The first official Jewish Association has been created in Algeria, which was once home to an estimated 130,000 Jews but today has only a tiny Jewish community. The establishment of the association was done in accordance with a 2006 law which mandates that all non-Muslim religions should have representation from officially accredited associations. Mohamed Fellahi, minister for religious affairs, appointed the prominent lawyer Roger Saïd to act as the representative of the Jewish community in a religious and cultural capacity.
There are no official records on the number of Jews living in the north African country, which is predominantly Muslim, but speculations range anywhere from eight to under 1,000. While there are twenty-five registered synagogues in Algeria, there has been no official effort to compile data on their congregants.
Many Algerians see the creation of an official association as a part of several positive developments by the Algerian government over the last few years in regard to Jews. Those who left Algeria when significant tensions existed for Jews have noted that the situation has greatly improved. “When I traveled to Algeria, I went there freely, without any kind of constraint,” Bernard Haddad, Algerian native and founder of L’Association Mémoire Active Bônoise, told the online news service ‘Media Line’. “I was able to move around freely, without being questioned,” Haddad added.