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ISRAEL AT WAR - DAY 586

Afghani Jews

Zabolon Simantov kisses the mezuzah on his way out the front door of his home at the synagogue compound in Kabul, in an undated photo. (Ezzatullah Mehrdad/Times of Israel)
November 12, 2024, 6:59 pm
Afghanistan’s last Jew arrives in Israel three years after fleeing Taliban rule
Zebulon Simantov’s younger brother says he was surprised to hear his sibling had arrived, saw him over weekend for first time in 25 years
By ToI Staff
An Afghan worker reconstructs part of the Yu Aw synagogue in Herat, Afghanistan. (AFP/Getty via JTA)
October 28, 2022, 10:23 am
Taliban approves conservation work on historic Afghan synagogue, mikveh
Yu Aw synagogue in Herat, formerly home to tens of thousands of Jewish residents, set for $500,000 renovation despite last Jew abandoning city after Taliban takeover
By Jackie Hajdenberg
Tova Moradi, 83, an Afghan Jewish woman who fled Kabul this month with her relatives with the assistance of an Israeli aid group, speaks to the Associated Press at a resort which is accommodated Afghan refugees in Golem, 45 kilometers west of the capital Tirana in Albania on Oct. 27, 2021. (AP Photo/Franc Zhurda)
October 29, 2021, 6:31 pm
The last, last Jew? Simentov relative flees Afghanistan after Taliban takeover
Fearing for her safety, Tova Moradi, 83, escapes to Albania with family after getting help from IsraAid, office of President Herzog and two Israeli billionaires
By Ilan Ben Zion and LLAZAR SEMINI
Zebulon Simantov is seen at Istanbul Airport, October 17, 2021. (Screenshot: Twitter)
October 17, 2021, 1:54 pm
Last Jew out of Afghanistan set to land in Israel this week
Zebulon Simantov, who recently divorced his Israeli wife, is awaiting visa from Istanbul consulate to travel to the Jewish state; unclear if he plans to stay
By ToI Staff
Zebulon Simantov, Afghanistan's last Jew, seen after fleeing to a neighboring country (Screencapture/Kan)
September 8, 2021, 4:56 am
Footage shows Afghanistan’s last Jew’s perilous escape from Kabul
Video follows Zebulon Simantov on 5-day journey across border as he’s rescued along with dozens of women and children; says he wants to go to New York
By ToI Staff and JTA
Zebulun Simantov is seen in a country neighboring Afghanistan, a number of hours after crossing the border, September 2021. (Screenshot/Kan)
September 7, 2021, 11:30 pm
Afghanistan’s last Jew finally leaves the country, reportedly headed to US
Zebulon Simantov crosses the border to a neighboring country with the help of an ultra-Orthodox Brooklyn fixer and an Israeli-American businessman, report says
By ToI Staff and JTA
Afghan refugees' luggage sits at the Torrejon de Ardoz air base in Madrid, Spain, on August 24, 2021. (Jesus Hellin/Europa Press via Getty Images)
August 29, 2021, 6:12 am
Last Afghanistan Jew’s would-be Jewish rescuers save Afghan women soccer team
An ultra-Orthodox Brooklyn fixer and an Israeli-American businessman rescue athletes, prosecutors and judges from Taliban rule after Zebulon Simantov refuses to leave
By Ron Kampeas
Zebulon Simantov reads a prayer book before celebrating Rosh Hashanah in Kabul, Afghanistan, September 18, 2009. (Paula Bronstein/Getty Images/File via JTA)
August 19, 2021, 4:06 am
Afghanistan’s last Jew still won’t leave the country (or divorce his wife)
Zebulun Simantov, 62, has refused for two decades to grant a religious divorce to his wife in Israel and could face legal repercussions if he flees to Jewish state
By Cnaan Liphshiz
Zebulon Simantov reads a prayer book before celebrating Rosh Hashanah in Kabul, Afghanistan, September 18, 2009. (Paula Bronstein/Getty Images/File via JTA)
April 4, 2021, 10:33 pm
Afghanistan’s last known Jew is leaving for Israel
Zabulon Simantov, who tends to country’s lone synagogue, fears US military’s promise to pull out will leave vacuum, likely to be filled by the Taliban
By Gabe Friedman
Illustrative: This fragment of Tractate Avoda Zara from the Mishnah represents the earliest evidence of a rabbinic text found in Persian-speaking lands to the east of the traditional rabbinic center in Babylonia. (National Library of Israel)
September 9, 2019, 6:23 pm
Russia exhibit to showcase medieval Jewish life in Afghanistan
Documents from the National Library of Israel’s Afghan Geniza collection shine spotlight on a forgotten period
By ToI Staff
An Afghan man in Kabul passes a mural near the site of a deadly bombing, upon which are scrawled slogans reading, 'Death to Israel.' (Ezzatullah Mehrdad/ Times of Israel)
July 16, 2019, 4:32 am
Kabul, with Jewish population of 1, still suffers from widespread anti-Semitism
In Afghanistan, which is dominated by Islamists and bereft of a Jewish community, researchers guess at origins of pervasive Jew hatred — from Iran to residual WWII Nazi propaganda
By Ezzatullah Mehrdad
Zabolon Simantov holding his Jewish prayer book. (Ezzatullah Mehrdad/ Times of Israel)
November 28, 2018, 9:56 pm
Afghanistan’s last Jew fights to keep his home — the country’s sole synagogue
Since 2005, Zabolon Simantov has lived alone in Kabul’s only synagogue. In this volatile region, he is the final guardian of a once-flourishing 1,500-year-old Jewish community
By Ezzatullah Mehrdad
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