Naim Dallal: Jewish Life in Baghdad and Exile from Iraq

Naim Dallal was born in Baghdad, Iraq, to a Jewish family with roots in both Iraq and Yemen. His parents were born in Baghdad, although his mother's family traced its ancestry to Yemen. His father was a prosperous merchant, while his mother was a homemaker.

Naim grew up in a traditional Jewish household that strictly observed Jewish religious practices, including the laws of kashrut. He recalls that Baghdad's Jewish community was deeply observant and that he did not know a single Jewish family that did not keep kosher.

His family lived in a predominantly Jewish neighborhood that was also home to Muslims, Armenians, Christians, and other communities. Naim fondly remembers the strong sense of solidarity and mutual responsibility among Baghdad's Jews. The community established its own orphanage and organized charitable efforts to support families in need.

Arabic was the family's everyday language, reflecting the deep cultural connections between Iraqi Jews and the broader society in which they lived. Naim's mother was also literate in Hebrew and familiar with Jewish religious texts.

Despite these positive memories of communal life, Naim describes relations between Jews and the Muslim majority as complicated and often difficult.

He recalls that antisemitic propaganda from Nazi Germany and political movements in the Arab world contributed to growing hostility toward Iraqi Jews. During periods of political instability, Jews were frequently scapegoated and subjected to discrimination, intimidation, and violence.

Naim remembers that Jewish merchants often needed Muslim business partners to navigate government bureaucracy. Jewish students encountered discrimination when applying to institutions of higher education, while Jewish employees were frequently among the first to lose their jobs.

He also recalls the devastating consequences of false accusations against Jews. According to Naim, Jewish individuals were sometimes arrested arbitrarily, denied meaningful legal protections, and subjected to severe punishments based on unfounded allegations.

One particularly painful memory involves a Jewish man who was publicly hanged after being accused of “helping the enemy” because he conducted business with British and Italian merchants.

These experiences contributed to a pervasive sense of insecurity within the Jewish community, even as families continued to maintain their religious traditions, businesses, and communal institutions.

The Farhud of June 1941 marked a profound turning point in the history of Iraqi Jewry. During the violent anti-Jewish pogrom in Baghdad, Jewish residents were attacked, murdered, and robbed, shattering the sense of security that many had previously experienced.

For Naim, the Farhud left an enduring emotional scar and helped set in motion the events that would eventually lead to the mass departure of Iraqi Jews.

He remembers that some Jews began fleeing Iraq through Iran, traveling via Tehran on their way to Israel. Others joined underground Zionist organizations and military movements that supported the establishment and defense of the Jewish state.

As the situation deteriorated, Iraqi Jews who sought to leave faced severe restrictions. Naim recalls that emigrants were required to sign declarations relinquishing their Iraqi citizenship, while government measures resulted in the freezing or confiscation of their assets.

These policies left many departing Jews stateless and stripped of the property and resources they had accumulated over generations.

Naim's family initially traveled to England before eventually immigrating to Israel. Having lost their citizenship and financial security, they received assistance from the Jewish Agency while in England.

In 1951, the family moved to Israel.

Naim recalls that his family had not originally intended to settle permanently in Israel. Rather, immigration offered a practical path toward obtaining citizenship and the legal travel documents they needed to rebuild their lives.

Unlike many newly arrived Iraqi Jews, Naim's family did not live in a ma'abara, or immigrant transit camp. They already had relatives established in Israel who were able to assist them with their resettlement.

Naim subsequently served in the Israel Defense Forces and lived in Haifa before eventually immigrating to the United States.

Throughout his life, Naim has maintained a strong connection to his Iraqi Jewish heritage. He identifies specifically as Mizrahi rather than Sephardi, a distinction that reflects his understanding of his family's history and cultural identity.

His testimony captures both the richness of Jewish communal life in Baghdad and the profound consequences of antisemitism, political persecution, denationalization, and displacement. It also reflects the experiences of Iraqi Jewish refugees who rebuilt their lives across several countries while maintaining a deep attachment to their ancestral heritage.