thursday, january 28, 2021 at 11:06 pm
Washington – The unique history of Morocco with its Jewish community was highlighted Thursday at a conference in Washington, marked by the participation of several American and foreign personalities.
On the occasion of this virtual event organized by the American Congress and the Shephardic Heritage International DC (SHIN) association, on the sidelines of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, HM the King’s Ambassador to the United States, Lalla Joumala Alaoui, recalled the role of the Kingdom in the protection of the Jewish community throughout its history as well as the importance of the Hebrew tributary in the Moroccan identity.
“Morocco has a unique history with the Jewish people,” she asserted, noting that “consecutive waves of Jewish refugees have taken refuge in Morocco for two millennia after the destruction of Solomon’s temple during the fall of Israel. ‘Andalusia in 1492 or during the Second World War ”.
“They have formed a dynamic Jewish community that has become an integral part of the society and culture of the Kingdom, as our Constitution underlines, which enshrines the importance of the Hebrew tributary in the identity of Morocco”, noted the ambassador. during this conference marked by the participation of the Special Envoy of the State Department for Holocaust issues, Cherrie Daniels.
Lalla Joumala Alaoui thus recalled the action of the late HM Mohammed V, who had protected 250,000 Moroccan Jews by refusing to comply with the “racial laws” of the pro-Nazi Vichy regime, when Morocco was under French protectorate.
“The lives and property of Moroccan Jews were thus kept under his protection and this daring action prompted many people to seek refuge in Morocco during the remainder of the war,” she said.
The Ambassador stressed that the stories of the victims and survivors of the Holocaust “must be amplified and transmitted so that future generations never forget this sinister chapter in our history. Only education can allow us to prevent the mistakes of the past from happening again ”.
She indicated, in this regard, that Morocco was the first Arab country to integrate Jewish history into its school curricula, alongside many other efforts led by His Majesty King Mohammed VI to promote, protect and rehabilitate heritage. Jewish. These efforts include the restoration of Jewish cemeteries and the rehabilitation of historic Jewish quarters.
“You can always count on Morocco to make its contribution to building a future of peaceful coexistence”, she concluded.
For her part, the State Department’s Special Envoy for Holocaust Questions, Cherrie Daniels, highlighted the role of the communities of Sephardic Jews in Tangier who “welcomed and assimilated the massive wave of Jewish refugees from Europe. of the East who sought refuge on its shores ”.
“There are many examples that it is important to remind those who are not well enough informed about what happened during WWII in this region of North Africa,” said Ms. Daniels. .
“I believe that the story of the Jewish refugees from Europe in North Africa and the Middle East during World War II can play an important role in breaking down the walls of Holocaust denial that still persist today,” he said. she argued.
This event, which also attended by several members of the diplomatic corps accredited to Washington, was marked by the testimonies of descendants of Holocaust survivors, including the CEO of Pfizer, Dr Albert Bourla, whose parents are survivors of the camps of ‘Auschwitz.
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