A ceremony has been held in Fez, at which Moroccan and international leaders marked the completion of restoration works of the city’s historic synagogue. The event was attended by a number of dignitaries, including the Islamist prime minister of the North African country, Abdelilah Benkirane, who read out a speech on behalf of King Mohammed VI, and the speaker of the German parliament, Norbert Lammert. The head of the Moroccan Jewish community, Serge Berdugo, said that the ceremony brought “a message of peace and tolerance.”
The Slat Al Fassiyine (Prayer of the Fesians) Synagogue was built in the 17th century and is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Its two-year restoration was part-financed by Germany.
At the ceremony, Benkirane conveyed King Mohammed’s praise for the historic influence of Jews in Moroccan culture and his commitment to protect freedom of worship for Moroccan Jews. “As is enshrined in the Kingdom’s new Constitution, the Hebrew heritage is indeed one of the time-honored components of our national identity,” the monarch's message reportedly state. Mohammad VI also expressed a wish that all the country’s synagogues be refurbished and serve as centers for cultural dialogue.
From its peak of over 250,000 during the late 1940s, the Jewish community of Morocco has shrunk to less than 5,000 today. Most Jews left the country during the 1950s and 1960s following the establishment of the State of Israel, while the remaining community members are mostly concentrated in Casablanca.
