History of the Jews in Lebanon
The history of the Jews in Lebanon encompasses the presence of Jews in present-day Lebanon stretching back to biblical times. While Jews have been present in Lebanon since ancient times,[1] their numbers had dwindled during the Muslim era.[2] Through the medieval ages, Jewish people often faced persecution,[3] but retained their religious and cultural identity.[4]
In the early 20th century, for a brief period under the French Mandate of Lebanon and 1926 Constitution of Lebanon, the Jewish community was constitutionally protected. However, after 1948, the security of Jews remained fragile, and the main synagogue in Beirut was bombed in the early 1950s.[5] In the wake of the 1967 Arab–Israeli War, there was mass emigration of around 6,000 Lebanese Jews from Lebanon to Israel and Western countries.[6][7][8][9]
The Lebanese Civil War, which started in 1975, brought immense suffering for the remaining Lebanese Jewish community, and some 200 were killed in ensuing anti-Jewish pogroms, leading to a mass exodus of over 1,800 of the remaining Lebanese Jews.[10][11][12] By 2005, the Jewish quarter of Beirut, Wadi Abu Jamil, was virtually abandoned, and there were only around 40 Jews left in Beirut.[13]
– philanthropist and civic leader
Jack Benaroya
– Major League Baseball player
John Grabow
– Olympic medalist in beach volleyball
Adriana Behar
– Brazilian Banker
Joseph Safra
– French singer and songwriter
Guy Beart
– French actress
Emmanuelle Beart
– Brazilian Banker
Sasson Dayan
Murielle Telio – American actress
– Brazilian banker
Edmundo Safdie
– Canadian architect
Moshe Safdie
– film directors
Safdie brothers
– founder of American Apparel
Don Charney
– comic book writer
Michael Netzer
– art collector
Ezra Nahmad
– MMA journalist
Ariel Helwani
– singer
Neil Sedaka
– banker in Geneva
Edgar de Picciotto
– evolutionary psychologist
Gad Saad
– Oscar-winning musical composer
Justin Hurwitz
– actor
Niels Schneider
– movie producer
Michael Benaroya
– American actress
Caroline Aaron
– British violinist
Yfrah Neaman
– historian and philosopher
Yuval Noah Harari
– scientist
Karine Nahon
– French actress
Lolita Chammah
– American actor
Bob Dishy
– writer
Esther Moyal
– journalist and TV presenter
Gad Lerner
– politician
Jose Maria Benegas
– comedian
Joanna Hausmann
– Argentinian writer
Ana María Shua
– judge in the Israeli Supreme court
Mishael Cheshin
Ezra Anzarut prior to 1910
Joseph. D. Farhi 1910–1924
Joseph Dichy Bey 1925–1927
Joseph D. Farhi 1928–1930
Selim Harari 1931–1934
Joseph D. Farhi 1935–1938
Deab Saadia & Joseph Dichy Bey 1939–1950
Joseph Attiyeh 1950–1976
Isaac Sasson 1977–1985
Raoul Mizrahi 1985
Joseph Mizrahi 1986–2003
[42]
Isaac Arazi 2005–2023
[43]
The Jewish community presidents include:[41]
Joseph Balayla 1926–1931 (was also the treasurer of the community)
Yaakov (Jackes) Balayla 1931–1934 (Jackes and Joseph Balayla were brothers)
Ezra Cohen 1962–1975
Semo Bechar 2005–present
Rabbi 1799–1829
Moïse Yedid-Levy
Rabbi
Ralph Alfandari
Rabbi
Youssef Mann
Rabbi
Aharoun Yedid-Levy
Rabbi 1875
Zaki Cohen
Rabbi
Menaché Ezra Sutton
Rabbi
Jacob Bukai
Rabbi
Haïm Dana
Rabbi
Moïse Yedid-Levy
Rabbi 1908–1909
Nassim Afandi Danon
Rabbi 1910–1921
Jacob Tarrab
Rabbi 1921–1923
Salomon Tagger
Rabbi 1924–1950
Shabtai Bahbouth
Rabbi 1932–1959
Benzion Lichtman
Rabbi 1949–1966
Jacob Attiyeh
Rabbi 1960–1978
Shaul Chreim
Between the years of 1799 and 1978, a series of Chief Rabbis led the Lebanese Jewish community.[44]
(Jewish Quarter of Beirut)
Wadi Abu Jamil
(Beirut, Lebanon)
Maghen Abraham Synagogue
(Sidon, Lebanon)
Sidon Synagogue
Beth Elamen Cemetery
Beirut Chief Rabbi
Zaki Cohen
Jewish Migration from Lebanon Post-1948
Jewish exodus from Arab lands
(Montreal, Canada)
Congregation Maghen Abraham (Montreal)
Israel–Lebanon relations
Religion in Lebanon
The official site of the Lebanese Jewish Community Council
Jewish Lebanese community in Canada
By Massoud A. Derhally of Bloomberg News-Sept. 18, 2008
Lebanon Jews Tap Diaspora to Rebuild Beirut's Shelled Synagogue
By Massoud A. Derhally of Bloomberg News-Aug. 5, 2009