The Arab world is re-embracing its Jews
Changing attitudes and self-interested leaders are behind a surprising religious revival
THE SLOGAN of the Houthi rebels, who control northern Yemen, is blunt. “Death to Israel, curse on the Jews,” it reads in part. So it was no shock when the group chased Jews out of its area of control. What might be surprising is where some of those Jews ended up. Yusuf Hamdi and his extended family were rescued in a mission organised by the UN, America, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2021. Mr Hamdi and company then passed up a chance to go to Israel, instead becoming the first Yemenite Jews to settle in the UAE.
This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Welcome back”
From the January 22nd 2022 edition
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