In 1948, there were approximately 850,000 Jews living in the Muslim world, the largest Jewish community was in Morocco about 250-300,000 Jews. There were about 120,000 in Algeria, about 150,000 Jews in Iraq. Smaller communities but still substantial communities were in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya, Syria, in Yemen and a small 8,000 or so in Lebanon. In 1948, the Jews in the Arab world faced a series of very, very difficult challenges.
Israel’s War of Independence was the turning point when the masses of Muslims from Egypt all the way to Iraq, in their own frustration about their defeats in Palestine, pounced upon the local communities. Anti-Jewish riots erupted in Morocco, Egypt, Iraq and Yemen ending in loss of life. Earlier, following the partition vote at the U.N., the riots in Aden, Yemen had left 82 people dead and hundreds of homes in ruins.
Rumors of blood libels and continual false accusations meant that the conditions in Yemen for Jews were critical. Between June 1949 and September 1950, 380 British and American flights transported the stricken Jewish community from Aden to Israel. Some 49,000 Jews came in total. Many were from outlying regions and had never seen a plane before. Most left all their worldly possessions behind. Operation Magic Carpet as it came to be known was a secret collaboration with Israeli, American and British involvement. It had originally been named Operation Wings of Eagles, referring to the Biblical passage where the ingathering of the exiles in the time of the Messiah would take place on eagles’ wings. For the devoutly religious and simple Jews of Yemen, this is exactly what they believed was happening.
The Jews in Iraq were a community that had lived there for over 2,000 years. They called themselves Bnei Nacharaim, the Babylonian Jews and they went back to 586 BCE from the time of the first destruction of the temple of Jerusalem. It was a vibrant and prosperous community. In 1941, under the Islamic leader, Rashid Ali, pro-Nazi rioting broke out. In Baghdad 180 Jews were killed and over 1,000 injured. Some Jewish families were able to escape, using a well-organized Jewish underground. The years 1946-9 saw more rioting and in 1948, laws were passed, banning Zionist activities under penalty of hanging. Emigration to Israel was legalized in 1950 and over the next 18 months, 114,000 Jews were airlifted in a joint operation with Israel and the Jewish Agency. Another 20,000 were smuggled out through Iran. Operations Ezra and Nechemia came just in time, for in 1952, the properties of remaining Jews were frozen. Huge taxes were placed on Jewish families and in 1952, emigration was banned. However, by this time, only 6,000 Jews remained out of a community numbering 150,000. Most of those remaining left in 1967, when 3,000 Jews were arrested and tortured. Some were hanged. Nothing remains of this ancient community today.
A similar story took place in Egypt, which had had a Jewish presence since the Jewish tribes settled in the Nile Delta under Joseph. At the beginning of World War 2, there were nearly 65,000 Jews living in Egypt. By 1945, vicious rioting erupted, killing 10 Jews and injuring hundreds more. Several Jewish institutions were burned down. Employment and status laws were implemented against Jews in 1947 and by 1948, open hostilities had broken out. In 1948, several bombs exploded in the Jewish quarter killing over 70, followed by rioting with dozens more casualties. In the same year over 2,000 Jews were arrested and vast amounts of property confiscated from the community. After the Suez campaign of 1956, 1,000 Jews were arrested on various charges. 25,000 Jews were ordered to leave the country. Jews leaving were allowed only one suitcase and $50 cash. Elders of the community were held by