The Last Jews of Afghanistan celebrate a Special Seder
by Brent Lewin, Afghanistan Correspondent
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Passover Seder in Afghanistan. |
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He has been accused of betrayal, of murder, and of
working as a spy for Israel's Mossad. His name is
Zebulon Simintov and he is the last Jew in
Afghanistan. The title is a new one for Simintov, who
for years shared the distinction with Isaac Levin, the
other of "the last 2 Jews of Afghanistan". The two
men's relationship brings to life the old folk story
of the 2 Jews who live in the same place yet go to
different synagogues. In Simintov and Levin's case
however, there was only one synagogue in Kabul and
both chose to live out their days at opposite ends of
the decaying building, locked in a bitter feud. The
origin of the quarrel is said to back to 1998 during
the rule of Taliban regime. Each accused the other of
wanting to sell the synagogue and its sacred lambskin
Torah. Feelings of betrayal turned into hatred when
the Taliban confiscated the holy scrolls. Each Jew
denounced each other and leveled charges ranging from
converting to Islam to running a brothel. Both were
subsequently imprisoned and tortured by the Taliban
for their religious convictions. After the fall of the
Taliban, Simintov and Levin each vowed independently
to secure the Torah's return to Kabul. Aside from
insults and threats, the estranged odd couple didn't
speak for years. This relentless and hostile feud
finally ended in the only way possible when in March
2005 Isaac Levy passed away.
With this history in mind I entered the
unassuming Flower St. synagogue in Kabul to attend a
Passover dinner hosted by Zebulon Simintov. Aside from
the stench of gasoline I am surprised to see
decorative Stars of David carved into the wall, a
sight almost as strange as a UFO in the Islamic
republic of Afghanistan. An Afghan boy who is
Simintov's helper gives me a brief tour of the defunct
synagogue. Although it was once able to accommodate a
congregation of 30, it is now occupied only by thick
layers of dust and tattered prayer books.
Down a narrow hall and into a cramped room,
greetings are exchanged with the last Jew of
Afghanistan and 4 other Western guests. We remove our
shoes and take our seats on the cushions that are
arranged around a bed sheet table on the floor.
Simintov, a middle-aged man, is dressed in traditional
Afghan garb. He is not accustomed to such a large
crowd of strangers and appears quite nervous, combing
what little hair he has compulsively and breathing
heavily.
Suddenly, Simintov starts reciting prayers from
a pile of unbound moldy pages scattered in front of
him. Huddled together in a circle on the floor of this
damp second story room in the Islamic republic of
Afghanistan, it feels as if we are taking part in
something forbidden.
Simintov's helper hands out Haggadahs (Passover prayer books), donated by the US Army, along with
boxes of matza that a synagogue in Brooklyn, New York
has had flown in. He then pours homemade wine from
Soviet-era vodka bottles, a reminder of the Soviet
invasion, and Simintov's forbidden love for all
beverages containing alcohol.
Simintov takes charge of the Seder and sings
songs from the Haggadah in perfect Hebrew while the
rest of us are transported back in time, helplessly
drawn in by the passion and fervor of his canting.
Though, occasionally I can't help being brought back
to reality by the television in the corner of the room
airing Indian soap operas.
Across town a more formal Seder was taking place
at Camp Phoenix, a US Army base where fellow Jews were
equipped with camouflaged yamakas, non-alcoholic wine,
and Passover 'ration packs', each consisting of a
miniature version of the symbolic foods which make up
the Passover plate.
Back at Simintov's Seder we flagellate each
other with leek-like vegetables during the dai-ay-new
prayer, breaking down in laughter. Kabul city power
cuts out halfway through the dinner and we are forced
to use our cell phones for light. When the 2 light
bulbs in the room come to life with power once again,
Simintov's assistant serves us generous portions of
delicious turkey kebab, chicken legs, and boiled
vegetables.
Most of the guests at the Seder are living in
Kabul under company-imposed curfews, so we thank
Simintov and excuse ourselves shortly after midnight.
On the ride home, drunk off the ceremony and homemade
wine, I think about the parallels between the story of
Passover and the history of Jews in Afghanistan.
Passover is the story of the Jews escaping the tyranny
of the Pharaoh. Afghanistan has an 800-year-old
history of Judaism and at one time was home to over
40,000 Jews. Nazi-spawn anti-Semitism, Soviet
occupation, and the eventual seizure of power by the
Taliban forced growing numbers of Afghan Jews to flee
their homeland throughout the years, seeking religious
freedom in places like Israel and the United States.
Only Zebelon Simintov and Isaac Levin chose to stand
their ground facing countless obstacles to preserve
Afghanistan's Jewish heritage and enduring tremendous
hardship to take care of the synagogue and to protect
the holy Torah. Both men suffered and struggled for
the same cause in the same land, but for some reason
insisted on going at it alone.
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