In Memory of artist Nissim Raphael Bouganim, A”H, born in Mogador, French Morocco, on 15 March 1939.
On 24 September, Gita Rabbani, Director of Bayt Dakira, accepted the painting “Slichot” from his ex-widow Hara Ann Bouganim, a symbolic return of a Jewish Souiri soul to Essaouira/Mogador.
Click here to dedicate a future issue in honor or memory of a loved one
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The Sephardi World Weekly is made possible by Daniel Yifrach, Rachel Sally, Professor Rifka Cook, Maria Gabriela Borrego Medina, Rachel Amar, Deborah Arellano, & ASF VP Gwen Zuares!
Don’t miss the latest Sephardi Ideas Monthly: “L’Moledet Shuvi Roni: Asher Mizrahi’s Biblical-Zionist Romance”
“The Last Jew of Yemen: The torture of Levi Marhabi”
By Thasanya Jayasumana, The Spectator Australia
Levi Marhabi
(Photo courtesy of Rabbi Yahia Youssef Moussa, Chief Rabbi of Yemen/American Sephardi Federation)
The battle cry of the Houthis is unambiguous: “Allah is Great, Death to America, Death to Israel, Curse the Jews, Victory to Islam.” These Iranian regime proxies are, clearly, antisemitic. In the words of Hussein Al-Houthi, one of the group’s founders, “‘Arab countries and all Islamic countries will not be safe from Jews except through their eradication and the elimination of their entity.’”
Levi Salem Musa Marhabi, one of Yemen’s last remaining Jews, has been tortured and held captive by the Houthis for over eight years. Why is Marhabi in their hands?
The American Sephardi Federation’s Executive Director Jason Guberman explains:
Under the Houthis, Jews faced intensified persecution and were ultimately expelled…Most of the last Jews in Yemen were expelled by the Houthis during Passover 2021, ironically to Egypt.
Marhabi, however, was detained by the Houthis earlier, in March, 2016, after a Yemenite Jewish family, the Daharis, left Yemen for Israel with an 800-year-old Torah scroll in hand. After a photograph of the Daharis and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu celebrating the scroll appeared in the press, the Jew-hating Houthis had a pretext:
‘The Houthis reacted very negatively when this picture came out…’ [the ASF], in collaboration with the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, is leading the campaign to raise public awareness about Marhabi’s condition. ‘The [Houthis] claimed that the Torah scroll was their property and were upset that the family had escaped. Consequently, they arrested Levi along with several Yemeni Muslims they accused of being involved in the operation. As far as we know, there is no evidence implicating Levi and the Yemeni Muslims in this.’
Given the Houthis’ deep antisemitism, why haven’t they killed Marhabi? Says Guberman:
We’ve always believed that their objective was to strike some kind of deal… to get something in return for Levi’s release. There have been various times, and I’ve been in touch with the US special envoy to Yemen, Timothy Lenderking about this.
Moving forward, Guberman counsels vigilance:
We… have to keep drawing attention to antisemitism. We have to be opposed to all forms of antisemitism, regardless of the source. The Houthis and Iran, with Holocaust denial and genocidal antisemitism, are the leading purveyors of these forms.
Join the campaign to #FreeLeviMarhabi & Stop Houthi Antisemitism
The Journey of a Hanukkah Piyyut from Iraq to Morocco and Israel:
Salah (1908-1986) and Daoud (1910-1976) al-Kuwaiti were an integral part of Baghdad’s artistic scene during the 1930s and 40s. The al-Kuwaiti brothers wrote music for King Faisal’s 1936 coronation ceremony and headed the Iraqi radio orchestra. Their songs, performed by leading Arab vocalists like Um-Kultum and Muhammad Abdel-Wahab, were popular throughout the Arab world.
Daoud Al-Kuwaiti’s grandson, Dudu Tassa, is a popular and critically celebrated Israeli musician who has been revisiting the music of his grandfather and grand-uncle. Tassa recently offered an electric interpretation of one of their hits, “Ya um al-ʻabayah”:
The original song reached the great Moroccan payytan, R’David Bouzaglo (1903-1975), in 1940s Casablanca, and he turned the tune into a Hanukkah anthem, Am Ne’emanai (“Nation of My Faithful Ones”), that weaves together Psalms and terms signifying the Hallel prayer and the blessing over the Hanukkah candles, Al haNissim, while lyrically praising the Maccabees.
