The two southeastern Turkish towns of Marash and Diarbakir were reported today as being completely without Jews following the departure of 300 Jews from there for Israel. Almost all the small Jewish communities of that area are reported as having been completely liquidated.
These Jewish communities, which were considered the most ancient in Turkey, were completely isolated from the world and from Turkish Jewry. They had no link with Judaism other than religion and Hebrew traditions, which differ from those of the Sephardic Jews living in the country.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.