A Bit Of Recent History
As happened in other Arab
countries, a large number of Jews were murdered or forced to leave Libya in the
20th century. These pogroms were officially condoned. These pogroms
happened at the end of World War II, 1948, and around 1967.
Here is the personal account of such atrocities committed
against Jews in Libya. It is a blog written by David Harris at the
HuffingtonPost.com headlined “A
Neglected Anniversary” dated 7/8/2012.
Here are some excerpts from this blog (Emphasis added):
·
“Here [in Libya] was a community that had lived
on the soil for more than two millennia, long predating the occupation by
invading armies from the Arabian Peninsula. And Jews, numbering nearly 50,000
at their peak, had contributed in every way imaginable to the area’s
development. Libya went to work to erase every trace of Jewish existence.”
·
“The link with the country today known as Libya
- believed to date back to the tragic 15th-century exodus of Jews from Spain,
in the case of my wife's maternal lineage, and 2,000 years to the involuntary
Roman transport of Jews from Palestine in the case of her paternal lineage --
was severed.”
·
“What happened to the brave soul who saved my
wife's family? He survived, but begged the family never to disclose his name.
He feared retribution from fellow Libyans who might do him harm for the
"crime" of saving ten Jews.” (Will Israel one day add the name of
this brave Arab to Yad Vashem as a Righteous Among The Nations?)
Libya never showed any remorse for what happened neither
did the other Arab countries to my knowledge.
How To Redress?
Now that the first free
elections since independence were held in Libya, it would be recommendable that
Libya engages in the Mid-East peace process by first telling the Arabs in Gaza
and West Bank to get real and to abandon violence against Israel.
Second, like Germany, Libya
should compensate Jewish survivors for their suffering.
Third, Libya ought to welcome
back any Jews who wish to return etc.
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