DAMASCUS: A group of Syrian-American Jews prayed in a synagogue in Damascus on Tuesday, an AFP photographer reported, the latest such visit following the fall of longtime ruler Bashar Assad.
The trip comes after local community leader Bakhour Chamntoub said unknown assailants broke into and desecrated the tomb of a 17th-century rabbi in Damascus last week.
Visiting Rabbi Henry Hamra led prayers at the Faranj synagogue in Damascus’s Old City.
His father Yusuf Hamra was reportedly the last rabbi to leave Syria, one of thousands of members of the Jewish community to depart in the 1990s.
They had both visited from the United States in February.
Victor Kamil, a Syrian Jew from New York, said the latest trip sought to “prepare the synagogues, to prepare the community here for people at least to start visiting,” expressing hope that an improvement in the situation in Syria would encourage returns.
“We are very proud Syrian Jews — our kids know we are very proud and they will definitely love this heritage and this history,” he added.
Syria’s centuries-old Jewish community was able to practice their religion under former president Hafez Assad, but the strongman prevented them from leaving the country until 1992.
After that, their numbers plummeted from around 5,000 at the time to just a handful now.
On Monday, the group prayed at the Damascus tomb of 17th-century Rabbi Chaim Vital, Kamil said.
Community leader Chamntoub said Friday that unidentified individuals “dug up the ground next to the grave in search of antiquities,” adding that local authorities had inspected the site and vowed to find those responsible.
The Alliance of Rabbis in Islamic States said over the weekend it was “deeply shocked and saddened” by the desecration.
“We urgently call on the Syrian government to immediately secure Jewish holy sites, synagogues and cemeteries and ensure their safety” and security, the statement added.
Kamil said that “we are trying to figure out if... the bones of the rabbi were touched or moved,” adding that the incident would not affect the importance of the site.
After Islamist-led forces overthrew Assad in December, the new authorities have sought to reassure minorities that they will be protected.
But last month saw sectarian massacres on the Alawite coast, and tensions were high on Tuesday after deadly sectarian clashes in a Damascus suburb.
On a recent visit to New York, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani met with members of the Syrian Jewish community, discussing “the importance of strengthening bridges of communication and understanding,” Syrian state news agency SANA said.
Syrian-American Jews visit Damascus synagogue
https://arab.news/54csd
Syrian-American Jews visit Damascus synagogue
- Visiting Rabbi Henry Hamra led prayers at the Faranj synagogue in Damascus’s Old City
- On a recent visit to New York, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani met with members of the Syrian Jewish community
Israel’s hostage forum releases AI-generated video of last Gaza captive
- The Gaza ceasefire, which came into effect in October, remains fragile with both sides alleging violations, and mediators fearing that Israel and Hamas alike are stalling
JERUSALEM: An Israeli group representing the families of Gaza hostages released on Tuesday an AI-generated video of Ran Gvili, the last captive whose body is still being held in the Palestinian territory.
The one-minute clip, created whole cloth using artificial intelligence, purports to depict Gvili as he sits in a Gaza tunnel and appeals to US President Donald Trump to help bring his body back to Israel.
“Mr President, I’m asking you to see this through: Please bring me home. My family deserves this. I deserve the right to be buried with honor in the land I fought for,” says the AI-generated image of Gvili.
Gvili was 24 at the time of Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
He was an officer in Israel’s Yasam elite police unit and was on medical leave when he learnt of the attack.
He decided to leave his home and brought his gun to counter the Hamas militants.
He was shot in the fighting at the Alumim kibbutz before he was taken to Gaza.
Israeli authorities told Gvili’s parents in January 2024 that he had not survived his injuries.
The AI clip was released by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, the main group representing those taken captive to Gaza.
The Forum said it was published with the approval of Gvili’s family.
“Seeing and hearing Rani speak in his own voice is both moving and heartbreaking. I would give anything to hear, see and hold him again,” Gvili’s mother Talik said, quoted by the Forum.
“But all I can do now is plead that they don’t move to the next phase of the agreement before bringing Rani home — because we don’t leave heroes behind.”
The Gaza ceasefire, which came into effect in October, remains fragile with both sides alleging violations, and mediators fearing that Israel and Hamas alike are stalling.
In the first stage, Palestinian militants were expected to return all of the remaining 48 living and dead hostages held in Gaza.
Since the ceasefire came into effect on October 10, militants have released 47 hostages.
In the next stages of the truce, Israel is supposed to withdraw from its positions in Gaza, an interim authority is to govern the Palestinian territory instead of Hamas, and an international stabilization force is to be deployed.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to meet Trump in Florida later this month to discuss the second phase of the deal.
