Published on Nov 30, 2017

B'nai Brith Canada sat down with Canadian human rights activist Judy Feld Carr and Jews who escaped Syria to discuss the hardships Syrian Jews endured during this era.

READ MORE: http://www.bnaibrith.ca/watch_the_silencing_of_jewish_suffering_in_syria

Background:

The history of Jews in Syria is one that spans thousands of years, dating back to the times of the Second Temple. It is a history that includes times of prosperity, growth and significant cultural and spiritual advances for the Jewish people.

But as with nearly all Diaspora communities, Jews faced terrible injustices, including pogroms and blood libels, in the 19th and early 20th centuries.Things took a turn for the worse following the creation of the State of Israel in 1948. Syria labeled Israel its greatest enemy,

which led to violence, destruction of holy sites and a ruthless

implementation of harsh laws on the country's Jewish population.

In the mid-1970s, a new portrayal of Jewish life in Syria

was being written. This included a 60 Minutes documentary

on Syrian Jews – hosted by revered American journalist

Mike Wallace – in 1975 and a 1976 U.S. Syrian Embassy document called On Syrian Jews. These materials painted a picture of prosperity, happiness and life without fear for Jews in Syria.

This, however, portrayed a false image of the reality for Jewish

people living in Syria, contrasting the historical maltreatment

they suffered.