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Shalom and Peace:
Let us continue exploring international Jewish communities with a country in the news, Afghanistan. Its Jewish history dates back 2,700 years to the Assyrian conquest of the 10 northern tribes in Israel, and the subsequent Babylonian conquest of the 2 remaining tribes in Judah. In 2013, Israel unveiled the first physical evidence discovered in captured Taliban caves of ancient Jewish Afghans.
The Pashtun, the main Afghan tribe, call themselves Bani-Israel (Children of Israel). Many Pashtun names have Hebrew roots, i.e. Asheri and Naphtali, and they have Hebrew customs of wedding chupahs and circumcising sons on the eighth day. The exiled Afghan Royals say they are from the Hebrew tribe of Benjamin.
A tenth and eleventh century CE Jewish community in Ghazni, Afghanistan is recorded by Muslim documents. Jewish Isaac was advisor to Sultan Mahmud (1010 CE). In 1839, thousands of Jews fled forced Islamic conversions bringing Afghanistan's Jewish population to 40,000. They traded skins, carpets and antiquities. In 1870 Afghan Muslims enacted anti-Jewish measures, triggering a mass exodus. 1933 brought Nuremberg-like laws and more exoduses. When Israel was created and their travel ban was lifted from leaving, 5000 Jews left in 1951. With the Russian invasion of 1979, only 10 remained.
In 2005, only Zebulon Simentov and Isaac Levy were left. They lived at separate ends of the decaying synagogue in Kabul on Flower Street. Each claimed to be the owner of the Torah and guardian of the synagogue, and each accused the other of attempted theft of it. Both men were imprisoned and tortured in Taliban jails due to accusations against each other. The Taliban took the Torah scroll. Each man would celebrate holidays and Shabbat alone. The feud remained, Levy died in 2005 and Simentov would not attend the burial. Simentov turned the first floor of the synagogue into a store selling rugs and kabobs. He has since closed his stores but rents the space to other businesses. A play entitled: "The Last Jew of Afghanistan" was written about this absurd feud.
Ironically in the western city of Herat, (Kabul is in the east), the Islamic Agha Khan Trust is restoring four synagogues in the Jewish quarter. The Yu Aw synagogue has been completed, and is used as a school. (refer to photograph).
Jewish Spiritual Renewal
Jewish Renewal
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