Jewish exodus from the Muslim world

Yemenite Jews en route from Aden to Israel Great Synagogue of Oran , Algeria, confiscated and turned into a mosque after the departure of Jews The Jewish exodus from Arab and Muslim lands refers to the 20th century mass departure of Jews, primarily of Sephardi and Mizrahi background, from Arab and Islamic countries. The migration started in the late 19th century, but accelerated after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War . Between 800,000-1,000,000 Jews left their homes in Arab countries due to persecution and anti-Semitism . Lebanon had been the only Arab country to see a temporal increase in its Jewish population after 1948.

Yemenite Jews en route from Aden to Israel, during the Operation Magic Carpet (1949–1950) The Jewish exodus from Arab and Muslim countries or Jewish exodus from Arab countries ( , Yetziat yehudim mi-medinot Arav ; hijrat al-yahūd min ad-duwal al-'Arabīyah wal-Islāmīyah ) was the departure, flight, evacuation and migration, of 850,000 Jews, primarily of Sephardi and Mizrahi background, from Arab and Muslim countries , mainly from 1948 onwards. A small-scale Jewish exodus had begun in many countries in the early decades of the 20th century, although the only substantial aliyah came from Yemen and Syria. Prior to the creation of Israel in 1948, approximately 800,000 Jews were living in lands that now make up the Arab world . Of these, just under two-thirds lived in the French and Italian-controlled North Africa , 15–20% in the Kingdom of Iraq , approximately 10% in the Kingdom of Egypt and approximately 7% in the Kingdom of Yemen . A further 200,000 lived in Pahlavi Iran and the Republic of Turkey . In 2009, only 26,000 Jews lived in Arab countries and 26,000 in Turkey . In 1944, the Zionist leadership in Mandate Palestine approved the One Million Plan , for the large scale immigration of Jews within 18 months, targeting various Jewish communities, including those in Islamic countries. Later, after the establishment of the State of Israel, a new plan for 600,000 immigrants over 4 years was made. The first large-scale exoduses took place in the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily in Iraq, Yemen and Libya. In these cases over 90% of the Jewish population left, despite the necessity of leaving their property behind. Two hundred sixty thousand Jews from Arab countries immigrated to Israel between 1948 and 1951, amounting for 56% of the total immigration to the newly founded state. Later waves peaked at different times in different regions over the subsequent decades. The peak of the exodus from Egypt occurred in 1956 following the Suez Crisis . The exodus in the North African Arab countries peaked in the 1960s. Lebanon was the only Arab country to see a temporary increase in its Jewish population during this period, due to a temporal influx of Jews from other Arab countries, although by the mid-1970s the Jewish community of Lebanon had also dwindled. Six hundred thousand Jews from Arab and Muslim countries had reached Israel by 1972. The descendants of the Jewish immigrants from the region, today known as Mizrahi Jews ("Eastern Jews"), currently constitute more than half of the total population of Israel, partially as a result of their higher fertility rate . The reasons for the exodus included push factors , such as persecution , antisemitism , political instability, poverty and minor expulsions; together with pull factors , such as the desire to fulfill Zionist yearnings or find a better economic status and a secure home in Europe or the Americas. The history of the exodus is politicized, given its proposed relevance to the historical narrative of the Arab-Israeli conflict . When presenting the history, those who view the Jewish exodus as analogous to the 1948 Palestinian exodus generally emphasize the push factors and consider those who left as refugees, while those who do not, emphasize the pull factors and consider them willing immigrants. The New York Times . After independence, the government presented the Knesset with a plan to double the Jewish population within four years. This meant bringing in 600,000 immigrants in a four-year period. or 150,000 per year. Absorbing 150,000 newcomers annually under the trying conditions facing the new state was a heavy burden indeed. Opponents in the Jewish Agency and the government of mass immigration argued that there was no justification for organizing large-scale emigration among Jews whose lives were not in danger, particularly when the desire and motivation were not their own. A Journal of Social Justice . 15 (1). The Forced Migration of Jews from Arab Countries , Historical Society of Jews from Egypt website. The Road to Redemption – The Jews of the Yemen 1900-1950 .

