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Any Deal with Syria Should Include Compensation for Seized Jewish Property

(Israel Hayom) Ariel Bulshtein - As talks with Syria's new regime reportedly advance, it is crucial to include two key elements in any future peace agreement. A century ago, Syria's Jewish community numbered 50,000 people and was one of the world's oldest Jewish communities. Following World War II, Syrian Jews faced increasing persecution. Their assets were confiscated, and often Jews were forced to forfeit their property in exchange for permission to leave Syria or to save their lives. The value of Syrian Jewish assets in 1947 was $200 million - equivalent to $11 billion today. Justice demands restitution. A second component involves lands legally purchased by Jews in southern Syria during the early days of the Zionist movement. At the end of the 19th century, Jewish Europeans legally acquired large tracts of farmland and even entire villages in the Hauran region south of Damascus. These Jewish-owned lands were confiscated. One possible mechanism for redress could be to forfeit monetary compensation for the stolen property in return for annexing to Israel parts of the buffer zones in southern Syria already under IDF control. There is no reason to forgive the looting and persecution of Jews from Arab countries.
2025-07-08 00:00:00
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