Iranian American Jews

Email | Print | Text - Text +

October 16, 2008 | 6:15 am

Podcast: Why do 20,000 Jews still live in Iran?

Photo
Iranian Jewish activist Frank Nikbakht

With tensions growing between Iran and Israel this past year over Iran’s efforts to acquire nuclear weapons, many Jewish communities worldwide—especially Iranian Jews living in the U.S. have been worried about what will happen to the nearly 20,000 Jews still living in Iran should a military conflict arise between the two countries. There are perhaps less than a handful of Iranian Jewish experts in the U.S. and Europe who closely follow and research the actions of Iran’s radical Islamic government towards Jews and other religious minorities in Iran. One such Iranian Jewish activist is Frank Nikbakht, who I have frequently interviewed about the status of Jews living in Iran today and the anti-Semitic nature of Iran’s current regime. His documented research and expertise as director of the Committee for Religious Minorities in Iran, has been used by U.S. government officials in the State Department and by other prominent community leaders to shed light on the Iranian regime’s behavior towards Jews, Christians, Bahais still living in that country.

Our blog’s podcast recently caught up with Nikbakht to find out why on earth nearly 20,000 Jews still continue to live in Iran despite that regime’s hostility toward Israel and at times towards those individuals who do not follow the radical Shiite Islam prevalent in Iran.

We invite you to listen to our exclusive and eye opening podcast interview with Nikbakht that can be heard: here

It simply boggles the mind why any Jew would want to remain in Iran, especially today amidst growing tensions between Iran and Israel over Iran’s race to acquire nuclear weapons. Why on earth would any Jew continue living in a country whose leaders like Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei are pursuing nuclear weapons and constantly call for the destruction of the Jewish people living in Israel?! Honestly I can appreciate the fact that Jews have lived in that land for nearly 2,500 years and share a common history dating with Iran dated back to Cyrus the Great. However times have changed and unfortunately the Jews still living in Iran have still not woken up to the reality that they nor their children have any future in that country as long as the horrid current government remains in power there.

Posted by Karmel Melamed in Multimedia | 4 Comments — Leave your comment

Share this post: del.icio.us Favicondel.icio.us Digg FaviconDigg Facebook FaviconFacebook Google FaviconGoogle Reddit FaviconReddit StumbleUpon FaviconStumbleUpon Technorati FaviconTechnorati YahooMyWeb FaviconYahooMyWeb

COMMENTS

We welcome your feedback.

Privacy Policy

Your information will not be shared or sold without your consent. Get all the details.

I heard the podcast. So according to Mr Nikbakht Jewish Doctors do not want to emigrate because they would loose their ‘status’. Hum. So, Iranian Jews’ access to the best education that Iran can offer, and basking in high social status counts for nought.

‘Good Luck’ Mr Nikbakt trying to tear your country’s peoples apart. We are all in this together.

For a reality check on Iran, please see
http://www.bibijon.org/iranimage/

Comment by BiBiJon on 10/16/08 at 12:21 pm

There are some things in life more important than personal status or wealth. For example, preventing a genocide against the 6 million Jews in Israel is more important, I think.

Comment by anon on 10/16/08 at 6:48 pm

mr nikbakht is one of the poineers of the CIA trying to damage iranian image,keeps lieng day in and day out,he is saying by his own words jewish iranian doktors who get respect from community.what else do they need,iranian government totally doens’t discriminate,because iran is an country full of minorities.people like nikhbakht are jalous and he wishes not to see any jews living in iran,but people like him doesn’t see them selfs like iranians but more like israelis.if you thinck you are iranian dont say i am a jew but.the religion has nothing to do with your origin.unless you deside to make a split between a jew and a iranian,and that is mr nikhbakht.
i wish you goodluck also but why you dont wish goodluck to your(jewish) iranians.

Comment by hami on 10/17/08 at 4:31 am

Dear Mr. Nikbakht, Iranian Jews are Iranian first. As a non-Jewish Iranian, I have seen on so many occasions how Iranian Jews teach their children, here in US, how to read and write Farsi. They breath Iran, Think Iranian and that land is just as much theirs as it is other Iranians, irregardless of their religious belief. Please stop preaching this nonsense to the snake bitten audience here in US who are the are the only ones that buy into this nonsense. Long Live Iran!!!

Comment by Moji on 10/25/08 at 6:22 am

Post a Comment

Name:  
Email:  
URL:  

Type the word you see below:

Comment:

About this Blog

Blog Home
About the Blogger(s)
Contact

RSS


Blog Archive