fbpx
| Mesorah Quest |

Shifting Sands  

Ari & Ari sift through the ancient land of Oman for traces of eternal truth


Text and photos: Ari Z. Zivotofsky and Ari Greenspan

Before Pesach of 2022, we set out on a first ever, hands-on matzah baking trip to the once hostile, now welcoming Persian Gulf, in order to prepare matzos with members of the small communities of Kuwait, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Bahrain. Although for various reasons the planned bake with neighboring Oman’s small group of Jews didn’t happen in the end, we were glad we didn’t cancel our visit to the Sultanate of Oman at the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. We made arrangements to visit the supposed grave of the prophet Iyov in Jabal Dhofar outside the city of Salalah, we traversed a small section of the world’s largest sand dune desert, and we found what was an oasis of calm in a region that roils, and natural, striking beauty not found elsewhere on the globe.

Of course, if we were solely interested in natural beauty, we’d head for the Alps instead. But if we were already in the region, maybe we could find some hints to shed light on the Jews who lived here, beginning some 1,200 years ago.

Although there is no Jewish community in Oman today, we know that there were Jews in Oman as early as the 9th century. A merchant trader named Ishaq ibn Yahuda made his fortune dealing with and sailing to China. The 12th century Jewish traveler Benjamin of Tudela visited Oman and described a Jewish community in the ancient city of Muscat, today Oman’s capital. There is a Jewish cemetery in the town of Sohar from the 19th century, and in the 1830s, British Lieutenant James Wellsted, who wrote about his groundbreaking visit to Oman in his book, Travels in Arabia, made mention of a small Jewish community in Muscat populated primarily by Baghdad expats. Lieutenant Wellsted wrote that unlike in other Arab countries, there was no Jewish ghetto in Oman and Jews were not discriminated against at all. When the Allies arrived during World War II, they also encountered a small group of Yemenite Jews.

Oman is a most beautiful, sedate and relaxed country. Qaboos bin Said Al Said, the sultan of 50 years who passed away in 2020, was a beloved and appreciated ruler, thoughtful and benevolent, who brought the sultanate into the 21st century by improving education, health and quality of life for this breathtaking country. While Israel does not have official diplomatic relations with Oman, there have been under-the-table contacts for decades. In fact, in 2021, then-Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu made a surprise trip to the palace for geopolitical discussions the sultan.

What’s so special about Oman that it warranted a secret visit?  First of all, it sits on the strategic Straits of Hormuz, a mere 29 kilometers from Iran at its choke point, where 30 percent of the world’s liquified natural gas and 25 percent of the world’s oil pass through it on tankers. It’s the most strategic spot on all of the world’s oceans, and anything impeding naval traffic there would cause financial tsunamis worldwide — driving the price of oil sky high and by extension, everything else. But most importantly, Oman has been a quiet middleman between countries in the region, because of its accepted position an honest broker.

Oman is surrounded by two ocean borders — the Indian Ocean to the south and the Arabian Sea to the east, and three land borders — United Arab Emirates to the north and Saudi Arabia and Yemen to the west. As we’ve always been fascinated with Yemen and its Jews but unable to visit because of the extremist Muslim environment, we took the opportunity to soak in the very similar culture.

Excerpted from Mishpacha Magazine. To view full version, SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE or LOG IN.

Oops! We could not locate your form.