Yemenite Jews en route from Aden to Israel, during the Operation Magic Carpet (1949–1950) The Jewish exodus from Arab and Muslim countries , or Jewish exodus from Arab countries , was the departure, flight, expulsion , evacuation and migration of 850,000 Jews, primarily of Sephardi and Mizrahi background, from Arab countries and the Muslim world , mainly from 1948 to the early 1970s. The last major migration wave took place from Iran in 1979–80, as a consequence of the Iranian Revolution . A number of small-scale Jewish exoduses began in many Middle Eastern countries early in the 20th century with the only substantial aliyah (immigration to the area today known as Israel ) coming from Yemen and Syria. Very few Jews from Muslim countries immigrated during the period of Mandatory Palestine . Prior to the creation of Israel in 1948, approximately 800,000 Jews were living in lands that now make up the Arab world . Of these, just under two-thirds lived in the French and Italian-controlled North Africa , 15–20% in the Kingdom of Iraq , approximately 10% in the Kingdom of Egypt and approximately 7% in the Kingdom of Yemen . A further 200,000 lived in Pahlavi Iran and the Republic of Turkey . The first large-scale exoduses took place in the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from Iraq, Yemen and Libya. In these cases over 90% of the Jewish population left, despite the necessity of leaving their property behind. Two hundred and sixty thousand Jews from Arab countries immigrated to Israel between 1948 and 1951, accounting for 56% of the total immigration to the newly founded state; this was the product of a policy change in favour of mass immigration focused on Jews from Arab and Muslim countries . The Israeli government's policy to accommodate 600,000 immigrants over four years, doubling the existing Jewish population, encountered mixed reactions in the Knesset; there were those within the Jewish Agency and government who opposed promoting a large-scale emigration movement among Jews whose lives were not in danger. Later waves peaked at different times in different regions over the subsequent decades. The peak of the exodus from Egypt occurred in 1956 following the Suez Crisis . The exodus from the other North African Arab countries peaked in the 1960s. Lebanon was the only Arab country to see a temporary increase in its Jewish population during this period, due to an influx of Jews from other Arab countries, although by the mid-1970s the Jewish community of Lebanon had also dwindled. Six hundred thousand Jews from Arab and Muslim countries had reached Israel by 1972. In total, of the 900,000 Jews who left Arab and other Muslim countries, 600,000 settled in the new state of Israel, and 300,000 migrated to France and the United States. The descendants of the Jewish immigrants from the region, known as Mizrahi Jews ("Eastern Jews") and Sephardic Jews ("Spanish Jews"), currently constitute more than half of the total population of Israel, partially as a result of their higher fertility rate . In 2009, only 26,000 Jews remained in Arab countries and Iran. and 26,000 in Turkey . The reasons for the exoduses are manifold, including push factors , such as persecution , antisemitism , political instability, poverty and expulsion, together with pull factors , such as the desire to fulfill Zionist yearnings or find a better economic status and a secure home in Europe or the Americas. The history of the exodus has been politicized, given its proposed relevance to the historical narrative of the Arab–Israeli conflict . When presenting the history, those who view the Jewish exodus as analogous to the 1948 Palestinian exodus generally emphasize the push factors and consider those who left as refugees, while those who do not, emphasize the pull factors and consider them willing immigrants. The New York Times . A Journal of Social Justice . 15 (1). The first was the replacement of the preference for selective aliya by support for mass aliya. In 1944, Ben-Gurion called for bringing a million Jews to Palestine, even if public soup kitchens had to be set up to feed them... The second change was the decision to extend the aliya net to include the Jews of Muslim countries. It had become clear that they, too, would be needed to create a Jewish majority in Palestine... Independence and the removal of the British restrictions on Jewish immigration made it possible to implement these policy changes. The large-scale aliya of the next few years was the product of these two changes: it was mass aliya and it included Jews from Muslim countries." Hakohen, Devorah (2003). After independence, the government presented the Knesset with a plan to double the Jewish population within four years. This meant bringing in 600,000 immigrants in a four-year period. or 150,000 per year. Absorbing 150,000 newcomers annually under the trying conditions facing the new state was a heavy burden indeed. Opponents in the Jewish Agency and the government of mass immigration argued that there was no justification for organizing large-scale emigration among Jews whose lives were not in danger, particularly when the desire and motivation were not their own. The Encyclopedia of the Arab-Israeli Conflict: A Political, Social, and Military History [4 volumes]: A Political, Social, and