In 1949-50 Operation Magic Carpetbrought the majority of the Jews of Yemen to Israel through secret co-operation between the Imam of Yemen, the British colonial rulers of Aden, the Israeli Government, and the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC). In order to immigrate to Israel, Yemenite Jews sold or abandoned their property, took their sacred books with them, and set out on foot, trekking many difficult and treacherous kilometres to reach the southern border of Yemen and cross into Aden. When they arrived in Aden they were located in a transit camp, from which they were later flown to Israel. Operation Magic Carpetstrengthened the Zionist claim of a historic Jewish right to the Land of Israel. As a result a heroic myth developed, presenting the bravery and ingenuity of Israelis who set out to rescue their distant brethrenfrom lives of distress, degradation, and persecution in the context of the return of ancient Hebrewsto Zion and its concomitant realisation of the
eschatological visi
ISBN-13: 9781845196165
Media Type: Hardcover
Publisher: Liverpool University Press
Publication Date: 07-15-2014
Pages: 256
Product Dimensions: 9.08h x 6.28w x 0.80d
Esther Meir-Glitzenstein is Associate Professor at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. She is the author of: Zionism in an Arab Country: Iraqi Jews in the 20th Century (Routledge 2004) and From Baghdad to Ramat-Gan: Iraqi Jews in Israel (Yad Ben Zvi Publishers 2009, Hebrew).
