The 40th anniversary of the founding of the Federation of Jewish Communities in Yugoslavia will be celebrated at a series of events scheduled for this week, according go in official announcement from the Federation’s headquarters in Belgrade, received here today.
The Federation, which is the official, government-recognized central body of Yugoslav Jewry, includes representatives of the 35 Jewish communities in Yugoslavia, where the Jews now total about 6,500. When the Federation was formed, in 1919. there were 68,000 Jews in Yugoslavia, where they formed 121 communities. By the time World War II enveloped the country, there were about 100,000 Jews in Yugoslavia. Approximately 10,000 left after the war for Israel; the rest were annihilated in Nazi camps.
Among the events to mark the Federation’s anniversary will be a national conference of all the Jewish communities in Yugoslavia; the dedication of a new wing of the Jewish Museum in Belgrade; and solemn ceremonies commemorating the Jewish martyrs at the Monument of Jewish Victims of Fascism and Fallen Fighters.
A statement issued by the Federation in Belgrade today stressed the fact that “the remaining members of the Jewish community have benefited from the sympathies of the Yugoslav authorities and public.” The statement also stressed the fact that Yugoslav Jewry “enjoys free contacts with many Jewish organizations and individuals, including also many representatives of the Jewish press, throughout the world.”
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