The Anti-Semitic Assumptions That Led Lebanon to Reach Out to Its Departed Jews

As is the case with most of the Middle East, Lebanon was once home to an ancient and sizable Jewish community that disappeared in the second half of the 20th century amid increasing persecution. But earlier this month, the Lebanese embassy in Paris decided to invite local Jews of Lebanese extraction to a “family reunion,” with the admitted purpose of getting their help in dealing with the country’s general financial and political crisis, which erupted in 2019. Tony Badran argues that this is a desperate ploy, rooted in anti-Semitism, by a nation whose rulers are hopelessly corrupt, not to mention subservient to Iran and its local proxy, Hizballah.