JEWS IN MUSLIM LANDS FEELING THE HEAT
by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz

Arutz Sheva
aspx/129403
Jan 13 2009
Israel

(IsraelNN.com) Jews living in majority-Muslim countries are in a
precarious situation as Israel fights the Islamist Hamas regime in
Gaza. While pro-Hamas, anti-Semitic rallies and sporadic attacks are
continuing worldwide, Jews in Muslim lands face an additional danger
as a vulnerable minority.

Synagogue Shut by Force In Indonesia, the world’s most populous
Muslim state, that nation’s only synagogue was forcibly shut down
and sealed. Located in an ethnic Arab neighborhood of Surabaya,
Indonesia’s second-largest city, the synagogue became the focus of
a Muslim mob last Wednesday following a "free speech forum" held
in the city. The small Indonesian synagogue, without benefit of a
Torah scroll or rabbi, is in Rivka Sayers’ home. She is one of only
a handful of Jews living in the Muslim state, most of whom are of
mixed European-Asian background.

In addition to forcing the sealing of the Surabaya synagogue,
protesters called for a boycott of US products. Anti-Israel and
anti-American rallies continued this week, with some 20,000 Indonesian
Muslims have gathering in the capital Jakarta on Sunday under the
auspices of the the Islamic Prosperous Justice Party (PKS).

‘We Will Kill You’ In Turkey, synagogues in Izmir were also shut down,
but this time out of serious security concerns, after someone scrawled
"We will kill you" on the door of one of the biggest synagogues
in the city. Synagogues in Turkey have been the target of Islamic
fundamentalist and pan-Arab terrorist bombings and shootings in
the past, including a double car bombing that killed 20 people in
November 2003.

In Istanbul, a shop owned by a local Jewish family was targeted, as
well. A huge poster saying, "Do not buy from here, since this shop
is owned by a Jew," was plastered on the shop and other posters on
the wall said, "Jews and Armenians are not allowed, but dogs are."

On Wednesday, all Turkish high schools and primary schools will pay
homage to Gazans killed in Israel’s Operation Cast Lead. Art teachers
are instructed to dedicate their classes to the topic, "Human Drama
in Palestine," and to offer awards to outstanding compositions.

A Turkish-Jewish source wishing to remain anonymous reported that
Istanbul is filled with anti-Israel posters and billboards, as well as
more explicit graffiti saying things like, "Kill Jews", "Kill Israel,"
and "Israel should no longer exist in the Middle East."

"We have previously faced some strong reaction regarding previous
operations in Gaza and the West Bank, but this time is really
different from former ones. I feel open anti-Semitism and hatred from
all these people," the Turkish source commented. Openly anti-Semitic
propaganda far exceeds anything happening in Europe, according to his
observations. The situation, the source concluded, "is becoming much
more dangerous day by day."

Approximately 26,000 Jews live in Turkey and the country has become
a very popular destination for Israeli tourists.

On December 30, a protest of Tehran’s Jews was held in front of
the United Nations’ office in the city. Speaking with an Iranian TV
station, Rahmatullah Rafii, the chairman of a Tehran-based Jewish
organization, said, "Jews in the Islamic Republic of Iran condemn
Israel’s attack on the people of Gaza."

However, due to the totalitarian nature of the Islamic regime,
the true status and views of Iran’s Jews – as well as Iran’s other
citizens – remain hidden from view. Increasing cases of discrimination,
including the closing of Jewish day schools and the banning of Hebrew
instruction, have been recorded in recent years. About 200 out of
Iran’s 28,000 Jews immigrated to Israel in 2007, many of them through
clandestine means.

Egyptians Want to Ban Visits to Jewish Tomb

The tomb of Rabbi Yaakov Abuhatzeira has become the focus of Egyptian
anti-Israel efforts. The Moroccan-born rabbi, who died in 1880, is
the grandfather of the late Israeli Kabbalist Yisrael Abuhatzeira,
better known as the "Baba Sali". The tomb of Rabbi Yaakov, located
in the coastal village of Nekraha, has become a place of pilgrimage
for hundreds of Jews in recent years. The largest group regularly
comes from Israel in January and is given heavy protection by local
security services.

This year, a coalition of Egyptian political opposition parties came
together to prevent the pilgrimage of Israelis to the rabbi’s tomb. The
coalition has brought together unlikely allies, from the far-left
Al-Tagamu party to the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood. An article in
Al-Masri al-Yooum said that the coalition’s leader, Gamal Mounib,
stated that he holds the Egyptian government responsible for any
pilgrims reaching the shrine this year.

Only about 60 Jews currently live in Egypt, while the country’s
synagogues and the Israeli Embassy in Cairo are heavily guarded by
Egyptian soldiers.

Elsewhere in North Africa, the Al-Qaeda offshoot known as Al-Qaeda
in the Islamic Maghreb (North Africa) has issued explicit calls for
Muslims to attack Jews "wherever they are found." Jewish communities
among Muslim populations constitute the most obvious and immediate
targets for incited individuals as well as organized Jihadist cells.