Military History" . The Road to Redemption – The Jews of the Yemen 1900-1950 . Purely religious, messianic sentiment too, had its part but by and large this has been overemphasised. Any reasonable person, Zionist or non-Zionist, must acknowledge that the analogy drawn between Palestinians and Mizrahi Jews is unfounded. Palestinian refugees did not want to leave Palestine. Many Palestinian communities were destroyed in 1948, and some 700,000 Palestinians were expelled, or fled, from the borders of historic Palestine. Those who left did not do so of their own volition. In contrast, Jews from Arab lands came to this country under the initiative of the State of Israel and Jewish organizations. Some came of their own free will; others arrived against their will. Some lived comfortably and securely in Arab lands; others suffered from fear and oppression. President Bill Clinton announced that an agreement had been reached at the Camp David summit to recoignize the Jews from Arab countries as “refugees” and that an international fund would provide compensation for the property they left behind when they immigrated to Israel during the 1950s. The immediate political significance of this declaration was to help Israel’s prime minister at the time, Ehud Barak, to mobilize Shas’s voters (the majority of whom are of Arab descent) in support of the peace process. However, the underlying logic – defining the Jews from Arab countries as refugees-responded to a deeper political theory that was developed in Israel in the 1950s to counterbalance the collective rights of the Palestinian refugees. It is not surprising, therefore, that Palestinians around the world reacted with dismay and rage to this annoucement. In its contemporary garb, this “population exchange” theory was proposed to abdicate Israel’s responsibility for the expulsion of Palestinians in 1948 and to alleviate demands to compensate the Palestinian refugees, and serve as a bargaining chip against their right of return.

Mass movement of Jews (1948-early 1970s) The Jewish exodus from the Muslim world was the migration , departure, flight and expulsion of around 900,000 Jews from Arab countries and Iran , mainly from 1948 to the early 1970s, though with one final exodus from Iran in 1979–80 following the Iranian Revolution . An estimated 650,000 of the departees settled in Israel . A number of small-scale Jewish migrations began in many Middle Eastern countries early in the 20th century with the only substantial aliyah (immigration to the area today known as Israel ) coming from Yemen and Syria. Few Jews from Muslim countries immigrated during the period of Mandatory Palestine . Prior to the creation of Israel in 1948, approximately 800,000 Jews were living in lands that now make up the Arab world . Of these, just under two-thirds lived in French- and Italian-controlled North Africa , 15–20% in the Kingdom of Iraq , approximately 10% in the Kingdom of Egypt and approximately 7% in the Kingdom of Yemen . A further 200,000 lived in Pahlavi Iran and the Republic of Turkey . The first large-scale exoduses took place in the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from Iraq, Yemen and Libya. In these cases over 90% of the Jewish population left, despite the necessity of leaving their property behind. Between 1948 and 1951, 260,000 Jews immigrated to Israel from Arab countries. The Israeli government's policy to accommodate 600,000 immigrants over four years, doubling the existing Jewish population, encountered mixed reactions in the Knesset; there were those within the Jewish Agency and government who opposed promoting a large-scale emigration movement among Jews whose lives were not in danger. Later waves peaked at different times in different regions over the subsequent decades. The peak of the exodus from Egypt occurred in 1956 following the Suez Crisis . The emigrations from the other North African Arab countries peaked in the 1960s. Lebanon was the only Arab country to see a temporary increase in its Jewish population during this period, due to an influx of Jews from other Arab countries, although by the mid-1970s the Jewish community of Lebanon had also dwindled. Six hundred thousand Jews from Arab and Muslim countries had reached Israel by 1972, while 300,000 migrated to France and the United States. In Israel, the descendants of the Jewish immigrants from the region, known locally as Mizrahi Jews ("Oriental"; lit. ' Eastern Jews ' ) and Sephardic Jews ("Spanish Jews"), constitute more than half of the total population of Israel, partially as a result of their higher fertility rate . In 2009, only 26,000 Jews remained in Arab countries and Iran, as well as 26,000 in Turkey . By 2019, the total number of Jews in Arab countries and Iran had declined to 12,700, and in Turkey to 14,800. The reasons for the exoduses are manifold, including pull factors , such as the desire to fulfill Zionist yearnings or find a better economic status and a secure home in Europe or the Americas and, in Israel, a policy change in favour of mass immigration focused on Jews from Arab and Muslim countries , together with push factors , such as persecution , antisemitism , political instability, poverty and expulsion. The history of the exodus has been politicized, given its proposed relevance to the historical narrative of the Arab–Israeli conflict . When presenting the history, those who view the Jewish exodus as analogous to the 1948 Palestinian expulsion and flight generally emphasize the push factors and consider those who left as refugees, while those who do not, emphasize the pull factors and consider them willing immigrants. A Journal of Social Justice . 