccan Jewry dates back about 2,000 years, to when the area was ruled by […]
Because of the proximity of Syria and Israel, there was extensive contact between the two lands. Damascus is mentioned in the Bible numerous times and is thought to have been controlled by King David at one point. Later, Damascus and Aleppo were trade centers that contained large Jewish communities for […]
The histories of the Egyptians and Jews have been interconnected since antiquity. In ancient times, Egypt was the premier empire of the world. Since the ancient kingdoms of Judea and Israel were so close to Egypt, it often had a major influence through its trade, diplomacy, and war. Jewish communities […]
Nearly 3,000 years ago, after the destruction of Jerusalem’s First Temple, the Jewish people were forced to disperse, with many ending up in Babylon, now modern-day Iraq. Throughout the years, the Jews of Iraq maintained their Jewish identity through culture and traditions, such as observing Shabbat and keeping kosher. They spoke […]
This is the first in a series of posts by CAMERA Arabic showing how Arabic language channels belonging to Western media outlets frame the topic of Jews who originate from or live in the Middle East and North Africa by distinguishing ‘loyal’ Jews from ‘treacherous’ Zionists. All translations, emphasis and […]
When the Yom HaShoah siren rang today all over Israel, everyone stopped. If you think that the Holocaust only affected European Jews, think again. Although the effects of World War II and the Holocaust disproportionately hit Europe, to frame the Holocaust as an “Ashkenazi thing” is to ignore entire Jewish communities of […]
As the new Jewish state was taking root in 1948, an estimated 850,000 Jews living in Arab countries were being expelled or fled their homes in those countries. The festival of Sukkot marks the journey and wandering of the Jewish people through the desert in Biblical times before arriving in […]
Baghdad, 1941. There was a frenzied banging on the front door. When my mother answered it, she recognised her aunt’s Jewish cook, ashen-faced, pleading to be let in: “I was on a bus, and the Muslims were pulling the Jewish passengers out and killing them. I said I was a […]
The Farhud was a violent pogrom and massacre waged against the Jews of Iraq in 1941, in which about 180 Jews were murdered and many more injured. Raging during the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, the Farhud was the climax of a creeping antisemitic zeitgeist — anti-Jewish graffiti such as, “Hitler […]
Music remembers much of what history has forgotten, says Canadian assistant Professor of Jewish history Christopher Silver, who has just brought out his book ‘Recording history’, a fascinating journey through the soundscape of North Africa before decolonisation. It was a vibrant era which produced the singing sensation Habiba Messika; Jews […]
When Yasmine opened a direct message on her Instagram account with a link to an article, she was flabbergasted. “I can’t actually be reading this,” she thought. “This can’t be a real article.” The article in question, titled “Why I Accused Israel Of Cultural Genocide,” was in response to a controversial […]
Bnei Ayish, Israel I am the last survivor of the Jewish community that lived near the southern Saudi Arabian city of Najran. Around sixty Jewish families once lived in Najran and the small villages around it. Some worked for King Abd-al-Aziz Ibn Saud in the 1930s and 1940s, maintaining his […]
When my book, “Bene Appetit: The Cuisine of Indian Jews,” was published by HarperCollins, readers wanted to know why I decided to write it. My answer is very simple. There are 5,000 Jews in India, down from about 30,000 at the peak in the mid-1950s and 1960s. When a community decreases in numbers, […]
Living and growing in India, Jewish festivals had their own significance. The pride that I had while explaining the extraordinary religion, traditions, and customs that were, on the one hand, so different from those of my neighbors’, and on the other, so clearly influenced by the dominant Hindu and Muslim […]
Financial journalist Daniel Gross is of proud Syrian-Jewish stock on his mother’s side. Yet the historian and author of nine books knew about the very private billionaire Edmond J. Safra in only the vaguest terms. “I knew him as a rich guy and a banker who lived in different places,” […]
