The Tiféret Israel Synagogue (; ) is a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

located in El Recreo, close to

Plaza Venezuela Plaza Venezuela (Venezuela Square in Spanish) is a public square located in Los Caobos neighborhood, Caracas, Venezuela. It was inaugurated in 1940 and is situated in the geographic center of Caracas. Its place for many landmarks of Caracas, inc ...

Caracas Caracas ( , ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas (CCS), is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the northern p ...

, capital of

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

. It is also the headquarters of the Israelite Association of Venezuela.

History

In 1954, the

Sephardic Jewish Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendant ...

community of Caracas reached an agreement to buy private land in Maripérez, Caracas, in order to build a synagogue to replace the one located in the El Conde area, which had to be demolished as part of the construction of the Bolivar Avenue, the main highway during that time. Finally in 1956 the first stone was laid; the synagogue was formally inaugurated and opened to the public in 1963, and since then has served as a religious temple for the Jewish community of Caracas.

2009 attack

In late January 2009, the synagogue was badly damaged in a well-organized attack, following escalating tensions between the Israeli and Venezuelan governments after the Gaza–Israel conflict of 2008–2009. The attack followed an article inciting

anti-Semitic Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...

violence, which appeared (later removed, and replaced by an apology) on a government website. An armed gang consisting of 15 unidentified men broke into the synagogue, tied and gagged security guards and occupied the building for several hours. Anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli graffiti was daubed on the walls and the synagogue office and

Holy Ark A Torah ark (also known as the ''hekhal'', , or ''aron qodesh'', ) is an ornamental chamber in the synagogue that houses the Torah scrolls. History The ark is also known as the ''ark of law'', or in Hebrew the ''Aron Kodesh'' () or ''aron ha-Ko ...

were ransacked. They also called for Jews to be expelled from the country. Venezuela's Foreign Minister

Nicolas Maduro Nicolas or Nicolás may refer to: People Given name * Nicolas (given name) Mononym * Nicolas (footballer, born 1999), Brazilian footballer * Nicolas (footballer, born 2000), Brazilian footballer Surname Nicolas * Dafydd Nicolas (c.1705–1774), ...

condemned the act as a "criminal act of vandalism". The Information Minister

Jesse Chacón Jesse Alonso Chacón Escamillo (born 9 November 1965) is a Venezuelan politician, engineer, and former military officer. Chacón participated in the November 1992 coup attempt the second attempted coup of that year, when he took part in the occu ...

also condemned the attack and denied it had any connection with the government. Three former policemen and three civilians were found guilty and sentenced to ten years in jail.

References

External links

20th-century synagogues in South America 21st-century attacks on Jewish institutions Buildings and structures in Caracas Sephardi Jewish culture in Venezuela Sephardi synagogues Synagogues completed in 1963 Synagogues in Venezuela Tourist attractions in Caracas {{synagogue-stub

History

2009 attack

See also

References

External links