Egypt to restore Alexandria’s historic synagogue

Authorities in Alexandria are preparing plans to restore the Egyptian city’s historic synagogue.

The 150-year-old Eliyahu Hanavi synagogue on Nabi Daniel Street is among the most important Jewish sites in Egypt and the only one in Alexandria, according to an article in the English edition of the Egyptian newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm.

Cairo University’s Center for Antiquities and Environment Studies is in charge of the project, along with the restoration of the other 10 Jewish historical sites scattered throughout Egypt.

The synagogue seats about 700 and houses 30 Torah scrolls brought there after the city’s other synagogues closed. Alexandria’s Jewish community once numbered 50,000 but is now estimated at below 50, according to The Associated Press.

A spokesman for the university told reporters the Jewish sites are considered “part of Egypt’s heritage.”