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4d ago

Syria Registers First Jewish Organization, Paving Way for Synagogue Restorations

The move signals official backing for renewed restoration of synagogues plus recovery of communal property seized under the Assad eras.

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Henry Hamra, left, a Syrian-American Jew who is one of the founders of a new Jewish heritage initiative, and other Jews citizens pray at al-Firenj Synagogue in the old city of Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025.(AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)
Henry Hamra, centre, a Syrian-American Jew who is one of the founders of a new Jewish heritage initiative, prays at al-Firenj Synagogue in the old city of Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025.(AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)
Henry Hamra, a Syrian-American Jew who is one of the founders of a new Jewish heritage initiative, reads the Torah, the Jewish holy book, at al-Firenj Synagogue in the old city of Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025.(AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

Overview

  • The Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor licensed the Jewish Heritage in Syria Foundation, the first Jewish group ever registered to operate in the country.
  • Foundation leader Henry Hamra says early priorities include restoring Damascus’s Jobar synagogue and creating a registry of properties confiscated under Hafez and Bashar al-Assad.
  • Registration grants authority to establish an office, work formally with state and local bodies, coordinate property returns, and serve as the recognized protector of Jewish sites.
  • Syrian officials, including Social Affairs Minister Hind Kabawat, cast the decision as inclusive outreach to Jewish Syrians after delegations visited synagogues in Damascus and, per SOHR, a school and synagogue in Aleppo with two Israeli rabbis reported among visitors.
  • Diaspora engagement remains cautious, with safety concerns under the new authorities and a shrunken community inside Syria tempering prospects for large-scale return or rapid restoration.