![GreaterItalia](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/GreaterItalia.jpg)
Conditions worsened for the
Jews of Libya after the passage of Italy's
Manifesto of Race in 1938. Following the German intervention in 1941, some of the
Jews of Libya were sent to camps in
continental Europe
Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous continent of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by ...
, where those who survived stayed until the end of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
Italian Libya had two large
Jewish communities, one in the western district of
Tripolitania
Tripolitania ( ar, طرابلس '; ber, Ṭrables, script=Latn; from Vulgar Latin: , from la, Regio Tripolitana, from grc-gre, Τριπολιτάνια), historically known as the Tripoli region, is a historic region and former province o ...
, and mainly in its capital
Tripoli
Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to:
Cities and other geographic units Greece
*Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece
* Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece
* Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...
, and the other in the eastern district of Barka (
Cyrenaica) and its capital
Benghazi
Benghazi () , ; it, Bengasi; tr, Bingazi; ber, Bernîk, script=Latn; also: ''Bengasi'', ''Benghasi'', ''Banghāzī'', ''Binghāzī'', ''Bengazi''; grc, Βερενίκη (''Berenice'') and ''Hesperides''., group=note (''lit. Son of he Ghazi ...
. During
the Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
hundreds of Jews died of starvation.
With approximately 40,000 Jews living in Libya before the war, as a result of the later
Jewish exodus from Arab and Muslim countries
The Jewish exodus from the Muslim world was the departure, flight, expulsion, evacuation and migration 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– ...
, there are no Jews left in the country today.
Background: the beginning of the Italian occupation
![Mussolinisupporterslibya](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/Mussolinisupporterslibya.jpg)
In July 1911 the Italian government demanded control of Libya from the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
. When the demand was not met, Italy declared war and quickly conquered the main cities along the coast of Libya. Some of the Jews of Libya supported Italy, and some actively contributed to the war effort. One of the reasons behind the support of Italy and a regime change began with the Italian influence on Libya through commercial and cultural ties. Other causes were the recurring pogroms the Jews suffered from at the hands of their Muslim neighbors; the wave of anti-Semitism that spread through the Ottoman Empire during the mid-19th century did not pass over the Jews of Libya. The autonomy that they received from the empire didn't prevent the recurring pogroms.
After the Italian conquest, the Jews received official status and were an important religious-ethnic group due to their key role in the Libyan economy. The studying of the Italian language and European country, which began before the conquest, became more common. The Italian government, which at first saw the Jews as Italians—just like the Italian Jews—began to consider them as indigenous Muslims. In 1934, after the fascists' rise to power,
Italo Balbo was appointed as the governor-general of Italian Libya. He developed the “Italian colony” and, like many fascists, saw it as symbol of Italy's returning to the greatness of the Roman Empire—the last time that Italy controlled Libya. During his term in office, the process of modernizing Jewish communities accelerated, and Jews took part in government establishments. Balbo respected the Jewish tradition so long as it did not prevent the progress he brought to Libya. One instance of conflict occurred when Jews closed their shops on the Sabbath, even outside the Jewish community. Balbo sentenced the Jews to be punished by flogging, but later, in October 1937, he admitted at a gathering of the Fascist Party that he had been mistaken and that he did not distinguish between Catholics and Jews - they were all Italian. Earlier that year,
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...
came to the Jewish community during a visit to Italian Libya and received a warm reception. He promised that the Jews of Libya would be safe and that Italy would respect the Jewish community and their traditions, religion and leadership.
During the Holocaust
Worsening status of the Jews
Italy's aggressive policies led to its isolation within Europe, and to a pact with
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
in 1936. The Rome-Berlin axis forced the countries to operate based on common principles, so the German race laws applied to Italy and its colonies.
[ In the racial manifesto, which was published in Italy in 1938, racist and anti-semitic laws appeared as representing the Italian Fascist Party's position. The main laws were:
* Jews with foreign citizenship were banned from leaving the country
* Jewish students were banned from high schools and higher education establishments
* Any Jew with a government position was to be fired
* All Jewish soldiers in the Italian army were to be demoted.
