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Syrian Government Grants License to Organization for Restoring Jewish Property

SSM-Editor December 13, 2025 Ahmad al-Sharaa (Abu Mohammad al-Julani), Israeli Occupation, News From Syria Comments Off on Syrian Government Grants License to Organization for Restoring Jewish Property 264 Views

News from The Syrian Observer, src: al-Modon, December 11, 2025

The Syrian government has officially recognized an organization dedicated to preserving Jewish heritage in Syria and reclaiming properties confiscated during the rule of ousted president Bashar al-Assad.

Revival of Jewish Presence

The Syrian government grants a license to an organization to recover Jewish properties in cities.

According to Agence France-Presse, the Jewish community—whose presence in Syria predates the Common Era—has been seeking to revive its role since the new authorities assumed power in Damascus more than a year ago, with signs of increased openness toward the community.

Syria’s Minister of Social Affairs, Hind Qabwat, confirmed the inauguration of the Syrian Jewish Heritage Organization, noting it is the first body dedicated to the Jewish legacy to receive a licence from the new government. “This is a powerful message from the Syrian state that we do not discriminate between one faith and another,” she said. “Syria supports all its citizens, men and women alike, from every religion and sect, who wish to build our new nation.”

Jewish Delegations to Damascus

Henry Hamra, one of the organization’s founders and son of Joseph Hamra—the last rabbi to leave Syria—told the agency that the group will “catalogue Jewish properties, restore those confiscated during the previous regime, and safeguard sacred sites, maintaining and renovating them so they may be open to visitors from across the Jewish world.”

Hamra, who resides in the United States, accompanied his father to Syria in February as part of the first Jewish delegation to visit the country in decades. Since then, several delegations of Syrian Jews have traveled to Damascus, and President Ahmad al-Shar‘a met with a Jewish Syrian delegation in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

Historical Context

Agence France-Presse noted that the Arab-Israeli conflict cast a long shadow over Jewish communities across the region, often taking a toll on their religious and cultural identity, particularly following the 1967 war.

During the Assad era, Jews were permitted to practice their faith and generally maintained amicable relations with their neighbours. However, Hafez al-Assad restricted their movement within Syria and barred them from traveling abroad until 1992. Their numbers steadily declined, falling from nearly five thousand to just a handful.  (Jewish people in Syria were offered significant compensation to move to Israel or the United States during this period. Today, Alawites and Christians are having their land stolen by members Al-Jolani’s takfiri militia.  [editor])

Editor’s note: Here come the settlers!

Muaz Mustafa, executive director of the Syrian Emergency Organization, said: “We have already documented dozens of homes that were taken from Jewish families by Bashar al-Assad’s regime.”

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.

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