The Jewish people have survived numerous atrocities, from slavery in Egypt, to the Spanish Inquisition, to the Farhud in Iraq and the Holocaust. This history of struggle shows that it is necessary to stand up against hatred and evil. Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa (JIMENA) is an organization with […]
A lone Jewish person remains in Yemen, down from seven a month ago, according to a new United Nations report about the treatment of religious minorities in conflict zones. The report, which was published by the U.N. special rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, described the treatment of religious […]
JTA — Jewish prayer in a mosque. Hookah smoke in a kosher kitchen. Hebrew school study under portraits of ayatollahs. When former Associated Press photographer Hassan Sarbakhshian spent almost two years between 2006 and 2008 among the Jewish communities in Iran, those are some of the images he collected for a […]
Jews with roots in Iraq are today the third largest community in Israel – after the Soviet and the Moroccan. Did you ever wonder how they got there? The mass aliya of some 120,000 Iraqi Jews between 1950 and 1951 is attributable largely to the efforts of one man — Shlomo Hillel, […]
Every Friday, my mother and her 11 brothers and sisters have lunch at my grandmother Hela’s home in Petah Tikva. There, they find dozens of pots simmering on stoves filled with various dishes that had been prepared with love all day — some even overnight. These Fridays, my grandmother serves her […]
The tiny island of Djerba remains the largest outpost of Arabic-speaking Jews today. Found off the coast of Tunisia, Djerba boasts a small but steady Jewish population of around 1,200 people. On the surface, a description of Djerba might resemble what one might see on a present-day tour of other […]
Learn more about what the media gets wrong about Mizrahi Jewish communities. See responses from CAMERA and our allies as we set the record straight in the BBC, New York Times, The Guardian UK and more.
CAMERA has planned a series of initiatives to educate students about the history of Mizrahi Jewish communities including digital advocacy, student-led events on university campuses, tabling, and displays on college grounds, all highlighting important Mizrahi experiences.
For years, Zebulon Simentov branded himself as the “last Jew of Afghanistan,” the sole remnant of a centuries-old community. He charged reporters for interviews and held court in Kabul’s only remaining synagogue. He left the country last month for Istanbul after the Taliban seized power. Now it appears he was […]
In its new campaign, the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (CAMERA) celebrates Mizrahi Jews on college campuses around the world, encouraging students to host and plan a variety of events and speakers, and write articles for their newspapers that demonstrate the diversity of the Jewish world. […]
During COVID-19 self-isolation, like many others, I’ve been spending hours a day on social media. In particular, I’ve thoroughly explored the social media app TikTok — an app that has exploded in popularity in the last year. The app, which continuously streams curated 15 second to one-minute-long videos based on […]
The Jewish people have survived numerous atrocities, from slavery in Egypt, to the Spanish Inquisition, to the Farhud in Iraq and the Holocaust. This history of struggle shows that it is necessary to stand up against hatred and evil. Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa (JIMENA) is an organization with […]
On Sept. 13, 2021, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi in Sharm El-Sheikh in the Sinai Peninsula. The event was the first public invitation for an Israeli premier to meet on Egyptian soil in a decade. But while the meeting was well covered by […]
CAMERA’s campus advisor and strategic planner Yoni Michanie Noura Erakat, assistant professor at George Mason University, claims in her new book “Justice for Some: The Question of Palestine,” that international law operates under the settler-colonial framework, and as a result has historically favored the State of Israel. According to Erakat: […]
The Farhud was a violent pogrom and massacre waged against the Jews of Iraq in 1941, in which about 180 Jews were murdered and many more injured. Raging during the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, the Farhud was the climax of a creeping antisemitic zeitgeist — anti-Jewish graffiti such as, “Hitler […]