* Jews were forbidden from participating in government bids.
Italian Libya's governor, Balbo, tried to convince Mussolini to postpone the application of the laws in Libya, claiming that they would destroy the Libyan economy. Mussolini allowed Balbo to apply the laws as he saw fit. Despite the relative protection that the Jews enjoyed under Balbo, Jewish government workers were fired, Jewish children were expelled from schools, and Jews wishing to move between cities required a license. Balbo was killed in July 1940, when an Italian ship shot down his airplane. Italian officials explained the incident as an accident.][
In the second half of 1940, after Italy joined World War II on the side of Germany, the Jews' situation worsened. Tripoli was in chaos, and the Jewish quarter in Italy was heavily damaged by Allied bombings, leaving many Jews dead. Some Jews, like the Muslim population, escaped inland. The Jewish community in Tripoli rented homes for the needy, constructed underground bomb shelters and supplied education for the children who were expelled.
As time went by, the race laws became worse - the Jews of Cyrenaica were sent to a concentration camp in Tripolitania, and most of the community's workforce was sent to labor camps. Jews who were citizens of enemy countries were expelled from the country, and the rest suffered from racist and oppressive laws that hurt them socially and economically. In mid-1942, the governor decreed that Jews were forbidden to enter into real estate deals or commerce outside the community, to publish any material that did not relate to religion, and subject to other oppressive laws.][
]
The Jews of Cyrenaica under regime changes
The accelerated application of the Race Laws caused the Jews to lose trust in the Italian government and led them to support the British instead. When Britain first conquered Cyrenaica in December 1940, the Jews were freed from the race laws. They did not hide their support of the conquering army, especially due to the meetings between the community and the Jewish soldiers who joined the war as part of the unit of Jewish soldiers. The soldiers met with the Benghazi community many times, renewed Zionist activities, and supported educational activity. On April 3, 1941, the Italian-German forces managed to push the British forces out of Benghazi, and 250 Jews left with them. The Italian citizens who lived in the city during the period of British control held a grudge towards the Jews, and conducted pogroms during which two Jews were killed, and a great deal of property was pillaged and damaged. When order was restored and anti-Semitism
Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism.
Antis ...
began to increase, the Italian government arrested many Jews on charge of assisting enemy forces.
In November of that year, Britain reconquered Cyrenaica. The unit of Jewish soldiers tried to support the community, but in February 1942 the Italian-German army returned, and only a small number of Jews managed to escape with the retreating British army. Italy decided to expel all the Jews to Tripolitania
Tripolitania ( ar, طرابلس '; ber, Ṭrables, script=Latn; from Vulgar Latin: , from la, Regio Tripolitana, from grc-gre, Τριπολιτάνια), historically known as the Tripoli region, is a historic region and former province o ...
and imposed harsh punishments on the remaining Jews, including the death penalty for three of them. During the last British conquest of Cyrenaica in November 1942, the remaining 360 Jews were deterred from contacting the British army for fear of further punishment if the Axis recaptured the region. The Jewish soldiers were an important part of the rehabilitation of the community's remains. The blow to the Jewish community was the worst of any Libyan community. Over 500 Jews were killed, out of a community of 4,000. The lives of the survivors were in danger. Close to 2,600 Jews were sent to the Giado concentration camp; some families were sent to other camps. About 200 British citizens were transferred to Italy and some 250 French citizens to Tunisia
)
, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
, image_map2 =
, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
.[
]
Giado concentration camp
The majority of the Jewish community in Cyrenaica was sent to the Giado concentration camp, approximately south of Tripoli. The prosperous urban community of 2,600 people was crammed into booths in an old military camp that had been converted into a concentration camp. The health and sanitation conditions were terrible, and many of the Jews suffered from malnutrition. The camp was run by Italian officers, headed by the anti-Semitic Ettore Bastico
Ettore Bastico (9 April 1876 – 2 December 1972) was an Italian military officer before and during World War II. In addition to being a general of the Royal Italian Army, he was also a senator and governor. He held high commands during the Secon ...
