During her trip to Israel, the wonderful Sarah Idan, Miss Iraq 2017, visited the Babylonian Jewry Heritage Center and met with Iraqi Jews. By all accounts (and as you will see from some of the below photos), she was very moved (to the point of crying) by the museum exhibitions, especially a seal on which was written the words “not allowed to return to Iraq” – to which she responded “I am ashamed.”
As part of the visit, Prof. Efraim Sadka spoke about how Muslim and Christian neighbors protected and saved the Jews in Baghdad during the “Farhud” – the Pogrom of 1941. Sarah was surprised to see the photo of Renee Dangoor – Baghdad Beauty Queen of 1947.
Photo sources: Babylonian Jewry Heritage Museum, Tsionit Fattal Kuperwasser
While Sarah’s visit has enraged many Iraqis, she has won a whole legion of new fans among Jews and Israelis. And I can be counted as one of them.
Hat tip: Yoel
