A delegation of the World Sephardi Federation, who met with King Juan Carlos I in Madrid last week, reported today that the Spanish government plans soon to establish diplomatic relations with Israel. The Federation expressed hope for a swift implementation of this move and noted it would be especially welcomed by Sephardi Jews as well as contribute to developing Spanish language and culture in Israel.
Juan Carlos accepted a rare copy of the Ferrans Bible in Old Spanish from the library of the Sephardi Community in Amsterdam, the WSF reported. The King was informed that at a recent meeting in Torremolinos, the representatives of the Jewish communities of Spain and the leaders of the WSF decided to open a branch of the Federation in Spain. The Federation’s aims are to preserve the Judeo-Spanish traditions of the past centuries and the Spanish tongue and culture. It tends to focus its assistance to the Sephardic communities world-wide and particularly to those of its brethren who have settled in Israel.
The delegates made known to Juan Carlos that the Ministry of Education and Culture in Israel recently introduced the Spanish language in the high school programs on the same level as French and/or Arabic. The King questioned the members of the delegation about the life and problems of Sephardi communities throughout the world and the delegation submitted a memorandum outlining the importance of cooperation to preserve the Sephardic heritage. Reference was also made to the development of the Jewish communities of Spain itself which now number nearly 10,000.
The members of the delegation were Nessim D. Gaon, president of the World Sephardi Federation; Dr. Solomon Gaon; Solomon A. Seruya, member of the Israel Executive of the WSF; Albert Benatar, president of the WSF branch in France; Daniel da Silva Solis, member of the Amsterdam Sephardi community board; David Ventura, president of the Barcelona community; and Philip Halioua, president of the Madrid community.
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