, who supplied the detainees with just 100-150 grams of bread a day, in addition to a small weekly allocation of food. The Jews were in charge of distributing this insufficient food supply. After many rejections of the requests by Jewish leaders to increase the food allowance, the camp officers permitted Arab merchants to sell basic food supplies to the Jews, which they did for a high price - one that few could afford. After further requests, they were allowed to receive aid from Tripoli.[
Rabbi Frigia Zuaretz requested permission to set up a synagogue in the camp, and was allocated one of the booths. With the first death in the community, the community leaders needed to make burial arrangements. They found a Jewish cemetery from the 18th century where they were able to bury their dead - in numbers that grew daily, mainly due to malnutrition and the spread of typhus.
In January 1943, a few days before the Allies liberated the camp, all the prisoners were called to the plaza and brought before armed soldiers, and it was believed that the order to shoot would come at any moment. The order wasn't carried out. After a few days, the camp's officers retreated and some of the prisoners escaped. When the British arrived, they found the Jews in an unstable and disorganized state. In March of that year, the British military Rabbi Orbach visited, and received permission to send 60 Jews to Palestine. The camp survivors were sent at first to Tripoli, where they became a burden on the local community, until October 1943 when most of the survivors moved to Benghazi. The community never returned to its previous prosperity, and few managed to return to economic stability. Close to 600 out of the 2600 Jewish residents of the Benghazi camp perished.
]
Forced labor
In June 1942, Italian Libya's governor decreed that the legal status of Libyan and Italian men was the same, which meant that men aged 18–45 were drafted into military service. Men from Tripolitania county were sent to work in Sidi Azaz and Bukbuk. In August, 3,000 Jews were sent to the Sidi Azaz labor camp but, due to the lack of infrastructure, most were sent back to their homes, to serve the country and to work camps in Cyrenaica. The Jews were a substantial work force that the community was lacking.
The camp was isolated and desert-like, with few Italian guards and tents. It was an open camp, which allowed the rich to purchase food which they sometimes shared with others. After a while, residents of Tripoli traveled out to meet their family members.[
The camp residents started their day at 6:00 am with roll call and it ended at 5:00 pm. They received 500 grams of bread, rice, or pasta as food. Unprecedented consideration was shown when the Italian guards allowed the prisoners to rest on the Sabbath. There was one violent incident, when a prisoner argued with an Italian guard as was shot dead as a result. The guard was transferred and the Jews learned to stay out of arguments with the guards.
The Bukbuk camp was set up in East Cyrenaica, on the Egyptian border. The prisoners were tasked with paving roads from Libya to Egypt for the army's purposes. The camp was so remote that there were no guards or fences. There was a lack of water, for a supply arrived only every few days. The work day was officially from 7:00 am to 5:00 pm, but the lack of supervision allowed the prisoners to work at a leisurely pace and, despite the complaints of the Italian supervisor who came every few days, the camp was short of guards. The camp did have an Italian doctor who ignored the mostly invented diseases and injuries of the prisoners, which allowed them to claim they were not suited for work and be released. In October 1942, Bukbuk was the target of multiple bombings, and only in November, with the retreat of Italian forces, were the prisoners released and allowed to find their own way back to Tripoli, most of them with the aid of passing vehicles.][
]
Expulsion of Jews with foreign citizenship
German soldiers entered Italian Libya in 1941 after the Italian army was defeated in Cyrenaica, but German influence was felt starting in 1938. Due to the involvement and importance that the foreign Jews had in economy and commerce, they were treated normally, and the Italian government wasn't quick to apply the racial laws and expel the foreign Jews. Yet, there were incidents of German soldiers harassing Jews. After Italy joined the war in June 1940 the Jews' conditions worsened, and in September all the citizens of enemy countries were put in detention camps, in decent conditions. They were all expelled during the second half of 1941, mainly due to the fact that the detention camps became an economic burden. Many of those expelled had lived in Libya their whole lives, holding a second citizenship for convenience only. Approximately 1,600 Jews with French citizenship were expelled to Tunisia. Over 400 with British citizenship were sent to Italy. Those expelled from Benghazi
Benghazi () , ; it, Bengasi; tr, Bingazi; ber, Bernîk, script=Latn; also: ''Bengasi'', ''Benghasi'', ''Banghāzī'', ''Binghāzī'', ''Bengazi''; grc, Βερενίκη (''Berenice'') and ''Hesperides''., group=note (''lit. Son of he Ghazi ...
