The Jewish Quarter of Damascus

Harat al-Yahud is the south-eastern quarter of Old Damascus. It lies south of Straight Street and is bounded on the west by al-Amin Street. Until 1948 most of its residents were Jewish, and the community’s last large emigration began in 1992. Newer maps call the quarter al-Amin. There is no single monument to find here. What you see is the fabric: a row of Farhi family mansions, three synagogues, and houses that show plain doors to the street and turn their courtyards inward. The Elfrange and Menarsha synagogues each have their own page on this site.

Where the quarter begins

The Roman arch halfway along Straight Street is taken as the line that divides the Old City: the Muslim quarter to the west, the Christian and Jewish quarters to the east. East of the arch, the Christian quarter lies mostly north of the street and the Jewish quarter south of it. The exception is the southern strip between Zaytoun Lane and Bab Sharqi, which holds three cathedrals and their buildings and counts as Christian. About 80 metres west of the arch, al-Amin Street branches off to the south and marks the quarter’s western edge. It used to be called Jews’ Street; the other side of it is al-Shaghour.

The name al-Amin comes from this street. According to the head of the Jewish community, Albert Qamoo, the street was in turn named after a Shia scholar who moved into the quarter a few decades before the Jews left.

What to see

• Beit Dahdah. About 200 metres south of the Roman arch, on al-Shorfaa Lane near al-Amin Street. It was once Beit Murad Farhi; after the Farhi banking family, the Christian Dahdah family bought it.
• Tallat al-Hijara Street. Farhi family mansions line this east–west street, the largest being Beit Farhi-Muallim. Two Sephardic families also had houses here: Beit Liniado and Beit Lisbona. The Lisbona family came to Damascus from Lisbon after the Reconquista, the Christian reconquest of Spain. Beit Lisbona housed a Jewish school from the 1970s until 1992 and was then sold to the Christian Haddad family.
• The synagogues. Three are still standing. Elfrange still holds services and was repaired in 2019. Menarsha and al-Raqi are standing but unused.
• Qishla park. A small park on Straight Street, named after the Ottoman barracks that once stood on the site.

A short history

Jewish presence in Damascus goes back to Roman times. After the Crusaders took Jerusalem in 1099, a large wave of Jewish refugees reached the city. Sephardic Jews expelled from Spain joined them at the end of the 15th century, and the Elfrange Synagogue is believed to be their foundation. Under Ottoman rule the Karaite community died out; its synagogue was sold to the Greek Catholics, and the Zaytoun Church was built on the site in 1832-1834. In the Damascus Affair of 1840, the city’s Jews were accused of ritual murder and suffered violent attacks. By 1900 the quarter had eight synagogues, and the Jewish population of Damascus was estimated at around 11000.

After 1948, life in the quarter changed quickly. The Alliance Israélite Universelle school closed in 1948 and was handed over to UNRWA. Palestinian refugees were housed in the emptied homes. In August 1949 an attack on the Menarsha Synagogue killed 12 people. The Jewish cemetery south of the walls was later built over by the airport motorway. In 1992 about 4000 Jews still lived in Damascus; after that year’s Passover they were allowed to leave, and most did so within a few months. Before the war there was a plan to turn the quarter into an artists’ district; it stopped when the war began. The journalist and photographer Rania Kataf found 12 elderly Jews still living in the city in 2019 and 2020.

Getting there

Enter the Old City at Bab Sharqi and walk west along Straight Street to the Roman arch. The quarter starts south of the arch. Al-Shorfaa Lane is 200 metres south of it, and al-Amin Street branches south 80 metres west of it. The Elfrange and Menarsha synagogues are 90 metres apart.

How long it takes

An hour and a half. The quarter is small but cut up by dead ends, so coming out onto the same lane twice is normal. It fits easily into the same day as al-Shaghour or Bab Sharqi.

Do not miss

The two sides of al-Amin Street. The west side is al-Shaghour, the east side is Harat al-Yahud, and the street once called Jews’ Street draws the line between them. Walking it, you see the two neighbourhoods side by side.

Current state not verified

We found no dated source from the past twelve months showing the quarter as it is today, so we give no opening hours or entry fee. The lanes are part of the Old City. Whether the mansions and synagogues can be visited is not known. To go inside, ask residents or whoever is at the door.