Lebanese Jews were pioneers in promoting nation’s independence

BEIRUT - History News Editor

February 2004

The Jews of Lebanon, between coexistence and conflict, a book published by Sussex Academic Press in 2002 is an attempt to cover the history of a forgotten sect within the Lebanese community. The author of the book is Kristen E. Schulze, lecturer of international history at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE).

This book is a first attempt to venture into the history of the Lebanese Jews and to trace the origin of this community and its subsequent decline and near disappearance from Lebanon.

The Jews of Lebanon who were a very active community played an important role in the creation of modern Lebanon but the creation of the state of Israel as well as other contributing factors lead to the exodus of the Jews from their homeland Lebanon.

Schulze book starts by presenting the history of the Jews in the Middle East and the Levant in particular, and concentrates on Jewish life in Lebanon.

A literary survey involving the literature, which appeared with mention of the Lebanese Jews, is included in the end of the books introduction.

The first chapter of the book takes the reader on a voyage through the history of the Jewish community in Lebanon, covering the areas that the first Lebanese Jews settled in.

This section focuses on the Jewish communities that flourished in the villages of Mount Lebanon (Deir al Qamar, Barouk, and Hasbayah). The chapter also includes the cultural and religious education of the community, focusing on the Alliance Israelite Universelle and other educational institutes that catered to both the Jews and the rest of the communities.

The second chapter covers the period of the French mandate, which saw the flourishing of the Jewish community that utilized the existing system to become a considerable economic force, which includes merchants and financers (Safras, Zilkhas),  becoming renowned in not only Lebanon but also the Levant.

It was during the French mandate; the Jews strengthened their relationship to the other Lebanese communities and parties. The Jews had special relations with Pierre Gemayel’s Phalangist Party (Kataib) and the organization of the Young Phoenicians (p.48, 52). This chapter also deals with the Palestinian question and the rise of Zionism and the contacts of the Lebanese Jews with the Jews of Palestine, the Yishuv.

Schulz demonstrates that the Lebanese Jews were never attracted to the Zionist ideology, as reports to the Jewish Agency revels their unenthusiastic attitude towards Zionism. The chapter ends with describing the condition of the community under the pro-Nazi Vichy regime, which saw the limiting of Jews freedom.

The third chapter, Lebanese and Israeli independence: Question of Identity, deals with the attitude of the Jews to the Lebanese independence and the National Pact. The Jews were among the first community that endorsed and preached the idea of Lebanon as a unique entity within its Arab surroundings.

The author also surveys the political situation from the independence of the Lebanese republic to the establishment of the state of Israel and the condition of the Jews with the growing hatred that accompanied the rise of Israel.

Schulze employs in this chapter the testimony of two Lebanese Jewish women Stella Levy and Vicky Angel, who reminisce about their privileged life in Lebanon (p.66). The author focuses on the Lebanese Jews support of the Arabs during the War of Palestine as they pledge money to help the war effort, however this did not protect them from episodes of violence.

The fourth chapter deals with the Jews predicament in the midst of the first civil war. The Jews, which were originally supporters of the “Right” and the Kataib party, in particular took the side of Camille Chamoun, president of the republic, in his confrontation with the Muslims and Kamal Jumblatt, which transformed the neutral Jewish community to an active participant in the arena of Lebanese politics.

The Jews now felt that they had to defend themselves, as they were the target of attacks from the Arab nationalist. An example of such an attack would be the campaign, which Deputy Emille Boustani had launched against the Jews demanding that they should not serve in the Lebanese bureaucracy and the Army (p.85)

The fifth chapter, the beginning of the Exodus, covers the period that saw the emigration of the Lebanese Jews from Lebanon as it became apparent after the Arab defeat of 1967 that the Jews persecution in all of the Arab World.

Although the condition of the Lebanese Jews was much better than there fellow Jews in other Arab countries, the community started to diminish as they saw in emigration an opportunity to make more money in a less hostile environment.

The sixth chapter covers the Israeli invasion of the Lebanese capital, which was the straw that broke the camels back. The Jews who were victims of the civil war saw in the invading Israeli army, liberators who would repair their worsening circumstances.

The decision of the Israeli state to support the Rightist in the on-going civil war would proof devastating to not only the Jews but to the whole country, adding to the gap between the Lebanese communities.

Schulze ends her book by a sentimental journey through the history of the Lebanese Jews as she reflects on the Arab Israeli conflict and the past of a vanished community.

The book in general is a pioneering attempt to establish a primary sources manuscript on a subject that remains a mystery in Lebanese history only transmitted through oral history without any real documentation.

Schulze in this sense was successful in utilizing the archive material, which exists in the drawers of Jewish Lebanese family and the Central Zionist archives, the Israeli state archive, the Haganah archives, the Public records archives, the archive of the Alliance Israelite Universelle, etc.

This material, made available to Schulze alongside her proper utilizations of her findings, gives the reader a clear history of the Jewish community.

The tracking down of the descendents of prominent Jewish leaders of the Jewish Lebanese community and interviewing them on their life in Lebanon add to the documentation process this book follows.

Although this book is a good attempt, it is not without faults. The first mistake, which the author commits, is her assumption that the Jewish peculiarities are common to its readers, as she neglects explaining some of the Jewish custom or practices.

Schulze for example mention such terms as Hanuka, Purim, Minyan, are not properly explained to readers alien to Jewish customs. The second inaccuracy of Schulze book is her adoption of a rightist explanation of Lebanese politics as she reflects her understanding of Lebanese events on the history she writes for the Jews, and this is mainly due to the sources Schulze relies on in her research.

In general, Kristen Schulze book, the Jews of Lebanon is a good addition to the history on Lebanon, which has never been tackled until now.