were allowed to take valuables and were sent to a detention camp in Bologna, while those leaving Tripoli were allowed only personal items, and sent mainly to camps in Siena and Firenze. Living conditions were tight but they were treated well by the guards. In September 1943, Italy fell under German control, and in October Jewish men were sent from Arzo camp, east of Siena, to forced labor. Between February and May 1944, the expellees from Tripoli and some from Benghazi were sent to Bergen-Belsen camp, while most of the Benghazi expellees were sent to Innsbruck-Reichenau camp.[
The food supply in Bergen Belsen was terrible, working conditions were very hard and prisoners were abused and harassed by SS soldiers.
The Innsbruck-Reichenau camp was located in western Austria and was an offshoot of the ]Dachau
,
, commandant = List of commandants
, known for =
, location = Upper Bavaria, Southern Germany
, built by = Germany
, operated by = ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS)
, original use = Political prison
, construction ...
camp. It was surrounded by an electric fence, there was separation between men and women and the inmates were all forced to work. Unlike the other prisoners, the Jews of Libya were allowed to stay in their civilian clothes. The SS guards were cruel to the Jews- they were banned from any religious expression or worship, and punishment such as flogging, imprisonment and death by shooting were common.[
Beyond the known horrors of the Holocaust, the Jews of Libya were a foreign element in frigid Europe, which made survival much harder. Beyond the different climate, the cultural difference was a major obstacle. In both camps the Jews of Libya made an effort to observe Jewish dietary restrictions despite the hardships, and traded their cooked meals for bread. Many of the Jews of Libya perished in the camp, mainly elderly people who couldn't withstand the hunger, torture and disease.
]
Aftermath
According to Maurice Roumani
Maurice M. Roumani, born in Benghazi, Libya, is Professor of Politics and International Relations, Religion and Society of the Middle East and the Founder of the J. R. Elyachar Center for Studies in Sephardi Heritage at Ben-Gurion University of t ...
, a Libyan emigrant who was previously the Executive Director of WOJAC
World Organization of Jews from Arab Countries (WOJAC) was an international Advocacy group, advocacy organization, created in 1975, representing Jewish exodus from Arab and Muslim countries, Jewish refugees from Arab countries. The World Organizat ...
, the most important factors which influenced the Libyan Jewish community to emigrate were "the scars left from the last years of the Italian occupation and the entry of the British Military in 1943 accompanied by the Jewish Palestinian soldiers".
Following the Allied
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
victory at the Battle of El Agheila
The Battle of El Agheila was a brief engagement of the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. It took place in December 1942 between Allied forces of the Eighth Army (General Bernard Montgomery) and the Axis forces
The Axis ...
in December 1942, German and Italian troops were driven out of Libya. The British garrisoned the Palestine Regiment
The Palestine Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Army that was formed in 1942. During the Second World War, the regiment was deployed to Egypt and Cyrenaica, but most of their work consisted of guard duty. Some Palestine Regiment mem ...
in Cyrenaica, which later became the core of the Jewish Brigade which was later also stationed in Tripolitania
Tripolitania ( ar, طرابلس '; ber, Ṭrables, script=Latn; from Vulgar Latin: , from la, Regio Tripolitana, from grc-gre, Τριπολιτάνια), historically known as the Tripoli region, is a historic region and former province o ...
