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Israel’s Herzog meets Bahrain’s Jewish representatives
December 04, 2022
Bahrain's Jewish community is comprised mostly through immigration to the Gulf country in the early 1880s
Israel's President Isaac Herzog met with representatives from Bahrain's Jewish community on Sunday, during an Israeli head of state's first official visit to the Gulf country.
Herzog arrived in Bahrain earlier on Sunday, traveling at the invitation of King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.
Among the representatives was Ebrahim Nonoo, chairman of the Board of Trustees of the local synagogue, recognized by authorities as the representative of the Jewish community. Additionally, Israel's ambassador to Bahrain was there, along with Bahrain's representative to the World Jewish Congress, among others.
"I am very moved to be here," Herzog said. "This is really history in the making, coming and visiting the Jewish community in Bahrain when we have such incredible peace and wonderful relations with His Majesty the King."
"We all spent time together at lunch, and you can see the great affection and respect between the leadership and our nations... One thing that transpired in our discussion was the immense respect of the King and his family for the Jewish community of Bahrain."
Bahrain's Jewish community is comprised mostly through immigration to the Gulf country in the early 1880s, mainly from Iraq, Iran and Kuwait. Most of the community is elderly, as most young people leave.
At the start of the meeting, the Jewish community presented Herzog with three gifts of historical value: a Farhi prayerbook with an Arabic translation, a book detailing the history of the Bahraini Jewish community and a copy of the permit to establish the local synagogue in 1931.