Many Israelis Are Refugees From Arab Lands
null By Edward MeirNov. 3, 2023 6:48 pm ETReview and Outlook: The Secretary-General abandons Israel, a state the U.N. helped to create. Images: Zuma Press/AP/Getty Images Composite: Mark KellyAs people around the world demonstrate for Palestinian rights, we shouldn’t overlook another group of Middle Eastern refugees who also have suffered for decades but whose plight is seldom discussed: the displaced Jewish refugees from Arab lands. I should know; I am one of them. Our story needs to be told. I was born in Baghdad, Iraq, as were my parents and grandparents. When Cyrus the Great liberated Babylon in 538 B.C. and gave Jews the choice to leave, my ancestors stayed. By 1948 an estimated 135,000 Jews lived in Baghdad, comprising one-third of the city’s population—more Jews by proportion than Warsaw or New York at the time. Iraqi Jews were active in government, launched businesses and held prominent positions. Iraq’s first finance minister, Sassoon Eskell, was Jewish. He insisted that the
Nov. 3, 2023 6:48 pm ET
As people around the world demonstrate for Palestinian rights, we shouldn’t overlook another group of Middle Eastern refugees who also have suffered for decades but whose plight is seldom discussed: the displaced Jewish refugees from Arab lands. I should know; I am one of them. Our story needs to be told.
I was born in Baghdad, Iraq, as were my parents and grandparents. When Cyrus the Great liberated Babylon in 538 B.C. and gave Jews the choice to leave, my ancestors stayed. By 1948 an estimated 135,000 Jews lived in Baghdad, comprising one-third of the city’s population—more Jews by proportion than Warsaw or New York at the time. Iraqi Jews were active in government, launched businesses and held prominent positions. Iraq’s first finance minister, Sassoon Eskell, was Jewish. He insisted that the British pay for Iraq’s oil in gold rather than pounds sterling, a prescient move that salvaged the country’s finances after sterling crumbled.
Copyright ©2023 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
Continue reading your article with
a WSJ subscription
Already a subscriber? Sign In
- TurboTax:
Save up to $15 with TurboTax coupon 2023 - The Motley Fool:
Epic Bundle - 3x Expert Stock Recommendations - H&R Block Tax:
Get 20% off H&R Block tax software products - Top Resume:
Top Resume Coupon: 10% off professional resume writing - eBay:
eBay coupon: Save 20% on purchases - Groupon:
Up to $50 off any order with Groupon promo code
What's Your Reaction?