Raydah (; sometimes transliterated Raidah or al-Raidah) is a large
market town
A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rura ...
located north of
Sana'a
Sanaa, officially the Sanaa Municipality, is the ''de jure'' capital and largest city of Yemen. The city is the capital of the Sanaa Governorate, but is not part of the governorate, as it forms a separate administrative unit. At an elevation ...
, and north of
Amran, in northwestern
Yemen
Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...
.
[Sharp, Jeremy M]
Yemen: Background and U.S. Relations
(RL34170, PDF). Congressional Research Service
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) is a public policy research institute of the United States Congress. Operating within the Library of Congress, it works primarily and directly for members of Congress and their committees and staff on a ...
(January 22, 2009).
Jewish community
In previous years, before most
Yemeni Jews emigrated, the ''Suq al-yahud'' or Jewish market was held here.
As of 2009, the Jewish community numbered 266 persons,
[Arrabyee, Nasser. , ''Yemen Observer'', 03-03-2009. Retrieved on 2009-03-08.] and operated three synagogues and two schools. However, during the 2008-09
Gaza War
The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...
, tensions with local Muslims increased and an Islamic extremist murdered a Jewish teacher and kosher butcher,
Moshe Ya'ish al-Nahari, after demanding he convert to Islam. The last time an incident of this kind had occurred in Raydah was in 1986, when two Jews were killed. Following Nahari's murder, the Jewish community expressed how vulnerable they felt, and complained that they had been harassed and threatened by extremists. They requested assistance from the government. In June 2009, 16
Jewish
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
families who resided in the town left for Israel. Nahari's wife and nine children also moved to Israel.
In 2016, amid the
Yemeni civil war, the Israeli government launched a covert operation to airlift 19 Jews from Raydah to Israel, effectively marking the end of the town's Jewish community. Only one family elected to remain in Raydah.
Hospital
Raydah is home to a small hospital, funded by
Save the Children
The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization. It was founded in the UK in 1919; its goal is to improve the lives of children worldwide.
The organization raises money to imp ...
. However, funding cuts and the ongoing civil war have reduced the hospital's ability to treat patients.
See also
*
Moshe Ya'ish al-Nahari
References
Populated places in 'Amran Governorate
Jews and Judaism in Yemen
Orthodox Jewish communities
Historic Jewish communities in Asia
Towns in Yemen
{{Yemen-geo-stub