Jewish Anti-Zionist League (french: Ligue Juive contre le Sionisme "Egypte", ar, الرابطة الإسرائيلية لمكافحة الصهيونية, translit=ar-rabita al-israiliya li-mukafahat as-sahyuniya) was a political organization in

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

. The organization had branches in

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

and

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

. The League conducted militant agitations in the Jewish neighbourhoods of Cairo. Krämer, Gudrun.
The Jews in Modern Egypt, 1914-1952
'. London: I.B. Tauris, 1989. pp. 180-181 The League was formed in the summer of 1946 by

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...

ish members of the underground

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

Iskra ''Iskra'' ( rus, Искра, , ''the Spark'') was a political newspaper of Russian socialist emigrants established as the official organ of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP). History Due to political repression under Tsar Nicho ...

'' movement. The founding Secretary of the Jewish Anti-Zionist League was Ezra Harari. Other members of the founding committee of the League were Marcel Israel, Edward Mataloun, Hanzin Kasfelt and Edward Levy. Immediately after the founding of the organization, the members of the founding committee were arrested.

Communist-Zionist clashes in Dahir

In April 1947 a violent clash erupted as between the League and

Zionists Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Jew ...

, as disputes erupted over the election to the leadership in the Dahir Maccabi club. A slate of Zionist candidates won the election as result of manipulations and when the members of the Jewish Anti-Zionist League challenged the election outcome, the new club leadership called in police. In the clash, police forces sided with the Zionists and arrested the communists (considering the communists as a greater threat to public security than the Zionists). After the clash the communists reported the incident to the

Wafdist The New Wafd Party ( ar, حزب الوفد الجديد, , New Delegation Party), officially the Egyptian Wafd Party and also known as the Al-Wafd Party, is a nationalist liberal party in Egypt. It is the extension of one of the oldest and his ...

newspaper ''Sawt al-Ummah''. On May 24, 1947, conflict again erupted at the Dahir Maccabi club, as Zionists refused the communists access to the building to celebrate

May Day May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on 1 May, around halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. Festivities may also be held the night before, known as May Eve. T ...

. Two days later another clash erupted at the club between Zionists and Jewish communists. Following these events, the League issued an editorial stating that Jewish schools were used for Zionist propaganda and that sports clubs used for Zionist organizing rather than sports activities.

Positions

The ambitions of the Jewish Anti-Zionist League were twofold. On one hand, it sought to counter the Zionist influence within the Jewish community in Egypt. On the other hand, it sought to clarify to the Egyptian public that not all Jews were Zionists. In May 1947, the League had published a declaration, distributed in French and Arabic, condemning Zionism as a tool for British

imperialism Imperialism is the state policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion, especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political and economic control of other areas, often through employing hard power (economic and ...

and called for Jewish-Arab unity. The latter part of the declaration read

Jewish Men! Jewish Women! Zionism wants to throw us into a dangerous and hopeless adventure. Zionism contributes to making Palestine uninhabitable. Zionism wants to isolate us from the Egyptian people. Zionism is the enemy of the Jewish people. Down with Zionism! Long live the brotherhood of Jews and Arabs! Long live the Egyptian people!

The League argued that displaced European Jews should be given the possibility to return to their home countries or third country of their choice, rather than sending them to Palestine.It also claimed that only an independent democratic Palestine would be able to break the bonds of colonialism and safeguard the Jewish people. The organization condemned Zionist terrorist activity in Palestine.

Banning

In June 1947, the League was banned by the Egyptian Ministry for Social Affairs for "reasons of public security". Following the illegalization of the Jewish Anti-Zionist League, Harari founded the 'Forum Group'. The Forum Group was a Jewish anti-Zionist group within the

Democratic Movement for National Liberation The Democratic Movement for National Liberation ( ar, الحركة الديمقراطية للتحرر الوطنى, abbreviated حدتو, HADITU, french: Mouvement démocratique de libération nationale, abbreviated M.D.L.N.) was a communist organ ...

. According to contemporary British security reports, the Forum Group had a considerable following amongst the Jewish community in Cairo ( Krämer does however question the accuracy of this estimate, stating that the group had a rather limited impact). Beinin, Joel
''Was the Red Flag Flying There?: Marxist Politics and the Arab-Israeli Conflict in Egypt and Israel, 1948-1965''

Berkeley Berkeley most often refers to: *Berkeley, California, a city in the United States **University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California * George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher Berkeley may also refer ...

: University of California Press, 1990. pp. 57-58

References

{{Religion and politics Anti-racist organizations in Africa Banned communist parties Banned political parties in Egypt Jewish anti-Zionism in Egypt Jewish anti-Zionist organizations Jewish Egyptian history Jewish socialism Defunct communist parties in Egypt Jews and Judaism in Alexandria Jews and Judaism in Cairo

Communist-Zionist clashes in Dahir

Positions

Banning

See also

References