PARIS (EJP)—The rabbi of the Jewish community of Casablanca in Morocco was badly beaten over Israel’s operation against Hamas rocket fire in Gaza.
The attack took place last Friday as Rabbi Moshe Ohayon was walking to his synagogue.
A young local Muslim in his 20s asked the rabbi: “Are you Jewish? What’s the Tsahal (Israeli army) doing to our brothers?”.
Ohayan said he was punched to the ground and then pummelled until he lost consciousness. The assailant then continued to beat the rabbi, breaking his nose and causing serious injuries in his ribs. The rabbi said that he begged for help but the passers-by ignored his cries.
He lodged a complaint.
The attack took place hours before a demonstration held in Casablanca in solidarity with the Palestinians.
The Jewish community in Morocco condemned the incident and said that its members fear a rise in anti-Semitism as the IDF continues Operation Protective Edge.
“Since the recent incidents in Judea, Samaria and Gaza began, there is an increase in harassment of Jews. It has become really scary to live here,” a member of the Jewish community was quoted as having said.
Morocco’s Jewish community numbered almost 300,000 in the mid-1900s, or 10 percent of the North African country’s population.
But these numbers dropped dramatically in the decades after the 1948 founding of the State of Israel. Today aound 5,000 Jews still live in the country, mostly in Rabat and Casablanca.
The Jewish community in Morocco condemned the incident and said that its members fear a rise in anti-Semitism as the IDF continues Operation Protective Edge.
“Since the recent incidents in Judea, Samaria and Gaza began, there is an increase in harassment of Jews. It has become really scary to live here,” a member of the Jewish community was quoted as having said.
Following the attack, Casablanca Jews called on local authorities to increase security around synagogues and other Jewish institutions.