Iraq and the Jewish People: Conclusion

Baghdad, courtesy of Aziz1005, Wikimedia Commons

The region once known as Mesopotamia hosted the oldest Diaspora community that existed. It is hard to say whether the existence of the community has ended entirely. If the success of the Jewish community was related to the openness of the rulers—the Sassanians, the Moslems, and, again, ironically, the Moslems of the Ottoman Empire—then there is the chance that, were Iraq to develop into an open Islamic state, like Turkey, the Jewish community could return—somewhat like the unlikely boom of the Jewish community in Germany. The conditions of the region—natural resources, agriculture, location—make it possible for Iraq to be a great empire. Great empires tend to attract Jews.

The community’s decline is directly related to the failures of the British and the Mandate. In fact, the British Mandate was a failure everywhere (as, one might argue, was the French Mandate in Syria and Lebanon); it seems clear that the region still suffers from the mistakes of the British Mandate and its lack of understanding regarding the correct ways to build a society.

While it is impossible to prophesy the future, it is important to note that Jewish communities which at times have appeared dead have bounced back. Iraq’s present governing council has not excluded the possibility of the return of Jews. And there may once again be movement between Iran and Iraq if Iran liberalizes, as the U.S. government seems to feel might happen.

It seems that the story of Iraq and the story of Israel have been eternally joined by circumstances which exist even today. These include military challenges and perhaps a common type of enemy. Just as the fates of the U.S. and Israel are eternally linked, it appears that the eventual fate of Iraq and the fate of the State of Israel are linked, because the establishment of a safe and reasonable government in Iraq would rid Israel of the threat of the whole Eastern Front. That Eastern Front causes the U.S., Israel, and Jordan to be in agreement that Israel must re-main in the Jordan Valley. And this fact means, in one fashion or another, that Israel is now—as a result of the fall of the Baathist regime in Iraq—much safer. So that is the final component of the age-old story of the interaction of Iraq and the Jewish people: that the fall of that regime in Iraq has made Israel a safer place.