Courtesy of JNS. Photo credit: Quatchenerlo via Wikimedia Commons
The Lag B’Omer festival in Djerba, Tunisia, in May 2015
(JNS) — Israel’s Foreign Minister MK Gideon Sa’ar decried a machete attack on a Jewish jeweler on the Tunisian island of Djerba on Thursday, which left the victim in need of hospitalization.
Sa’ar called on the Tunisian authorities “to take all necessary measures to protect the Jewish community.”
Rene Trabelsi, a senior figure in the Tunisian Jewish community and the country’s former tourism minister, said a 50-year-old man was wounded in his hand and needed hospital treatment to reattach one of his fingers.
The El Ghriba Synagogue, a 2,600-year-old landmark and center of Tunisia’s small Jewish community, which now numbers approximately 1,500 people, the majority of whom live on Djerba, is set to host a three-day pilgrimage next week to celebrate Lag B’Omer. While details of the latest incident remain unclear, community leader Trabelsi urged restraint, telling reporters, “We fully trust Tunisian authorities because we’re Tunisian too.”
This comes two years after a terrorist attack during the festival left five people dead — two Jewish cousins and three police officers. Last year’s event was scaled back due to security concerns.
Tunisian officials have not yet released a formal statement, but Trabelsi confirmed to the Associated Press that security forces have increased their presence on the island.
