(Ambassador Keidar's speech on the occasion of the annual commemoration event for the Exodus of the Jews
from Arab countries and Iran.The event was organized by
the Swiss Friends for Justice for Jews from Arab Countries, sponsered by the Israeli embassy in Bern. At the center of the event stood the screening of
the film MURAL about the exodus of Jewish children from Morocco in 1961 as an
homage to Mr. David Littman, who was one of the heroes who made this operation
possible. His widow Bat Ye'or (pictured) gave the key note speech.)
Today, on 30th
November, we commemorate for the 4th consecutive year the immigration and
expulsion of Arab and Iranian Jews according to a law that was passed in the
Knesset in 2014. On this day, we are proud to celebrate the amazing and
wonderful heritage of millions of Jews who lived in the Middle East and North
Africa. Most of them arrived in Israel as refugees and today those people and
their descendants comprise about half of Israel’s population.
This date of 30th
November was set because of its proximity to November 29th, the day
of the United Nations General Assembly Resolution on the partition plan of
Palestine 70 years ago. Antisemitism and pogroms against Jews happened in many
Arab countries even before this date. But after 1947, persecution of Jews,
killings and confiscation of their properties intensified and became a State
policy of the Arab governments. The Jews feared for their lives and were forced
to leave their home countries, leaving behind their private and communal
property. They had to leave empty handed the countries in which they had lived
for thousands of years.
Nowadays, in all the
Arab countries only a few hundred of Jews are left. This has been pure and
simple ethnic cleansing.
The Arab countries are
responsible for the tragedy and misery of the Jewish refugees. The same
countries are also responsible for the suffering and misery of the Palestinian
refugees. By not accepting the UN partition plan and then attacking the newly
born Israel from all sides, aiming to destroy it, they caused the Palestinian
refugee problem, and have been
perpetuating it ever since for the sole reason of bashing Israel.
The Arab countries and
whoever assists them in keeping the Palestinian refugees in their misery should
take upon themselves the blame and the shame.
In a strong contrast, we
are proud that the Jewish refugees from Arab countries managed to build new and
prosperous lives in Israel despite the hardships they went through in the first
years after their arrival.
We will continue to
demand that justice will be done to Jewish refugee from Arab countries by
giving them back their properties and compensating them for the suffering they
endured.