Jewish Pilgrims Converge on Town in Morocco

July 7, 2008

Author: Alfred de Montesquiou

Source: The Washington Post

Wire Service: AP

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/07/AR2008070701679.html

It's an uncommon sight for an Arab country: hundreds of joyous Jewish pilgrims gathering without fear around a rabbi's tomb, greeted by local Muslim officials who share a prayer with them at a synagogue.

Yet most of the 400 Jews who converged on the Moroccan coastal town of Safi _ some from nearby cities, others from as far as France or Israel _ at a weekend pilgrimage said they felt welcome here.

While religious tensions flare in Jerusalem and beyond, in Morocco, Jews and Muslims say they nurture a legacy of tolerance and maintain common sanctuaries where adherents of both religions pray. Decades of emigration to Israel by Morocco's Jews and terrorist bombings in Casablanca that targeted Jewish sites haven't diminished the draw of these annual pilgrimages.