History of the Jews in Lebanon

The Juifs of Lebanon are traditionally a Jewish community mizrahi which exists since nearly 2000 years on the territory of the current Lebanon and whose size clearly decreased during the twentieth century, following its emigration primarily towards the France, the North America, Brésil and, to a lesser extent, towards Israel.

It is concentrated today as a whole around Beirut and counts nothing any more but one member hundred, against 20  000 in 1948.

The Aliyah of this community was done only tardily at the time of the civil wars of 1958 and 1975, showing the integration of its members to the Lebanese company and their desire not to leave their country.

Establishment of the Jews in Lebanon

The old Jews would have lived on the coast, in the plains and on the mountains of the country of the Cedar before the communities Moslem woman and Christian woman who populated it a few decades later. The first signs go up around 132 common era, following the Révolte of Bar Kokhba against the Roman empire. The earthquake which destroyed the town of Beirut in the year 502 demolished a old Synagog several tens of years that the Jews of the time had built.

At the 7th century, under the reign of the caliph Muawiya Ier, part of the Jewish community was established with Tripoli, then with Sidon in 922 and with Tyr in 1070. Under the protection of the emir Béchir, the Jewish community of Chouf (Deir el Qamar, Barouk, and Hasbayah) had a cemetery, schools and several synagogs in Mount-Lebanon. A synagog was built in Aley in 1890, another in Bhamdoun in 1915.

Rise at the 20th century

Towards the beginning of the 19th century, one counted more than 4000 Jews to the country of the Cedar come, of the close regions (Syria, Turkey, Persia, Greece), to settle on these grounds. The Jewish community of Lebanon knew the apogee of its prosperity and its blooming during the French mandate, creation of the newspaper Le Monde Israélite and the newspaper the Trade of Raising of Toufic Mizrahi being written in French language and always exists; the creation of “Safra bank” become today “Bank of national Credit”, and “Zilkha bank”.

The district of Wadi Abou Jamil became the economic, social, cultural center (several schools) and monk of the community (construction of the synagog “Magen David Abraham”). Shortly after the creation of Large Lebanon (1920), the Jewish community of Lebanon was the first and the only Jewish community in the Middle East to enjoy a recognition and a constitutional protection. In the Thirties, and with supports of Emile Eddé, president of the Lebanese republic, the idea to grant a parliamentary seat at this community made its way. It was rejected at once by the high commissioner of France, representing the French mandate in Lebanon. In 1968 the community was already of 24  000 members.

Nowadays

Lebanon is the only Arab country whose Jewish population increased after the Déclaration of independence of the State of Israel in 1948. With the bursting of the war arabo-Israeli of 1948 and the creation of the State of Israel, movements of migrations towards Lebanon coming from the surrounding countries, paradoxically, had reinforced the Jewish presence in Lebanon. Indeed, the majority of the Jews Lebanese posted a certain skepticism towards the life in a Kibboutz and towards the State of Israel in general (certain Jews Lebanese were useful in the Lebanese army during the war of 48), in spite of the efforts of certain movements of recruitment local Zionists. This mistrust was consolidated by the feeling of full membership of the Lebanese “nation”. The war and the amalgam between “Jews” and “Zionists” have constrained this community to adopt a low profile (discrete celebrations of religious holidays, resignation of the Jewish officers of the Lebanese army, restriction of freedom of expression, etc). The civil war carried an hard blow to the community reducing it to less than 5000 members in 1970.

The disintegration of the Lebanese nation through the multiplication of the interdenominational conflicts caused the weakening of the authority of the State. The incapacity to protect the members from the community encouraged the attacks repeated towards the Jewish people and interests (harassing of marked Professor S to preach the Sionisme, threatened tradesmen). Distresses, insecurity and pessimism became the daily newspaper of the Jews of Lebanon. The community had of another choice only to organize the emigration. Curiously, the favorite destination of the expatriates was not Israel but certain European countries and American (France, Italy, the United States, Canada). The release of the civil war of 1975 contributed to the deterioration of an already critical situation. Massacres were made against Jews Lebanese. The geographical site of Wadi Abou Jmil, within the military zone of conflict, exposed the community to the risks of removal of hostages. The life of the Jews Lebanese was not any more the same one. The majority of the religious, cultural and commercial centers were constrained to close.

Israel invades Lebanon in 1982. At that time, Lebanon crossed the most violent period since its existence. Despite everything that this community had undergone, most of the community refused the offer of Israel to give up Lebanese nationality in against part of Israeli nationality. It was an expensive courageous decision but: removals and the massacres continued in spite of this patriotic standpoint. Today, Wadi Abu Jamil, the Jewish district of Beirut, is abandoned and its spiritual center, the synagog Maghen Abraham built in 1925, is dilapidated today, with a hundred discrete members, the Jewish community of Lebanon practically ceased existing.

The last person in charge of the community, the doctor Élie Hallak who looked after patients of all confessions (and possibly the hostage Michel Seurat looked after) was removed on March 30th, 1985 and was carried out in February 1986 by the Hezbollah.

Presidents of the community

Spiritual leaders

Between 1908 and 1978, several Large-Rabbis followed one another the head of the Lebanese Jewish community:

See too

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