Encyclopedia of Islam

Judaism and Islam

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oped a special relationship with Ottoman Jewish 

communities. Former dhimmis became agents 

who worked for the European colonial govern-

ments, which exacerbated interreligious tensions 

among Muslims and non-Muslims.

Strong nationalist currents in Europe coupled 

with growing anti-Semitic propaganda gave rise 

to the Zionist movement among European Jews 

in the late 19th century. The chief objective of the 

Zionists was to establish a homeland for Jews in 

Palestine, which had been part of the Ottoman 

Empire, but became a British mandate territory 

after World War I. The Zionist cause won limited 

British support and finally succeeded in creat-

ing a modern Jewish nation-state in 1948 in the 

aftermath of the first Arab-Israeli war. Israel was 

founded primarily by European Jews, many of 

whom had survived the horrors of the Holocaust, 

but, once created, it encouraged immigration of 

Jews from North Africa, the Arab Middle East, 

and i

ran

. At the same time, nationalist currents in 

these regions victimized the Jews, or made them 

feel unsafe in the countries where they had lived 

for centuries. Muslims appropriated many of the 

anti-Semitic stereotypes that had circulated in 

Europe and used them to legitimate their harsh 

treatment of Jews. As a result, the Jewish popula-

tions of countries such as m

orocco

, Egypt, s

yria

,

Iraq, Yemen, and Iran seriously dwindled. Small 

Jewish populations continue to exist in parts of 

North Africa, l

ebanon

, Syria, and Iran, but most 

Middle Eastern Jews have emigrated to Israel, 

Europe, or the Americas.

Today, Israel has achieved peace agreements 

with Egypt and Jordan, and it has friendly rela-

tions with t

Urkey

. Conflict continues, however, 

between Israelis and Palestinians, with radical 

Islamic groups becoming more influential in the 

last 20 years. Israel is also at war with Shii militias 

in Lebanon, especially h

izbUllah

. Despite these 

conflicts and the heated polemics exchanged 

between Israel’s supporters and enemies, far-

sighted Jews and Muslims are exploring new 

opportunities for 

dialogUe

 in North America and 

in Israel-Palestine. Such dialogue involves redis-

covering the Judeo-Muslim symbiosis of former 

times as but one element in the articulation of a 

more peaceful convivencia in the 21st century.

See also  a

rab

-i

sraeli

 

conFlicts

;  c

hristianity

and

 i

slam

; 

conversion

; o

ttoman

 

dynasty

; 

proph

-

ets

 

and

 

prophecy

; s

ephardic

 J

eWs

.