Bombs in Baghdad, 1950-1951: Israeli Discourse and History

Abstract

The massive migration of Jews from Islamic countries, and in particular the fact that most of them came to Israel, led to the formation of various narratives that served the interests of the different groups involved. Particularly notable is the clash of narratives in the case of Iraqi Jews who were brought to Israel over a short period of time. In contrast to the Israeli-Zionist narrative, which explained the immigration as the result of both a national-religious yearning and persecution, Iraqi Jews presented a counter-narrative in which the State of Israel, through acts of terror, panic, and propaganda, pushed or even forced them to leave Iraq. The debate over these narratives also involves the story of two Iraqi Jews, Yosef Basri, and Shalom Salah, who were executed in Iraq for allegedly planting bombs during that period. The article examines these narratives through their story, while attempting to compare the narratives to the findings of historical research and thus shed light on the place of historical events in current political and ideological struggles.