This article needs to be updated.(January 2022) |
اليهود البحرينيون יהודים בחריינים | |
---|---|
Total population | |
37 [1] | |
Regions with significant populations | |
Manama, Capital Governorate | |
Languages | |
Arabic, Hebrew | |
Religion | |
Judaism | |
Related ethnic groups | |
Jews (Arab Jews, Iraqi Jews, Yemenite Jews) |
Bahraini Jews constitute one of the world's smallest Jewish communities, although its origins go back to late antiquity. Talmudic sources refer to ports and islands on the Persian Gulf, indicating that Jews may have already settled in this region. Arabic sources record Jews in the old capital of Bahrain, Hajar, at the time of the Islamic conquest in 630 C.E. In the 12th century, the Jewish traveler-adventurer Benjamin of Tudela mentions 500 Jews living in Qays, and 5,000 in Al-Qatîf, involved in pearl fishery. In the 19th century, there were Jewish merchants from Iraq, Persia, and India in Bahrain. [2]
The Jewish community declined during the twentieth century. In 1968, only some 100 Jews remained in the new capital city of Manama. [2] At the beginning of the twenty-first century, about 30 Jews remained in Bahrain. The community maintained ownership of a synagogue, but it was not in use and services were held in private homes on holidays. The Jewish community also maintained its cemetery. [2] [1]
From its independence in 1971, Bahrain had no official relations with Israel until the Oslo Agreements were signed between Israel and the Palestinians in 1993. Subsequently, semi-official relations, particularly commercial, were established. [2] [1] Bahraini Jews were not allowed to visit Israel, although, officially, Bahrain agreed to cease adherence to the economic boycott of Israel in exchange for a free-trade agreement with the United States in 2004. [3]
In September 2020, Bahrain and Israel agreed to establish diplomatic relations. Travel links between the two countries were also established. [4] As of 2022 the majority of Jews live in Umm al Hassam in Manama. [5]
There are Talmudic references made of a Jewish community dating back in the geographic areas of present-day Bahrain, as well as references in Arabic texts to a Jewish presence in Hajar (eastern coast of inland Arabia) during Mohammed's time. [2] [6] Jews are reported to have been living in what became the modern kingdom of Bahrain since the times of the Talmud. Arabic sources state that Jews lived in Hajar, the capital of Bahrain, in 630 CE and refused to convert to Islam when Muhammad sent an army to occupy the territory. [2] [7]
Modern Bahrain's Jewish community traces its origins to the migration of Iraqi traders from the Jewish Yadgar family in the 1880s. [3]
After World War II, increasing anti-British sentiment spread throughout the Arab World and led to riots in Bahrain. The riots focused on the Jewish community. [8] In 1948, there were 1,500 Jews living in Bahrain, while some sources give the Jewish population as 600 in 1948. On 5 December 1947, riots broke out against the Jewish community in Manama in the wake of ongoing violence in Palestine. A mob looted Jewish homes and shops, destroyed the city's synagogue, physically assaulted Jews, and murdered an elderly Jewish woman. [9] Most members of Bahrain's Jewish community abandoned their properties and evacuated to Bombay, later settling in Israel, many of them in the town of Pardes Hanna-Karkur; others went to the United Kingdom. The 1950 census found 293 Jews in the country.
Houda Nonoo told The Independent newspaper: "I don't think it was Bahrainis who were responsible. It was people from abroad. Many Bahrainis looked after Jews in their houses." This view is supported by Charles Belgrave, formerly a political adviser to the government of Bahrain – which at the time was subject to treaty relations with Britain – who recalled in a memoir: "The leading Arabs were very shocked ... most of them, when possible, had given shelter and protection to their Jewish neighbours... [the riots] had one surprising effect; it put an end to any active aggression by the Bahrain Arabs against the Bahrain Jews." Following the riots, as well as the establishment of Israel and the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, many Bahraini Jews emigrated to Israel, the United States, or United Kingdom. Some 500-600 remained, but after riots broke out in the aftermath of the Six-Day War in 1967, Bahraini Jewry emigrated en masse. [10] [11]
Jews are one of several communities that form the core of the liberal middle classes and several are even active in politics. A Jewish businessman, Ebrahim Daoud Nonoo, sat on the appointed upper house of the Bahraini Parliament's Shura Council. In 2005, he was replaced by his niece, Houda Ezra Nonoo. Since 2004, Ms. Nonoo also headed the Bahrain Human Rights Watch Society [12] which has campaigned against the reintroduction of the death penalty in the tiny kingdom. Neither is considered a controversial figure, even among Salafi politicians.
As of 2007, the Jewish population of Bahrain numbered 36. [7] At that time, the tolerance extended to the island's Jewish community is the result of the policy of its leader, King Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa. The island's boycott of Israeli products was in effect until 2004 when a free-trade agreement with the United States put an end to the official boycott. [13]
Jewish Bahraini author Nancy Khedouri wrote From Our Beginning to Present Day [3] about the Bahraini Jewish community:
In 2006, the US State Department reported that, there have been no acts of physical violence or harassment of Jews or vandalism of Jewish community institutions, such as schools, cemeteries, or the synagogue. Although the Government has not enacted any laws protecting the right of Jews to religious freedom, Jews practice their faith privately without governmental interference. Nevertheless, the Government has made no specific effort to promote antibias and tolerance education. Some antisemitic political commentary and editorial cartoons continue to appear, usually linked to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. [14]
In 2008, Bahrain's king nominated Houda Nonoo, a Jewish woman who served in the nation's 40-member upper house of Parliament, as its ambassador to the United States. [15]
In November, 2010, Bahraini Jewish author Nancy Khedouri [16] was appointed to replace Nonoo in Parliament. [1]
Beginning in 2015, King al-Khalifa officially marked the celebration of Hanukkah, with Jewish and Muslim Bahrainis celebrating together. [17]
On 11 September 2020, Israel and Bahrain agreed to "normalize relations." [18]
Manama is the capital and largest city of Bahrain, with an approximate population of 200,000 as of 2020. Long an important trading center in the Persian Gulf, Manama is home to a very diverse population. After periods of Portuguese and Persian control and a short invasion from the ruling dynasty of Saudi Arabia, followed by a longer invasion by Oman, Bahrain established itself as an independent nation in 1971 following a period of British hegemony.
