The Farhud: The Massacre that Ended Iraq’s 2,600-Year-Old Jewish Community?

BY EMANUEL MILLER

Honest Reporting

Arab nationalists raise knives in the air during the Farhud

The unprovoked massacre of Jewish men, women, and children in Baghdad in 1941 known as “The Farhud” is perhaps the most significant event in the final chapter of the history of Iraqi Jewry. Read on to learn more about the episode, and make sure to check out this article describing how and why the Jewish community in Iraq came to an end.

Up until midway through the 19th century, the Iraqi Jewish community was one of the oldest continuous communities in the world and the oldest such community outside of Israel, with a proud history spanning over 2,600 years. Today, fewer than ten Jews remain in the country. 

While there are many reasons for the decimation of this community, one event in particular stands out: The Farhud, the unprovoked massacre of Jewish Iraqis by their fellow compatriots in a frenzy of nationalist, pro-Nazi rage.

A Brief History of the Jewish Community in Iraq

The experiences of the Jewish people in Iraq over history were varied, with periods of persecution and horrific attacks, as well as times of relative calm and somewhat tolerable conditions. Although there had been numerous instances of violence against Jews during their long history in the land under various regimes, including pogroms, decrees ordering the destruction of synagogues in Iraq, and occasional forced conversion to Islam, by the end of the 19th century, conditions were significantly better, although still far from perfect.

Under centuries of Islamic rule, Jews were subjugated and classified as dhimmi (‘protected person’) and were required to pay taxes, sometimes exorbitantly high. Failure to do so could result in death, or the death of a community representative. As the Ottoman empire began to crumble, however, reforms introduced led to Jews receiving a greater degree of equality, a process hastened by the subsequent era of British colonialism.

During the 19th century, Baghdad emerged as a strong Jewish and economic center as the influence of the Jewish families of Aleppo, who had dominated the Jewish communities of the Middle East over the previous century, waned. The Iraqi Jewish population grew so rapidly that by 1884, there were 30,000 Jews in Baghdad. By 1900, the number had risen to 50,000, with Jews representing over a quarter of the city’s total population.

From 50,000 to 10 in one century. That is a hostile environment! Please go to Honest Reporting for the rest of this article.