Am Ne’emanai (“Nation of My Faithful Ones”)
When Bouzaglo moved to Israel in 1965, he breathed new life ìnto the luxuriantly rich world of Moroccan piyyutim. Already as a child, one of Israel’s leading contemporary payytanim, R’ Maimon “Meni” Cohen, was studying at the feet of Buzaglo’s students. Now comfortably at home in the master’s music, Cohen’s remarkable flow deeply swings in this pared-down, rhythmically propelled recording of Bouzaglo’s Hanukkah piyyut, Am Ne’emanai, with Cohen backed by a darbuka, cymbal and a mini-choir:
“Sephardic Torah from the Holy Land | Hanukkah, 1948”
By Rabbi Daniel Bouskila, The Jewish Journal
IDF Soldiers, including Nessim Bouskila (seated first from right), 1948
(Photo courtesy of Rabbi Daniel Bouskila/Jewish Journal)
Rabbi Daniel Bouskila, the International Director of the Sephardic Educational Center, shines a light on Hanukkah as “the holiday of light and heroism” by revisiting Hakham Rabbi Ben Zion Meir Hai Uziel’s Hanukkah address to Israeli soldiers in Dec., 1948. R’ Uziel offered the address in his role as the first Chief Sephardi Rabbi of the State of Israel.
Diametrically opposed to the view of today’s Chief Rabbinate, R’Uziel praised service in the Israel Defense Forces as a return to ancient virtue. With one eye on the ancient Maccabees and another on the soldiers of the modern IDF, R’Uziel celebrated the heady brew of the old and the new:
This year’s Hanukkah marks a double celebration. We have blended the memories of our past with the great vision of our modern-day independence...
Praised be you, our mighty soldiers and heroes, who armed yourselves with faith and heroism, and renewed the splendid acts of the ancient Maccabees.
The price paid for following the example of the Maccabees, however, was all too real:
Praised be our sacred fallen heroes who fell in this recent war of redemption. With their blood, they redeemed our land and our inheritance. May their memories forever be a blessing, and may their souls be bound up in the bond of eternal life, together with all of our nation’s righteous souls and heroes from past generations.
R’Uziel concluded his 1948 Hanukkah address by blessing the Jewish soldiers of 1948 with strength, courage and, God willing, victory:
To you, our heroic soldiers, I say hizku v’Imtzu – may you be blessed with strength and with courage. May we see the day when God will help rid us of all enemies. May our lives be illuminated by the bright flames of eternal redemption and peace.
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Exploring Sephardic Customs and Traditions
By Hakham R’Marc D. Angel, Ph.D
Over the centuries, Jewish communities throughout the world adopted customs that enhanced and deepened their religious observances. These customs, or minhagim, became powerful elements in the religious consciousness of the Jewish people. It is important to recognize that minhagim are manifestations of a religious worldview, a philosophy of life. They are not merely quaint or picturesque practices, but expressions of a community’s way of enhancing the religious experience. A valuable resource for Sephardim and Ashkenazim alike.
Hanukkah in Eight Nights: Bring the Past to Light
By Marian Scheuer Sofaer
Celebrate a family Hanukkah with dramatic readings about the feats of the Maccabees! In addition to the candle lighting blessings, Hanukkah songs, recipes, and sevivon game rules, this book incudes excerpts from ancient sources and vivid read-aloud stories by Moshe Pearlman for each night that will bring the riveting events of 164 B.C.E. to life. Good for school age children through adults.
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American Sephardi Federation, Centro Primo Levi, and Dan Wyman Books present:
Bookhouse Thursdays
Bookhouse is a small place about books on the sixth floor of a Chelsea library building.
Take the elevator and discover cozy rooms softly illuminated and infused with music, filled with books and carpets, a samovar from Izmir, porcelain tea cups made in the DDR, and all sorts of lovely obsolete items abandoned and found in the streets of New York.
Come and browse, study, have a conversation, sip a sweet chai, and watch a film. You can purchase books from Dan Wyman’s inventory, check out his rotating showcase, learn about CPL Editions (books we make here at
Bookhouse), and explore the Sephardic House bookstore.
Bookhouse brings together book lovers, makers, sellers, readers, writers, and different ways to think and understand books.
If you have a book story to tell, you are welcome to share it at Bookhouse.
Next on Thursday, 2 January 10:00- 5:00PM
Ask for Bookhouse at the door, we’ll meet you there and bring you up.
Reservations: rsvp@primolevicenter.org
or Call us at 917-606-8202
ASF-Center for Jewish History
15 W 16th Street, NYC
The Bookhouse, a project of The American Sephardi Federation (ASF), Centro Primo Levi (CPL) and Dan Wyman Books, is a small space for study, discussion, and creativity connected to Jewish book culture: from manuscripts to pulps, from Talmud to Yiddish Socialism, from Printers to Bookshops to Readers.
Dan Wyman Books will be exhibiting a rotating collection of approximately 300 rare and important books related to these topics, all of which will be available for browsing and purchase.