15 (1). After independence, the government presented the Knesset with a plan to double the Jewish population within four years. This meant bringing in 600,000 immigrants in a four-year period. or 150,000 per year. Absorbing 150,000 newcomers annually under the trying conditions facing the new state was a heavy burden indeed. Opponents in the Jewish Agency and the government of mass immigration argued that there was no justification for organizing large-scale emigration among Jews whose lives were not in danger, particularly when the desire and motivation were not their own. The Encyclopedia of the Arab-Israeli Conflict: A Political, Social, and Military History [4 volumes]: A Political, Social, and Military History . The first was the replacement of the preference for selective aliya by support for mass aliya. In 1944, Ben-Gurion called for bringing a million Jews to Palestine, even if public soup kitchens had to be set up to feed them... The second change was the decision to extend the aliya net to include the Jews of Muslim countries. It had become clear that they, too, would be needed to create a Jewish majority in Palestine... Independence and the removal of the British restrictions on Jewish immigration made it possible to implement these policy changes. Purely religious, messianic sentiment too, had its part but by and large this has been overemphasised." Yehuda, Shenhav (15 August 2003). Any reasonable person, Zionist or non-Zionist, must acknowledge that the analogy drawn between Palestinians and Mizrahi Jews is unfounded. Palestinian refugees did not want to leave Palestine. Many Palestinian communities were destroyed in 1948, and some 700,000 Palestinians were expelled, or fled, from the borders of historic Palestine. Those who left did not do so of their own volition. In contrast, Jews from Arab lands came to this country under the initiative of the State of Israel and Jewish organizations. Some came of their own free will; others arrived against their will. Some lived comfortably and securely in Arab lands; others suffered from fear and oppression. President Bill Clinton announced that an agreement had been reached at the Camp David summit to recognize the Jews from Arab countries as "refugees" and that an international fund would provide compensation for the property they left behind when they immigrated to Israel during the 1950s. The immediate political significance of this declaration was to help Israel's prime minister at the time, Ehud Barak, to mobilize Shas's voters (the majority of whom are of Arab descent) in support of the peace process. However, the underlying logic – defining the Jews from Arab countries as refugees-responded to a deeper political theory that was developed in Israel in the 1950s to counterbalance the collective rights of the Palestinian refugees. It is not surprising, therefore, that Palestinians around the world reacted with dismay and rage to this announcement. In its contemporary garb, this "population exchange" theory was proposed to abdicate Israel's responsibility for the expulsion of Palestinians in 1948 and to alleviate demands to compensate the Palestinian refugees, and serve as a bargaining chip against their right of return.

The Jewish exodus from the Muslim world occurred during the 20th century, when approximately 900,000 Jews migrated, fled, or were expelled from Muslim-majority countries throughout Africa and Asia , primarily as a consequence of the establishment of the State of Israel . Large-scale migrations were also organized, sponsored, and facilitated by Zionist organizations such as Mossad LeAliyah Bet , the Jewish Agency , and the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society . The mass movement mainly transpired from 1948 to the early 1970s, with one final exodus of Iranian Jews occurring shortly after the Islamic Revolution in 1979–1980. An estimated 650,000 (72%) of these Jews resettled in Israel . A number of small-scale Jewish migrations began across the Middle East in the early 20th century, with the only substantial aliyot (Jewish immigrations to the Land of Israel ) coming from Yemen and Syria . Few Jews from Muslim countries immigrated during the British Mandate for Palestine . Prior to Israel's independence in 1948, approximately 800,000 Jews were living on lands that now make up the Arab world . Of these, just under two-thirds lived in the French- and Italian-controlled regions of North Africa , 15–20% lived in the Kingdom of Iraq , approximately 10% lived in the Kingdom of Egypt , and approximately 7% lived in the Aden Colony , Aden Protectorate and the Kingdom of Yemen . A further 200,000 Jews lived in the Imperial State of Iran and the Republic of Turkey . The first large-scale exoduses took place in the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from Iraq, Yemen, and Libya. In these cases, over 90% of the Jewish population left, leaving their assets and properties behind. Between 