The bombing of the Rafiei-Nia Synagogue in Tehran prompted this brief note, which includes a link to an excellent documentary about Iranian Jews. I will write later about the pending settlement of the Iran War. I will only say that it’s a clear strategic victory for Iran—and resounding defeat for Iran haters!
Brief Background
Jews have lived in Iran for around 3,000 years. Iranian Jews can claim to be the oldest continuous Jewish community in the Middle East. Archaeological, historical, and literary evidence testifies to an enduring and thriving Jewish presence in Iran for centuries before Christ. Following the Jewish–Roman Wars (66-135 AD), death, exile, and migration reduced the Jewish population in Palestine. A founding myth of Israel is that despite demographic catastrophes, Jews maintained a sizeable and unbroken presence in Palestine.
The Judaism practiced in Iran is authentic, untainted by Zionism. The Hebrew spoken by Iran’s Jews is authentic, i.e., it has evolved through time as languages usually do; and it not like “modern Hebrew,” which was devised in recent times to serve as the official language of the settler state.
A minority of Iran’s Jews emigrated to Israel in the 1950s and 1960s. They were usually poorer Jews who believed they would find better opportunities in Israel. Wealthier Jews remained in Iran, but many migrated after the 1979 Revolution, with most of them relocating to the United States, United Kingdom, Europe, and Australia.
The State of Israel despises Iranian Jews that remain because they refuse to migrate to Israel despite cash offers; and Iranian Jews are vehemently anti-Zionist. Israel wants to be able to brag “Jews are only safe in Israel,” but cannot do so while Jews safely remain in Iran and have representation in Parliament. Iranian Jews are patriotic and nationalist; loyal to homeland despite disagreements with the Islamic Republic. During the Iran-Iraq War (1980-88), Iranian Jews served alongside their Shia, Sunni, Christian, and Zoroastrian brethren.
The Documentary
Uncaptured: Jews in the Islamic Republic of Iran, by Iranian filmmaker Maria Mavati, follows Max Blumenthal—an American Jew and editor of The Grayzone—on his journey through Iran, and encounters with its Jewish community in different cities. Blumenthal narrates his experiences.
Readings: Encyclopædia Iranica
Judeo-Persian Communities: scholarly articles on Jews of Iran, from before Christ to the present.
Esther and Mordechai: On the shrine in Hamadan, Iran.
Perspectives 