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Upcoming Events or Opportunities
Our friends at Qesher present:
Jewish Salonica, the Sephardi Metropolis
“As Sephardi Jews settled in the Ottoman Empire, Salonica (Thessaloniki, now Greece’s second-largest city)—grew into a vital center of Jewish life and culture, earning titles such as ‘Madre de Israel’ (‘Mother of Israel’) and the “Jerusalem of the Balkans.” For over 400 years, it was the largest Sephardi city in the world and the heart of Sephardi Jewry in Europe, offering refuge to persecuted Jews from across Europe and the Mediterranean.
This vibrant city became one of the great centers of the Diaspora, developing a unique cultural heritage that remains significant today. We will trace the history of this remarkable Jewish community from its origins to the present, exploring the rich traditions and distinctive qualities that made Salonica an indispensable chapter in the story of the Jewish people.”
Sunday, 29 December at 3:00PM EDT
Sign-up Now!
Tickets: $9-$18
About the speaker:
Joseph Michael Vardakis was born in Athens, Greece. He has a B.A in Psychology, an M.A in Psychobiology and is currently completing his M.Sc in Clinical Psychology. He has lived and studied in the UK, South Africa and Israel and is currently residing in Athens. He has been a student counsellor for the Ministry of Absorption for new immigrants to Israel and has also worked in an educational framework for the Jewish community in South Africa before his studies. On his spare time, he offers themed tours in Athens, including sites of Jewish interest.
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Our friends at Qesher present:
Kavkazi “Mountain Jews”: Ancient Hebrew and Persian roots at the border of Azerbaijan and Russia
This talk will feature an overview of Kavkazi Jewish origins, history, and the efforts of the diaspora to preserve their heritage today.
Sunday, 12 January at 3:00PM EDT
Sign-up Now!
Tickets: $9-$18
About the talk:
“The Jewish community of the Caucasus, the mountainous region between the Black and Caspian Seas, is known by many names. The term ‘Kavkazi,’ derived from the Russian word for Caucasus, and ‘Mountain Jews’ have been used interchangeably. Traditionally, however, this community has called themselves ‘Juhuro,’ meaning ‘Jews’ in their ancestral language Juhuri, a Judeo-Persian dialect.
Kavkazi Jews primarily lived in Azerbaijan and the Russian Republics of the North Caucasus—Dagestan, Chechnya, Kabardino-Balkaria, and Karachay-Cherkessia. Their history dates back to the Babylonian Exile of the Jews in 586 BCE and their subsequent integration into the Persian Empire after its conquest of Babylonia. Over time, some Jewish communities migrated north into the Caucasus mountains, where they established settlements.
These communities remained under Persian cultural and political influence until the early 19th century, when the Treaty of Gulistan (1813) and Treaty of Turkmenchay (1828) transferred control of the Caucasus to Tsarist Russia. Later, the region was fully incorporated into the Soviet Union following the Bolshevik Revolution and the Russian Civil War.”
About the speaker:
Valeriya Nakshun is a Kavkazi Jewish culture writer, community organizer, and marketer based between Baltimore and Washington, DC. Born in the Republic of Dagestan, a constituent republic of Russia, she immigrated with her family to the United States as a refugee in the late 1990s. She serves as a Community Outreach Fellow at Sephardic Heritage International DC (SHIN-DC), an organization dedicated to preserving and promoting Sephardic and broader Jewish heritage.
She previously performed as a company dancer with the Silk Road Dance Company (SRDC), where she specialized in traditional dances from Silk Road cultures. As part of her work with SRDC, she has performed at the Embassies of Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Tajikistan, as well as at the Japanese Ambassador's Residence.
Valeriya also founded the ‘Kavkazi Jewish History and Culture’ Facebook group, which aims to explore and share resources about Kavkazi-Mountain Jewish heritage while fostering connections across the diaspora. She graduated from the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) with a Bachelor of Arts in Media and Communication Studies and Art History.
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The Museum of the Bible presents:
The Afghan Liturgical Quire Speaker Series - Jewish History in Afghanistan
Join us to learn more about Afghanistan's ancient Jewish community and its heritage and customs. Nestled on the Silk Roads, the Jews of Afghanistan lived in this mountainous land for as many as 2,700 years. Throughout its history, this small community's livelihood was based on long-distance trade. Unusual domestic patterns developed to allow for long periods of time when men were away and women maintained households on their own. Influenced by the many peoples who surrounded them, Afghan Jews preserved their own distinct traditions and way of life.
This discussion will be led by ASF Board Member Osnat Gad, an Afghan Jewish community leader who has worked to preserve Jewish holy sites in Kabul and Herat, Dr. Sara Koplik, author of A Political and Economic History of the Jews of Afghanistan, and Jason Guberman, Executive Director of the American Sephardi Federation.
Sunday, 12 January at 3:30PM
Sign-up in-person!
Tickets: $24.99-$29.99
Sign-up on Zoom!
Tickets: $4.99-$9.99
These lectures will be held at the museum and on Zoom. Tickets for the event include general admission to the museum for those who want to see the Afghan Liturgical Quire on exhibit.