Jews with roots in Iraq are today the third largest community in Israel – after the Soviet and the Moroccan. Did you ever wonder how they got there? The mass aliya of some 120,000 Iraqi Jews between 1950 and 1951 is attributable largely to the efforts of one man — Shlomo Hillel, […]
Baghdad, 1941. There was a frenzied banging on the front door. When my mother answered it, she recognised her aunt’s Jewish cook, ashen-faced, pleading to be let in: “I was on a bus, and the Muslims were pulling the Jewish passengers out and killing them. I said I was a […]
The festival of Sukkot marks the journey and wandering of the Jewish people through the desert in Biblical times before arriving in the Land of Israel. Through the centuries, Jews have suffered persecution and endured many periods of wandering, and after nearly two millennia, gathered from the exiles with the […]
When the Yom HaShoah siren rang today all over Israel, everyone stopped. If you think that the Holocaust only affected European Jews, think again. Although the effects of World War II and the Holocaust disproportionately hit Europe, to frame the Holocaust as an “Ashkenazi thing” is to ignore entire Jewish communities of […]
A post by CAMERA Arabic. On November 6th the BBC Arabic website reported Vladimir Putin’s reference to Russian aid he purportedly directs at Jews who still remain in Syria and their properties (“Putin helps the Jews of Syria, but where are they?”). The report included a timeline of Syrian Jewry, whose […]
This is the fourth in a series of posts by CAMERA Arabic (part 1, part 2, part 3) showing how Arabic language news networks, including those affiliated with Western media outlets, frame the topic of Jews who originate from or live in the Middle East and North Africa, by attempting […]
This is the fifth in a series of CAMERA Arabic posts showing how Arabic language news networks, including those affiliated with Western media outlets, frame the topic of Jews who originate from or live in the Mid-East and North Africa, by distinguishing between ‘loyal’ Jews and ‘treacherous’ Zionists. (See part […]
On May 15, many Palestinians and their supporters mark what they call “Nakba Day,” a commemoration focusing on their view that the reconstitution of a Jewish state in Israel was a “catastrophe.” The commemoration is often accompanied by a flurry of opinion pieces and news stories conveying the Palestinian narrative […]
In February, the Washington Post published a broadside attack on Israeli food by the Palestinian food writer Reem Kassis. Kassis did not object to the flavors, textures, or aromas of Israeli food but to the very idea that it exists at all. Her piece might be the most visible example […]
Nearly 3,000 years ago, after the destruction of Jerusalem’s First Temple, the Jewish people were forced to disperse, with many ending up in Babylon, now modern-day Iraq. Throughout the years, the Jews of Iraq maintained their Jewish identity through culture and traditions, such as observing Shabbat and keeping kosher. They spoke […]
November was Mizrahi Heritage Month. In honor of this, the John Jay Hillel, Students Without Borders, International Criminal Justice Club, and the Student Council partnered together with CAMERA on Campus to host a screening of the documentary The Forgotten Refugees. There were a total of 35 attendees at the Zoom-held event. […]
Over the summer, Duke University’s Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapter published erroneous claims about the nature of Zionism in one of its Instagram posts. According to the ADL, Zionism is “the Jewish national movement of self-determination in the land of Israel — the historical birthplace and biblical homeland […]
This past November was Mizrahi heritage month, a time to recognize and uplift the narratives of Mizrahi Jews across the globe. The acknowledgement of Mizrahi history has grown in popularity in the United States, particularly after Israel passed a law in 2014 that designated November 30 as a national day […]
In 1851, Sojourner Truth—abolitionist, feminist and former slave—delivered her pivotal speech titled “Ain’t I a Woman?” at the Women’s Rights Convention in Akron, Ohio. She shared her strife, her struggle and her ever-growing frustration with society and government alike. Just released from the oppressive grasp of slavery, she sought to […]
When I think about Israeli culture, I think of startups, I think of gorgeous museums with modern art exhibits, of Sabich, falafel, and hip new musicians, of the Tel Aviv boardwalk and the new lineup of hit Israeli TV shows on Netflix. Israel has a rich culture, and yet often […]