Hidden story from the 2WW: The Paris Muslims who saved Jews from the Nazis

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In summary, during World War II, there were Muslims in Paris who worked with Jews to protect them from the Nazis. The imams of the mosque of Paris used the mosque as a hiding place and issued fake certificates of Muslim identity to those seeking refuge. It is estimated that 1,732 resistance fighters were saved in this way. This story of human solidarity is often overshadowed by the actions of the Mufti of Jerusalem, who had close ties with Hitler and instigated a pogrom that killed hundreds of Jews in Baghdad. However, there are also stories of Muslim rescuers during the Holocaust, and some have been honored by Yad Vashem.
  • #1
Majd100
I just found recently this story from the 2WW.

The Paris Muslims who saved Jews from the Nazis

http://www.sodahead.com/united-states/the-paris-muslims-who-saved-jews-from-the-nazis/question-2078841/ [Broken]


It is interesting to see how Muslims of France protected the Jews and work together against the NAZI. Unfortunately we hear a lot about the Mufti of Jerusalem and his contacts with Hitler, but rarely we hear about the imams of the mosque of Paris who saved hundreds of Jews from the Nazi and their ally.

In this difficult time, we should remember that we all are human and we can live in peace if we get rid from the selfish and arrogance.

“danger, Benghabrit used the mosque as a hiding place, issuing each person with a fake certificate of Muslim identity. One North African Jew named Albert Assouline who had escaped from a German prison camp, wrote of his experience hiding in the mosque, “No fewer than 1,732 resistance fighters found refuge in its underground caverns. These included Muslim escapees but also Christians and Jews. The latter were by far the most numerous.” Accounts differ on the number of those saved, yet it remains a shining story of human solidarity.”

 
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  • #2
Majd100 said:
I just found recently …

Yes, but this is not a "hidden" story …

it's quite well-known, for example the book "http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=...ntcover&dq=satloff+among+the+righteous&hl=en": lost stories from the Holocaust's long reach into Arab lands" by Robert Satloff is 263 pages of detail of such help …

and Yad Vashem itself honours Muslim rescuers, see http://www1.yadvashem.org/yv/en/righteous/stories/muslim_rescuers.asp"

(see also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_rescue_efforts_during_the_Holocaust" [Broken])
Unfortunately we hear a lot about the Mufti of Jerusalem and his contacts with Hitler …

Unfortunately, it wasn't merely contacts … the Mufti of Jerusalem, while in exile in Baghdad in 1941, instigated the Farhud ("violent dispossession"), a two-day pogrom which killed 800 Baghdadi Jews and injured thousands more.

(It's generally forgotten that Baghdadi Jews then numbered about 150,000, over a third of the Baghdadi poulation.)

See for example http://www.thejc.com/lifestyle/lifestyle-features/49485/when-iraq-had-its-kristallnacht"

In the Mufti (Husseini)'s http://www.mideastweb.org/Iraqaxiscoup.htm" [Broken]:
Husseini wrote in his memoirs:

Our fundamental condition for cooperating with Germany was a free hand to eradicate every last Jew from Palestine and the Arab world. I asked Hitler for an explicit undertaking to allow us to solve the Jewish problem in a manner befitting our national and racial aspirations and according to the scientific methods innovated by Germany in the handling of its Jews. The answer I got was: 'The Jews are yours.'​
 
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1. Who were the Paris Muslims who saved Jews during the 2WW?

The Paris Muslims who saved Jews during the 2WW were a group of North African Muslims who lived in Paris during the Nazi occupation. They risked their lives to save Jewish people from persecution and deportation to concentration camps.

2. How did the Paris Muslims save Jews during the 2WW?

The Paris Muslims used various methods to save Jews during the 2WW. They provided false documents, hid Jews in their homes, and helped them escape to neutral countries. Some even worked as double agents to gather information and warn Jewish families of impending raids.

3. Why did the Paris Muslims risk their lives to save Jews?

The Paris Muslims risked their lives to save Jews because they believed it was the right thing to do. Many of them were also familiar with discrimination and persecution themselves, having faced it in their own communities. They saw the suffering of the Jewish people and felt compelled to help in any way they could.

4. How many Jews were saved by the Paris Muslims during the 2WW?

It is estimated that the Paris Muslims saved around 1,500 Jews during the 2WW. This number may be higher as many cases were not documented or kept secret to protect those involved.

5. Why is the story of the Paris Muslims who saved Jews not well-known?

The story of the Paris Muslims who saved Jews is not well-known because it was largely overshadowed by other events of the 2WW, such as the Holocaust. Additionally, many of the Paris Muslims did not seek recognition for their actions and remained humble about their bravery and sacrifices. It was only in recent years that their story has been brought to light and recognized internationally.

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