Baghdad – Iraq Strikes Deal With US for Return of Jewish Archives

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    Baghdad, Iraq – The United States has agreed to return millions of documents to Iraq, including Baghdad’s Jewish archives, that were seized by the US military after the 2003 invasion, a minister said on Thursday.

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    The documents, which fill 48,000 containers, are currently being held by the US State Department, the National Archives and the Hoover Institute, a think-tank.

    “We have reached an agreement with the United States, after negotiations with officials at the State Department and the Pentagon, over the return of the Jewish archives and millions of documents that were taken to America after the events of 2003,” Deputy Culture Minister Taher Hamud said.

    “The Jewish archives are important to us — like the rest of the documents, it is a part of our culture and sheds light on the lives of the Jewish community,” he told a news conference.

    Iraq was home to a large Jewish community in ancient times but its members left en masse after the creation of Israel and the first Arab-Israeli war in 1948.

    “Despite logistical, technical and political obstacles, we took the first step along the path to the return of the archives,” Hamud said.

    Iraqi National Archives director Saad Iskander told AFP in October that some 60 percent of the archives, amounting to tens of millions of documents, were missing or had been damaged or destroyed as a result of water leaks and a fire at a storage centre in the aftermath of the invasion.

    Iskander added at Thursday’s news conference that in addition to the Jewish archive many of the documents related to executed dictator Saddam Hussein and his banned Baath Party.

    “There is a special archive about the Baath Party that was moved to the United States,” he said.

    “The CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) and the Pentagon studied it to find a relationship between Saddam and Al-Qaeda, terrorism, weapons of mass destruction and human rights violations.”

    Mohsen Hassan Ali, the culture ministry’s associate museums director, said US forces had found damaged and water-logged documents in the basement of government buildings following the 2003 war.

    “Despite our refusal, the containers were sent to the United States,” Ali said.


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    12 Comments
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    Meshulem Zev
    Meshulem Zev
    13 years ago

    It would be nice if all the documents were scanned and photograph just to see if there is anything of value to us, which there probably is. Manuscripts are just the beginning. As the place of the galus bavel with an nonstop presence of Jews since then until recently, it must be absolutely amazing what must be in those containers.

    Der Emes
    Der Emes
    13 years ago

    They should give the Jewish Archives to a Jewish Institution but unfortunately it isn’t “politically correct”.

    The same goes with all the other Jewish archives around the world. It is amazing that with all the “reconciliation” that the Jews are asked to do, there are still millions of Jewish manuscripts in the hands of non-Jewish Institutions including the Vatican. They probably have some of the Keilim from the Bais Hamikdash hidden somewhere in the Vatican as well.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Where is our voice in all this, where is the jewish iraqi voice, what’s going on with them aren’t they the real owners of these seforim?

    NS
    NS
    13 years ago

    Funny how all the “jewish archives” around the world except for the USA, consist of booty stolen from the plundered Jewish communities…..

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    even England has some historical items.

    iraqi jew
    iraqi jew
    13 years ago

    the taown or yaudah in israel has a museum for iraqi jews, and all items should be given to them. NEVER send anything to the arabs.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    And when will the iraqis make a deal and return it to their jewish owners let’s not forget all this docs are stolen from jews as the arabs always have an interest in covering jewish history

    metsch
    metsch
    13 years ago

    Let the Arabs keep all the documents they have enough religious self respect not to ruin them, Baruch Hshem they are being returned.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Crooks the sons of crooks. Stolen and they want them returned? Could we have their stuff?

    Avi
    Avi
    13 years ago

    How come the leaders and he comunity aren’t protesting this horrific move? It should be sent to israel or put in a Jewish museum somwhere.