Egypt’s Jewish Community Struggles to Retain Its Cultural Heritage

Prior to the establishment of Israel in 1948, Egypt boasted a vibrant and well integrated Jewish community. Since then, the community has struggled to distance itself from association with Zionism.

by Fatima Mohie-Eldin

Up until the 1950s, Egypt’s Jewish community was thriving, with as many as 100,000 residents. Today, only about eighteen Jews remain, most of them elderly women, struggling to maintain their community’s centuries-old heritage in a society that often no longer considers them full Egyptian citizens.

Magda Haroun, president of the Egypt…