Bahrain was a central location of the ancient Dilmun civilization. Bahrain's strategic location in the Persian Gulf has brought rule and influence from mostly the Persians, Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Portuguese, the Arabs, and the British.
Hamad bin Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa is King of Bahrain since 14 February 2002, after ruling as Emir of Bahrain from 6 March 1999. He is the son of Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, the previous and first emir. The country has been ruled by the Al Khalifa dynasty since 1783.
Women face widespread discrimination within Bahraini society and the country's political institutions. Women's rights have been a cornerstone of the political reforms initiated by King Hamad. The extension of equal political rights has been accompanied by a conscious drive to promote women to positions of authority within government. However, women in Bahrain continue to face gender inequality in many areas of life.
Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa is a Bahraini diplomat who served as Bahrain's Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2005 until January 2020. Khalid became only the second foreign minister in Bahrain's history after replacing Mohammed bin Mubarak Al Khalifa who then became Bahrain's deputy prime minister.
The Bahrain Human Rights Watch Society is a Bahraini human rights organization established in November 2004 which, and to fight for women's rights.
Houda Ezra Ebrahim Nonoo served as the Bahraini Ambassador to the United States from 2008 to 2013. She was appointed to the position by decree of Foreign Affairs Minister Khaled Ben Ahmad Al-Khalifa. Nonoo is the first Jew, and third woman, to be appointed ambassador of Bahrain. She is also the first Jewish ambassador of any Middle Eastern Arab country, and the first female Bahraini ambassador to the United States.
Ebrahim Daoud Nonoo is a Bahraini businessman. He sat in the appointed upper house of the Bahraini Parliament's Shura Council between 2001 and 2006, the first Jewish member of the council. He is the current CEO of the Basma Company and president of the Association of Gulf Jewish Communities (AGJC)
Bahrain Synagogue is a disused synagogue located on Sasa'ah Avenue, in what is now a lower-class commercial district in Manama, the capital city of Bahrain.
The history of the Jews in the United Arab Emirates describes the historical and modern presence of Jews over the millennia in the Middle East and the recorded meetings with Jewish communities in areas that are today in the geographic territories of the United Arab Emirates.
The history of the Jews in the Arabian Peninsula dates back to Biblical times. The Arabian Peninsula is defined as including the present-day countries of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen politically and parts of Iraq and Jordan geographically.
The Constitution of Bahrain states that Islam is the official religion and that Shari'a is a principal source for legislation. Article 22 of the Constitution provides for freedom of conscience, the inviolability of worship, and the freedom to perform religious rites and hold religious parades and meetings, in accordance with the customs observed in the country; however, the Government has placed some limitations on the exercise of this right.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Bahrain:
Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island which makes up around 83 percent of the country's landmass. Bahrain is situated between Qatar and the northeastern coast of Saudi Arabia, to which it is connected by the King Fahd Causeway. The population of Bahrain is 1,501,635 as of May 14, 2023, based on elaborations of the United Nations data, of whom 712,362 are Bahraini nationals. Bahrain spans some 760 square kilometres (290 sq mi), and is the third-smallest nation in Asia after the Maldives and Singapore. The capital and largest city is Manama.
Relations have existed between Bahrain and Israel since Bahrain achieved its independence in 1971. In recent years, relations between the two countries have been thawing, and the countries agreed to establish diplomatic relations in September 2020. The foreign minister of Bahrain Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa has been quoted saying "Israel is part of the heritage of this whole region, historically. So, the Jewish people have a place amongst us." The common threat of Iran has provided common ground for a thaw in what were once tense relations. Bahrain's foreign policy traditionally supports the creation of an independent Palestinian state.
Contemporaneously with the 1947–48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine, a riot against the Jewish community of Manama, in the British Protectorate of Bahrain, on December 5, 1947. A mob of Iranian and Trucial States sailors ran through the Manama Souq, looted Jewish homes and shops, and destroyed the synagogue. One Jewish woman died; she was either killed or died from fright.
Women in Bahrain are discriminated in every aspect of their life and their personal liberties are severely restricted, both by the laws of Bahrain and by Bahraini society in general. Only one-quarter of women in Bahrain hold jobs outside of the household. Bahraini Women's Day is annually celebrated on December 1.
Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani is a Bahraini engineer and retired lieutenant general. He is the foreign minister, having formerly been the secretary general of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) from 1 April 2011 to February 2020. He was the fifth GCC secretary general and the first with military background since the GCC was established.
Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa is a member of the Bahraini royal family and since 2004 has been the minister of interior of Bahrain.
Nancy Dinah Elly Khedouri is a Bahraini politician, businesswoman and writer. She has been a National Assembly of Bahrain member since 2010.
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