The Jewish Diaspora

Flight from persecution

Iranian Jews after the Revolution

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1979–1990 CEPersia (Isfahan, Shiraz, Hamadan) → the Americas

Why it happened

The 1979 Islamic Revolution and fall of the Shah bred insecurity for Iran's Jews;1 the May 1979 execution of prominent community leader Habib Elghanian was widely seen as a trigger for the flight that followed.2

The migration

On the eve of the revolution about 80,000 Jews lived in Iran.3 Although Ayatollah Khomeini declared 'we recognize our Jews as separate from those godless, bloodsucking Zionists,'3 many still fled: tens of thousands, especially the wealthy, left, abandoning much property.3 During the Islamic regime's first decade about 60,000 Jews emigrated, roughly three-quarters of the community, leaving some 20,000.4 Of the emigrants, about 35,000 went to the United States, 20,000 to Israel, and 5,000 to Europe.4 Los Angeles became the largest hub—around 20,000 settled there, with 8,000 more in New York City and on Long Island.4 The exodus continued through the 1980s; today only about 8,000 Jews remain in Iran, a fraction of the pre-revolution community.4

Sources

  1. BSarshar, Houman. 2009. Judeo-Persian Communities of Iran i. Introduction. Encyclopaedia Iranica XV/1 89–90. link
  2. BBakhash, Shaul. 2000. Elqāniān, Ḥabib. Encyclopaedia Iranica link
  3. CJewish Virtual Library. 2024. Jews in Islamic Countries: Iran. Jewish Virtual Library (American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise) link
  4. CJewish Virtual Library. 2026. Jews in Islamic Countries: Iran. Jewish Virtual Library (American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise) link