Alec Nacamuli
From Exodus to Exodus: Jews from Egypt, Part 2
Summary
Most Egyptians will insist that no Jews ever lived in Egypt, but, in fact, the two people have cohabited continuously for thousands of years. Alec Nacamuli concentrates on Jewish life in Egypt during the first half of the 20th century and the Jew’s contribution to the country’s political, economical, and artistic development. Part 2 of 2.
Alec Nacamuli
Alec Nacamuli was born in Alexandria. He is now retired from an international career in IT. He chairs Sephardi Voices UK, an oral history project dedicated to capturing testimonies of Jews from the Middle East, North Africa, and Iran who have resettled in the UK. He is also a council member of the Nebi Daniel International Association, which strives to protect the Jewish heritage in Egypt, and a volunteer guide on Ancient Egypt at the British Museum.
Any Torahs? Well, this is the problem. There are, as I said, about 70. No more. About 170 in Alexandria and 14 in Cairo. At the moment, as I said, a lot of them fall under this law of antiquities and cannot be taken out legally. There have been some efforts but so far in vain.
The community peaked at about 85,000 at the end of World War II.
Well, first there are in Cairo, they do have services for the expatriate community. So there are some Jewish business people who are there, they’re staff from the Israeli Embassy, and they go to a small synagogue in the residential suburb of Cairo in Maadi. And for the high holidays, they will probably go to the main synagogue. At one point before the COVID, there would be volunteers who would travel from Israel or from France who would go back to Egypt to ensure there was a minyan for the high holidays. But with COVID, obviously this has unfortunately stopped.