El Ghriba, Africa's Oldest Synagogue, Welcomes Jewish Pilgrims Back To Tunisia

[pampango]

A woman holding flowers walks past Tunisian special forces standing guard outside the Ghriba synagogue on the Mediterranean resort island of Djerba on April 26, 2013. Pilgrims arrived at Tunisia's Ghriba synagogue, the oldest in Africa, expressing hope that this year would mark a turning point for the ritual despite a rise in Islamist unrest since the 2011 revolution.

Africa's oldest synagogue is playing host to that rarity in the Arab world - a religious gathering of hundreds of Jews drawn from Europe and Israel.

In 2011, after the uprising that toppled former president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, the annual celebration was canceled and in 2012 only a few dozen Jews attended out of fear of possible
attacks by hardline Islamists.

"Jews in the world will see the government's efforts to make the celebration safe and will return in their thousands over the next few years and will not pay attention to any threat," he added.

"We are here to send a message of peace and tolerance embracing everyone," said a Tunisian woman named Zahayra Lakhel, putting on a Jewish head scarf before she entered the synagogue. "We also want to change the image of Muslims who have been associated with violence and terror. The Jews have been our friends for years and we are here to remember old and beautiful memories away from religious and political tensions."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/28/el-ghriba-africas-oldest-_n_3173865.html?utm_hp_ref=religion

Hopefully this is a sign of better times ahead for Tunisia.