![Ceirut Central District wady](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6e/Ceirut_Central_District_wady.jpg)
Wadi Abu Jamil is the former
Jewish quarter in
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
,
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
, located in
the city's central district.
History
Formally known as ''Wadi al-Yahoud'' (meaning "Valley of the Jews"),
the quarter was the center of the
Lebanese Jewish community, with Beirut's largest and most important
synagogue
A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...
, the
Maghen Abraham Synagogue
The Maghen Abraham Synagogue ( ar, كنيس ماغين أبراهام - ''Kanīs Mā'ghīn Abrā'hām''; he, בית הכנסת מגן אברהם - ''Beth HaKenesset Magen Avraham'') is one of the main synagogues in Lebanon.
Located in the Jewi ...
, located there. The neighborhood was home to Lebanon's centuries-old Jewish community and also for the more recent Jewish refugees from
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
and
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
.
Emigration from the community began in earnest after the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. During the
1982 Lebanon War
The 1982 Lebanon War, dubbed Operation Peace for Galilee ( he, מבצע שלום הגליל, or מבצע של"ג ''Mivtsa Shlom HaGalil'' or ''Mivtsa Sheleg'') by the Israeli government, later known in Israel as the Lebanon War or the First L ...
,
Yasir Arafat
Mohammed Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf al-Qudwa al-Husseini (4 / 24 August 1929 – 11 November 2004), popularly known as Yasser Arafat ( , ; ar, محمد ياسر عبد الرحمن عبد الرؤوف عرفات القدوة الحسيني, Mu ...
's
PLO forces took over much of the neighborhood, which was located along the dividing line between the two sides of the
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War ( ar, الحرب الأهلية اللبنانية, translit=Al-Ḥarb al-Ahliyyah al-Libnāniyyah) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 120,000 fatalities a ...
. During the war, Israeli bombardment damaged the Magen Abraham Synagogue.
The area today is home to around 29 Lebanese Jews, mostly elderly.
Synagogue renovation
Renovation of the Maghen Abraham Synagogue began in the summer of 2009.
Funding for the renovation includes donations from the Lebanese Jewish Community Council and Jewish Lebanese living overseas. Isaac Arazi, the leader of the Jewish community in Lebanon has managed to raise $40,000 from private donors.
Renovation is estimated to cost between $1 million and $1.5 million.
Solidere
Solidere s.a.l. is a Lebanese joint-stock company in charge of planning and redeveloping Beirut Central District following the conclusion, in 1990, of the Lebanese Civil War. By agreement with the government, Solidere has special powers of emin ...
, the Lebanese joint-stock company responsible for much of Central Beirut’s reconstruction, has donated $150,000 toward the renovation effort.
Lebanese architect
has played an important role in the redevelopment planning process.
See also
*
Beirut Central District
The Beirut Central District (BCD) or ''Centre Ville'' is the historical and geographical core of Beirut, the capital of Lebanon. Also called downtown Beirut, it has been described the “vibrant financial, commercial, and administrative hu ...
*
History of the Jews in Lebanon
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
References
* Karam, Dima (October 2003)
Beirut Synagogue is a Reminder of a Departed People Daily Star.
* Hendler, Sefi (19 August 2006)
Beirut’s last Jews Ynetnews
Ynet (stylized as ynet) is one of the major Israeli news and general-content websites, and is the online outlet for the '' Yedioth Ahronot'' newspaper. However, most of Ynet's content is original work, published exclusively on the website and wri ...
.
External links
Maghen Abraham Congregation: Sephardic Jewish Lebanese community in CanadaWadi Hills
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jamil, Wadi Abu
Jewish communities
Jews and Judaism in Beirut
Neighbourhoods of Beirut