The history of the Jews in Sudan goes back to when a small but vibrant community of Jews lived in Sudan from about 1885 to around 1970, with most of the community leaving for Israel or Europe after anti-Semitic attacks began to spread against both the Jews in Israel and those still living in Sudan.
Due to other Jewish presence near Sudan, such as in Elephantine, Abyssinia, and Yemen, there is a possibility that there were Jews in the region earlier than the fifteenth century. However, David Reubini, is thought to be the first Jewish traveler to the region.
Beginnings of the community
There was a small Jewish presence of eight families in 1885 living in Omdurman in Sudan, under Turkish and Egyptian rule. The origins of these families and how they settled in Sudan is largely unknown. They were free to practice Judaism until the rebel leader Muhamed Ahmed Ibn Abdulla El-Mahdi seized control of Sudan from its Ottoman-Egyptian rulers in 1885 and the community was forcibly converted to Islam. In September 1898, General Kitchener and 20,000 Anglo-Egyptian troops including a young Winston Churchill entered Omdurman and regained control of the Sudan. The country became an Anglo-Egyptian condominium and with this new political status it began to economically flourish. The railway line built by the British from Cairo to Khartoum became particularly important for opening up a previously long and difficult route for traders, including many Jews.
The main community
After Anglo-Egyptian rule had been established, six of the formerly Jewish families chose to revert to Judaism. They were quickly joined by many more Jewish families who saw the economic opportunities of the developing country. Beginning in approximately 1900, Jews from all over the Middle East and North Africa began to arrive in Sudan via Cairo and settle along the Nile in the four towns of Khartoum, Khartoum North, Omdurman and Wad-Medani. Predominantly small-time merchants of textiles, silks and gum, their businesses soon began to flourish. The Jewish community of Khartoum was first officially organized in 1918. By 1926 the small synagogue they had quickly erected had been replaced by a brand new, self-funded building and several of its members owned large, successful business. Despite the fact that the Jewish community as a whole was split between Khartoum, Khartoum North and Omdurman, it was incredibly tight-knit. A single mohel and shochet served the entire community and at the centre of the social scene was the bustling Jewish Social Club. At its peak, between 1930 and 1950 the Jewish community in Sudan numbered between 800 and 1000 people.
Decline
In 1956, Sudan gained independence and hostility towards the Jewish community began to grow. From 1957 many members of the community began to leave Sudan for Israel, America and other European countries - primarily Britain and Switzerland. In 1967 after the Six Day War, anti-Semitic attacks began to appear in Sudanese newspapers, advocating the murder and torture of prominent Jewish Community leaders. By 1970 almost all of the Jewish community had left Sudan.
The desecration of Jewish cemetery
In 1975 an air-transfer of some of the human remains from the Jewish Cemetery in Khartoum was organized by several prominent members of the community and reburial was arranged in Jerusalem after reports of desecration and vandalism occurring there. The bodies were moved and reburied at the Givaat Shaoul Cemetery in Jerusalem. As of 2005 there were at least 15 Jewish graves left in the Jewish Cemetery at Khartoum. However, in recent years even these have been desecrated and the site was used as a dumping ground for used car parts. In the last year efforts have been made to preserve and clean up the cemetery. The Synagogue was sold and demolished in 1986 and a bank now occupies the site.