1948 and 1951, 250,000 Jews immigrated to Israel from Arab countries. In response, the Israeli government implemented policies to accommodate 600,000 immigrants over four years, doubling the country's Jewish population. Reactions in the Knesset were mixed; in addition to some Israeli officials, there were those within the Jewish Agency who opposed promoting a large-scale emigration movement among Jews whose lives were not in immediate danger. Later waves peaked at different times in different regions over the subsequent decades. The exodus from Egypt peaked in 1956, following the Suez Crisis ; emigrations from other North African countries peaked in the 1960s. Lebanon 's Jewish population temporarily increased due to an influx of Jews from other Arab countries, before it dwindled by the mid-1970s. 600,000 Jews from Arab and Muslim countries had relocated to Israel by 1972, while another 300,000 migrated to France , the United States and Canada . Today, the descendants of Jews who immigrated to Israel from other Middle Eastern lands (known as Mizrahi Jews and Sephardic Jews ) constitute more than half of all Israelis. By 2019, the total number of Jews in Arab countries and Iran had declined to 12,700, and in Turkey to 14,800. The reasons for the exoduses include: pull factors such as the desire to fulfill Zionism , better economic prospects and security, and the Israeli government's " One Million Plan " to accommodate Jewish immigrants from Arab- and Muslim-majority countries; and push factors such as violent and other forms of antisemitism in the Arab world , political instability, poverty, and expulsion. The history of the exodus has been politicized, given its proposed relevance to the historical narrative of the Arab–Israeli conflict . Those who view the Jewish exodus as analogous to the 1948 Palestinian expulsion and flight generally emphasize the push factors and consider those who left to have been refugees, while those who oppose that view generally emphasize the pull factors and consider the Jews to have been willing immigrants. A Journal of Social Justice . 15 (1). After independence, the government presented the Knesset with a plan to double the Jewish population within four years. This meant bringing in 600,000 immigrants in a four-year period, or 150,000 per year. Absorbing 150,000 newcomers annually under the trying conditions facing the new state was a heavy burden indeed. Opponents in the Jewish Agency and the government of mass immigration argued that there was no justification for organizing large-scale emigration among Jews whose lives were not in danger, particularly when the desire and motivation were not their own. The Encyclopedia of the Arab-Israeli Conflict: A Political, Social, and Military History [4 volumes]: A Political, Social, and Military History . The first was the replacement of the preference for selective aliya by support for mass aliya. In 1944, Ben-Gurion called for bringing a million Jews to Palestine, even if public soup kitchens had to be set up to feed them... The second change was the decision to extend the aliya net to include the Jews of Muslim countries. It had become clear that they, too, would be needed to create a Jewish majority in Palestine... Independence and the removal of the British restrictions on Jewish immigration made it possible to implement these policy changes. Purely religious, messianic sentiment too, had its part but by and large this has been overemphasised." Yehuda, Shenhav (15 August 2003). Any reasonable person, Zionist or non-Zionist, must acknowledge that the analogy drawn between Palestinians and Mizrahi Jews is unfounded. Palestinian refugees did not want to leave Palestine. Many Palestinian communities were destroyed in 1948, and some 700 000 Palestinians were expelled, or fled, from the borders of historic Palestine. Those who left did not do so of their own volition. In contrast, Jews from Arab lands came to this country under the initiative of the State of Israel and Jewish organizations. Some came of their own free will; others arrived against their will. Some lived comfortably and securely in Arab lands; others suffered from fear and oppression. President Bill Clinton announced that an agreement had been reached at the Camp David summit to recognize the Jews from Arab countries as "refugees" and that an international fund would provide compensation for the property they left behind when they immigrated to Israel during the 1950s. The immediate political significance of this declaration was to help Israel's prime minister at the time, Ehud Barak, to mobilize Shas's voters (the majority of whom are of Arab descent) in support of the peace process. However, the underlying logic – defining the Jews from Arab countries as refugees-responded to a deeper political theory that was developed in Israel in the 1950s to counterbalance the collective rights of the Palestinian refugees. It is not surprising, therefore, that Palestinians around the world reacted with dismay and rage to this announcement. In its contemporary garb, this "population exchange" theory was proposed to abdicate Israel's responsibility for the expulsion of Palestinians in 1948 and to alleviate demands to compensate the Palestinian refugees, and serve as a bargaining chip against their right of return.