Antisemitic legislation, suffering in forced labor and detention camps, and even fighting in underground organizations – these experiences were all shared by the Jews of North Africa during the Second World War.
The Jerusalem Post reached out to Haim Saadoun, a renowned historian and the director of the Documentation Center of North African Jewry During World War II at the Yad Ben Zvi Institute in Jerusalem, to shed light on this often-overlooked aspect of the Holocaust.
“Most of North Africa was under colonial rule during World War II, with some countries even experiencing direct control at some point,” Saadoun began, referring to France’s control over Morocco, Tunisia, and Algeria and Italy’s control in Libya.
“Hitler aimed to destabilize France – a key colonial power in the region – and Britain through their colonies, protectorates, and areas of influence. He did this to weaken them and divert their attention from the war in Europe,” he said.
“By fostering pro-Nazi elements within these colonized regions, Hitler hoped to create internal strife and weaken his adversaries,” Saadoun continued. “It’s important to view the situation in North Africa not just through a European lens but also through colonial ones.
Antisemitic legislation
“In this context, the pro-Nazi incitement in these countries directly influenced Jewish-Muslim relations and further destabilized the situation.”
Countries in North Africa were far from being monolithic entities; each country had its unique experience, shaped by its colonial history, whether by French or Italian influences.
“The common denominator among these countries was anti-Jewish legislation,” Saadoun said. “The Vichy regime in France, for instance, enacted antisemitic laws that were also imposed on its North African colonies.”
ALSO, AS part of its surrender agreement, France had to pay Germany vast amounts of money. “The colonies in North Africa were a labor force that generated income for France. For this reason, the forced labor camps needed to work properly,” Saadoun continued.
“A committee comprised of dozens of German and Italian military officers” was then established. “It toured various camps throughout North Africa to oversee the work and ensure that no anti-German riots were planned.
“In this context, the Jewish cause was always in the background, but it was not France’s immediate interest in the colonies,” according to Saadoun.
“There is a significant historiographical debate about the nature of Vichy’s antisemitism. Was it merely a result of German pressure, or was it rooted deeper in French society? I believe the second option is closer to the truth. As I see it, Germans did not need to exert much pressure, as the Vichy regime was more than willing to implement anti-Jewish policies,” he said.
These policies, per Saadoun, had a profound impact on the lives of North African Jews.
“The first step was to marginalize Jews from French society,” he stipulated. “The law concerning the status of the Jews, for example, revoked the French citizenship of Jewish citizens, effectively excluding them from the French sphere.”
Saadoun added, “This had significant consequences. To illustrate, many Jews had served in the French army and were now stripped of their rights and even deported back to North Africa.”
“The second phase involved the expulsion of Jewish students from the French education system. This had a devastating impact on the social and economic integration of Jews.
“While the Alliance Israélite Universelle provided an alternative educational system in Morocco, this was not the case in Algeria, where educational opportunities for Jewish students were severely limited,” Saadoun said.
“The third phase involved excluding Jewish professionals from their workplaces. Case in point, Jewish doctors were barred from working in French hospitals. This had a direct impact on public health, as the Jewish medical community played a crucial role in providing healthcare to the French settler population. For this reason, some local officials avoided implementing that law.”
Economic discrimination against Jews was not limited to their jobs. “In Algeria, the process of nationalizing Jewish-owned businesses was particularly severe. Owners were forced to sell their assets, often at a significant loss, through a highly formalized process, involving lawyers and accountants meticulously documenting every detail and every shard of ownership,” Saadoun said.
Under Italian rule, Libya implemented similar antisemitic measures based on Italy’s racial laws.“The Italian racial manifesto, similar to the Nuremberg Laws, was implemented in Libya,” Saadoun said. “It outlined the superiority of the Italian race and restricted the rights of Jews in various domains, mirroring the Vichy regime’s legislation.”
In this context, the Giado concentration camp in Libya should be mentioned. Over 560 Jews died of hunger and poor sanitary conditions there.
GERMANY ALSO occupied Tunisia for a short period in 1942. “It brought with it the full force of Nazi antisemitic ideology. While there were no extermination camps in North Africa per se, thousands of Jews were rounded up and forced into labor and detention camps.
“The Germans planned to use these Jews as forced labor,” Saadoun said. “Ideologically, they always wanted to implement the Final Solution in Tunisia as well, but the military situation of the forces present in the region prevented them from effectively carrying out those plans.”
“The Nazis placed Walter Rauff, the man who came up with the idea of exterminating Jews using mobile gas chambers via trucks, as their commander in Tunisia,” Saadoun continued. “However, the German forces were not equipped to dissolve the Jewish community, as they lacked the necessary logistical support.”
Despite the dangers they faced, North African Jews also played a role in the resistance against the Axis powers.
According to Saadoun, some joined the French Resistance, and some even formed their own underground networks.
“In Algeria, a significant number of Jews who had been dismissed from the French Army due to the citizenship laws joined the resistance. They formed an underground network that assisted the American forces during the Allied invasion of North Africa in Operation Torch.”
“In Tunisia, there was also a resistance movement known as the Monier Résistance, led by a French lawyer named Charles Monier. This network gathered intelligence on Mediterranean German and Italian naval activities, contributing significantly to the Allied war effort.
“Alfredo Rossi, a Jewish lawyer and the commander of the Betar youth movement in Tunisia, played a crucial role in this resistance network,” Saadoun added. “He transported vital intelligence to Sicily, but unfortunately, he was killed in action along with his commanding officer.”
Commemoration and research
When asked about the commemoration of the Holocaust of North African Jews, a topic usually untold, Saadoun expressed careful optimism.
“Twenty years ago, the Yad Ben Zvi Institute in Jerusalem established a documentation center about North African Jews during World War II,” he elaborated. “We travel around the world to archives and collect new material, as most of the material has only been made available in the last ten or fifteen years.”
“There are still thousands of documents that the public is not yet familiar with and does not know about, and they’re all valuable for Holocaust research,” he said.
“We work with Yad Vashem to collect interviews and testimonies from the last remaining Jews who went through these ordeals,” Saadoun continued. “Three universities in Israel offer courses on this topic, and more and more publications about this subject are seeing light. There are conferences in Germany, France, and the US. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington also organizes workshops on this subject.”
Saadoun added that Yad Vashem’s permanent exhibition also features information regarding the North African Jews during the Holocaust and that its Valley of the Communities monument, in particular, shares the names of the communities from North Africa.
“The Education Ministry brought history teachers to hear stories and see how to teach this topic in schools.
“A lot has been done, but as far as I am concerned, nothing will ever be enough. The state and research institutions need to engage more, but this trend gives hope that this will continue. There is much to be done in the field thanks to the discovery of many materials,” Saadoun said.