NEWS
Saving the Final Remnant of Yemenite Jewry
by Yisrael Rosner
The remnant of the Yemenite Jewish community is considering immigration as a whole to Abu Dhabi where it will reestablish its life as a Jewish kehilla according to its ancestral traditions of many generations past. This idea has developed from a peace agreement expected to be signed between Israel and the Emirates, as reported in the Al Arabi Algadid newspaper at the end of last week.
The plan calls for transferring the remaining 35 families numbering 100 members who have remained in Yemen, to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, as conveyed by the rabbonim of this remnant to the Arab communication headquarters in London.
Last month, the Egyptian press reported that the Huttites in Yemen have been persecuting the Jews in their region and urging them to leave Yemen altogether. The Yemenite Foreign Ministry has denied this Egyptian press release categorically but in an interview given to Yated Ne'eman, one of the leaders and rabbonim of the Yemenite community during this past decade who immigrated to the U.S. verified the report and even hinted at it in a extensive interview a month ago which was publicized in the "Olam HaYehudi" column.
According to Arabic reports, 40 Yemenite Jews have agreed to relocate to the Emirates, while the rest are being pressured to do likewise. They are being promised to be able to live according to their faith without problems, as was reported by the Al Arabi Algadid newspaper. The newspaper also stressed that the American government has succeeded in getting the Abu Dhabi government to organize the relocation options for the Yemenite Jews.
According to the report, despite the tension, the Emirates government has appealed to the Iranian government to exert pressure on the Huttites to allow for the transfer of the Jews with a de facto relinquishing of their properties in the country. "Relocation of the Jews to the Emirates territory shall take place under U.S. supervision together with a U.N. delegation in Yemen," the newspaper reported.
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