The Bet Israel Synagogue, also known as the Beit Israel Synagogue,[1] is a Jewish congregation and synagogue located at 265 Mithatpaşa Street, in the Turgut Reis neighbourhood,
in the Karataş quarter of the city of İzmir, in the İzmir Province of Turkey.[2] The synagogue was completed in 1907 and is the largest synagogue in the city,[3] the other major synagogue being the Shaar Hashamaym Synagogue.[4]
History
İzmir's Jewish community was granted state permission to build the synagogue in 1905; it opened two years later.[5]
On April 4, 2019, an attacker threw a Molotov cocktail at the synagogue. Falling on the sidewalk, the bomb did not destroy the synagogue. The attacker claimed that they were trying to protest the state of Israel. A prominent member of the ruling Justice and Development Party immediately condemned the attack. The official said, "There is no difference between attacks targeting synagogues, churches and mosques; they all target social peace with their hate." İzmir's Jewish community praised local law enforcement for their quick action.[7]
^Abuaf, Leslie (2013). Stillman, Norman A. (ed.). "Bet Israel Synagogue, Karataş, Izmir". Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World. Brill Online. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
^Danon, Dina (March 24, 2020). The Jews of Ottoman Izmir: A Modern History. Stanford University Press. p. 94. ISBN9781503610927.
^Shaw, Stanford J. (1991). "The Jews of the Turkish Republic, since 1923". The Jews of the Ottoman Empire and the Turkish Republic. MacMillan. p. 249. ISBN978-1-349-12237-0.
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