After World War 2 many Jews left Iraq bad headed to Israel. Before leaving the buried their treasures and family heirloom and gave their houses to Kurdish neighbors.In the town of Penjwin a young girl named Zara is living in a house that it undergoing reconstruction.Locked away is a journal, Shabbat candle sticks, some jewels and a journal. The journal is by a Jewish woman named Rahila and it documents a turbulent time for the Jewish community of Iraq.
The Jews of Iraqi Kurdistan have lived there since the Assyrian exile and they still speak Aramaic amongst themselves. When Zara finds this journal Iraqi Kurdistan is going through Civil upheaval as well. As Zara finds the journal and reads through it her life becomes more and more enmeshed with Rahila and soon they notice several parallels in their life.
Rahila journal documents the deteriorating situation of the Iraqs Jews as Palestine slowly becomes Israel. The Jews are accused of being disloyal to Iraq. Jews are harassed by the government, subjected to arrests, torture and even hanging. The Jewish community is divided. Some opt for Zionism and move to Israel. While other will denounce Zionism and support the Palestinian cause. Rioting and property destruction get worse everyday. The community must respond.
In Iraqi Kurdistan the fights between the different Kurdish groups intensifies to where there are checkpoints everywhere and anyone seen as the opposition gets targeted. Soran who Zaras fiancée gets arrested for helping a child during a demonstration and wants leave Iraq. Rahila went through the same thing. Her fiancée Azam leaves for Palestine to fight for the Jewish army. Rahila is unique in that she is like a female rabbi. She is an expert on Jewish ritual something which most women are not. Rahilas life takes a dramatic turn when her father offers a unique proposal that will turn her life upside down.
Many Kurdish families have members that were formally Jews. Some keep the traditions while others barely do anything. They keep everything quiet because the specter of antisemitism is alive and well.
1 comment:
Dear blogger, your blog post is informative, but there are so many grammatical and construction errors that need to be rephrased and corrected for more clarity and readability. Thank you so much for posting such a wonderful article on what the Iraqi Jews went through during the early years of the formation of Eretz Israel. Yahweh bless and keep his covenant people.
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