. The pro-Zionist soldiers encouraged the spread of Zionism throughout the local Jewish population
In 1943, Mossad LeAliyah Bet
The Mossad LeAliyah Bet ( he, המוסד לעלייה ב', lit. ''Institution for Immigration B'') was a branch of the paramilitary organization Haganah in British Mandatory Palestine, and later the State of Israel, that operated to facilitate Je ...
began to send emissaries to prepare the infrastructure for the emigration of the Libyan Jewish community.
The most severe post-World War II anti-Jewish violence in Arab countries was in Tripolitania (North-West Libya), then under British control, in November 1945. Over a period of several days more than 130 Jews (including 36 children) were killed, hundreds were injured, 4,000 were left homeless (displaced) and 2,400 were reduced to poverty. Five synagogues in Tripoli and four in provincial towns were destroyed, and over 1,000 Jewish residences and commercial buildings were plundered in Tripoli alone.[Stillman, 2003, p. 145.] Further riots took place in Tripolitania in June 1948, when 15 Jews were killed and 280 Jewish homes destroyed. In November 1948, a few months after the events in Tripolitania, the American consul in Tripoli Orray Taft Jr. reported that: "There is reason to believe that the Jewish Community has become more aggressive as the result of the Jewish victories in Palestine. There is also reason to believe that the community here is receiving instructions and guidance from the State of Israel. Whether or not the change in attitude is the result of instructions or a progressive aggressiveness is hard to determine. Even with the aggressiveness or perhaps because of it, both Jewish and Arab leaders inform me that the inter-racial relations are better now than they have been for several years and that understanding, tolerance and cooperation are present at any top level meeting between the leaders of the two communities."[NARA RG 84, Libya— Tripoli, General Records 1948-49; file 800-833, Taft to Secretary of State (November 23, 1948)]
Emigration to Israel began in 1949, following the establishment of a Jewish Agency
The Jewish Agency for Israel ( he, הסוכנות היהודית לארץ ישראל, translit=HaSochnut HaYehudit L'Eretz Yisra'el) formerly known as The Jewish Agency for Palestine, is the largest Jewish non-profit organization in the world. ...
office in Tripoli. According to Harvey E. Goldberg, "a number of Libyan Jews" believe that the Jewish Agency was behind the riots, given that the riots helped them achieve their goal. Between the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 and Libyan independence in December 1951 over 30,000 Libyan Jews emigrated to Israel.
Soon, the Jewish community of Libya ceased to exist, with most of its members emigrating to Israel and other countries, mainly Italy.
See also
* History of the Jews in Libya
The history of the Jews in Libya stretches back to the 3rd century BCE, when Cyrenaica was under Greek rule. The Jewish population of Libya, a part of the Sephardi-Maghrebi Jewish community continued to populate the area continuously until the m ...
* Jadu, Libya
* Allied occupation of Libya
The Allied administration of Libya was the control of the ex-Italian colony of Italian Libya by the Allies from 13 May 1943 until Libyan independence was granted in 1951. It was divided into two parts:
* British Military Administration of Libya ...
* Jews outside Europe under Axis occupation
Jews outside Europe under Axis occupation suffered greatly during the Holocaust and World War II. There was no exception to the Nazis' policy of racial discrimination and physical annihilation of the Jews. As stated by Yehuda Bauer, academic advi ...
References
Further reading
*
*
*
*
*
*
* Stillman, Norman (2003). ''Jews of Arab Lands in Modern Times''. Jewish Publication Society, Philadelphia.
*
*
* Ahmida, Ali Abdullatif (August 6th 2020). Genocide in Libya: Shar, a Hidden Colonial History. Routledge. ISBN 978100169362
External links
Blog on Jewish refugees
Libyan Jews to get Holocaust benefits
on Jpost
*
Jewish History In Libya - Brief Biography
Personal experiences of survivor Benjamin Doron from Benghazi, Libya
on Yad Vashem
{{Libya topics
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...