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The holocaust’s devastation extended far beyond the borders of Europe, reaching the Jewish communities of North Africa – Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya – with tragic consequences. While often overshadowed by the atrocities committed in Europe, the persecution and suffering endured by Jews in the Maghreb represent a crucial, and often overlooked, chapter of Holocaust history.
Before World War II, approximately 415,000 Jews flourished across North Africa, according to Yad Vashem, the world center for Holocaust commemoration, documentation, research, and education. This included nearly 200,000 in Morocco, 120,000 in Algeria, 85,000 in Tunisia, and 30,000 in Libya. These vibrant communities were subjected to escalating discrimination, violence, and ultimately, systematic persecution as the reach of the Nazi regime and its collaborators expanded.
The Vichy Regime’s Shadow Over North Africa
Historian Dan Michman emphasizes that “the Vichy regime in France and its extensions to North Africa are part of the history of the Holocaust.” The collaboration of Vichy france, which controlled much of North Africa, with Nazi Germany was instrumental in implementing anti-Jewish policies across the region.
Libya: Giado and the Brutality of Labor Camps
In Libya,the Italian colonial authorities,aligned with the Axis powers,established the Giado concentration camp in 1942.This camp became a site of horrific suffering, with prisoners subjected to starvation, disease, and brutal treatment. One survivor, josef Nahum, offers a harrowing firsthand account, including the tragic death of his daughter and his desperate attempt to bury her with his own hands. “I put his little body on the ground and started digging,” he wrote.
While not directly managed by the Nazis,Michman notes that Giado was ideologically “influenced” by them. Approximately 2,600 Jews were sent to Giado between May 1942 and its liberation by British troops in January 1943, with around 500 perishing from hunger, exhaustion, and disease. Furthermore, Jews with British citizenship in Benghazi were initially sent to Italian labor camps before being transferred to Bergen belsen in Germany after the German takeover of northern Italy in September 1943.
Tunisia: Pogroms, Looting, and the “Miracle of Djerba”
In Tunisia, a diverse jewish community faced escalating hostility culminating in the Gabes pogrom in which seven Jews were killed. Following the German invasion of Tunisia in 1942, the community came under direct Nazi occupation – a unique situation in the Maghreb. Around 5,000 Tunisian Jewish men were sent to labor camps, and approximately 20 political activists were deported to concentration and extermination camps in Europe.
looting was rampant, and on the island of Djerba, Nazi soldiers demanded 50 kilograms of gold within three hours, threatening to destroy Jewish neighborhoods if their demands weren’t met. The community managed to collect 43 kilograms before the Allied forces liberated Djerba the following day, an event now celebrated as the “Miracle of Djerba.”
Algeria: Resistance and Restrictions
Algerian Jews, who held French citizenship before the war, initially enjoyed full civil rights. However,under the control of Vichy France from 1940,these rights were revoked,and they were barred from studying and engaging in certain economic activities. Thousands were sent to labor camps, but many Algerian Jews also joined the underground resistance movement against the occupiers. A prior conflict between Muslims and the jewish community in Constantine in 1934 underscores the complex social dynamics of the region.
Morocco: A King’s Protection
Moroccan Jews, constituting the largest Jewish community in the Maghreb, also suffered under the discriminatory laws of the Vichy regime. Though, these laws had a limited impact, according to Yad Vashem, due to the existence of self-reliant Jewish education systems within the community. While marginalized in larger cities, Jewish communities in smaller towns experienced less enforcement of the anti-Jewish laws, as “local officials didn’t want problems with residents,” explains Michman.
Crucially, much credit for protecting Moroccan Jews is given to King Mohammed V, who actively worked to minimize discrimination. Jewish organizations continue to honour his role in safeguarding Jewish communities during the war.
The story of the Holocaust in North Africa serves as a stark reminder of the far-reaching consequences
