The occupation of France and the establishment of the antisemitic Vichy regime brought 415,000 North African Jews – most of the Jews on the subcontinent – into the orbit of persecution. Marshall Petain’s Nazi regime worsened the status of the Jews of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, after Vichy-style antisemitic legislation was imposed in those countries.
In Morocco, where Jews had civil rights, anti-Jewish laws were not formally enacted, but the French bureaucracy introduced a set of anti-Jewish regulations.
The Jews of Algeria, who held French citizenship, were stripped of their rights, required to wear an identifying mark, and subjected to admission quotas, even in primary schools.
In Libya, where the Italians had been applying racial laws since 1938, the bureaucracy stepped up its depredations, marking Jews’ passports, restricting their cultural activities, and banishing thousands to concentration camps – foremost Giado – where hundreds died of starvation and disease. Hundreds of Jews with foreign citizenship were sent to concentration camps in Europe.
In November 1942, after the Allies invaded North Africa, the German army entered Tunisia, along with a SS unit tasked with applying the anti-Jewish policy. After a brief pause to consolidate their affairs, the Germans began to expropriate the Jews’ belongings and mobilized many Jews for the construction of fortifications. German decrees primarily affected the Jews of the capital, Tunis, but in other communities, such as Djerba, they were also mistreated and sent for forced labor. The Jews of the capital were forced to establish a local Judenrat, which was ordered to select 5,000 to 6,000 Jews, some of whom were sent to labor camps. In early May 1943, military developments forced the Germans to retreat.
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The Jews of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia
On the eve of World War II there were 400,000 Jews in French North Africa (Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia, sometimes called the “Maghreb”, meaning Arab North Africa), and another 30,000 Jews in Libya, then an Italian colony. The fate of the Jews in North Africa was different depending on the country in which they were located. In Libya, which was an Italian colony, thousands of Jews were sent to labor camps and concentration camps, and almost 600 died in these camps from hunger and disease. In the three North African countries that fell under the regime of Vichy France, Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco, the fate of the Jews was, likewise, different depending on the country.
North Africa, The Star of David drawn on a German Tank by soldiers of the Jewish Brigade Group
North Africa, The Star of David drawn on a German Tank by soldiers of the Jewish Brigade Group
The Jews of Algeria, who held French citizenship, were stripped of their rights, required to wear an identifying mark, and subjected to admission quotas, even in primary schools. In Morocco, where Jews had civil rights but were not citizens of France, anti-Jewish laws were less rigorously enforced. The Jews of Algeria and Morocco were spared the fate of their brethren in Europe because the tide of the war turned against the forces of General Rommel at the battle of El Alamein; beginning in November 1942 the Allies began to liberate North Africa. Tunisia was the only country among the three that the German army actually occupied. The army entered Tunisia together with a SS unit tasked with applying anti-Jewish policy. The Jews of Tunisia were saved only because in early May 1943, military developments forced the Germans to retreat.
This article will discuss the situation of the Jews in France’s three North African colonies, whose treatment was greatly impacted by France’s defeat at the hands of Germany during World War II. An article on the Jews of Libya appears separately in this newsletter.
Background: Vichy France
Germany invaded France in May, 1940. Within a short time it became clear that France was overwhelmed militarily, and the government debated over how to proceed. Ultimately, France surrendered to Germany on June 22, 1940. The Prime Minister, Paul Reynaud, resigned over the decision to surrender, and the French President, Lebrun, apppointed a World War I hero, Marshall Henri Philippe Pétain, to replace him.
Hitler had no desire to continue fighting France; he was wary of the French and their colonies in North Africa, as he was of the French navy. Thus, he agreed to an armistice with France in order to ensure that the French navy was taken out of the war and that the French would not continue to fight from North Africa. He had already set his sights on England, and was, in the spring of 1940, hoping for a quick conquest there. The armistice with France was Hitler’s way to settle the matter of France and move on to this next great conquest.
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