South Sudan Virtual Jewish History Tour

Sudanese Jewish History

At its most populous, the Jewish community in Sudan numbered no more than 1,000 individuals, far fewer than the 260,000 Moroccan Jews or 135,000 Algerian Jews who lived in Africa at the same time. In 1882, Jews were forced to convert to Islam and marry Sudanese women. After the British conquered Sudan in the late 19th century, a Jewish community reemerged. It dissolved, however, after the country gained independence and joined the Arab league in 1956. About 500 Jews made aliyah to Israel and the rest settled in other parts of the world.

Relations With Israel

Sudan and Israel have a complicated history. Haim Koren noted, “Prior to gaining independence in 1956, British-ruled Sudan had good relations with the Jewish community in Mandatory Palestine and later with the State of Israel.”

The Sudanese opposition, the Umma party, feared that Sudanese nationalists allied with Nasser would try to prevent Sudan from becoming independent and support unification with Egypt. According to Yossi Melman, “Umma’s representatives, led by Sadiq al-Mahdi  – who, 30 years later would become Sudan’s prime minister – met secretly in London with Israeli diplomats, among them Mordechai Gazit, then the first secretary of the London embassy. The Sudanese emissaries sought the diplomatic and, if possible, economic assistance of Israel, a sworn enemy of Egypt.”

Sudan did become independent in January 1956 and the Mossad was assigned to continue secret interactions with the Sudanese. After a coup, Sudan became hostile and sided with the pan-Arab policy of Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser.  Sudan declared war on Israel during the Arab-Israeli war in June 1967, and although Sudanese forces did not participate in active combat during the conflict they supported Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and Lebanon in their fight against Israel. After the war, the Arab League held a summit in Khartoum where the participants declared there would be no peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel, and no negotiations with Israel. Though still hostile, the Sudanese government expressed support a decade later for the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty. 

When he was elected in 1977, Prime Minister Menachem Begin was determined to rescue the Ethiopian Jews who had fled Ethiopia and were living in refugee camps in Sudan. In 1981, agents were sent to mount a covert operation – Operation Brothers – in which the Mossad established a Red Sea diving resort as a cover for smuggling Ethiopian Jews out of the country. After information about the mission leaked in 1984, U.S. Vice President George H.W. Bush arranged to rescue the agents, shipping them out of Sudan in large boxes labeled “U.S. Diplomatic Mail.”

Jews remained in the squalid refugee camps so, in 1984, Israel paid $30 million – donated by the American Joint Distribution Committee – to bribe Sudanese President General Jaafar al-Numeiri and his head of security, Omar Abu Taib, to allow the Mossad to arrange the rescue of the remaining Jews in what became known as Operation Moses.

Sudan became increasingly radical, as Islamists seized power in 1989 under the leadership of General Omar al-Bashir. Sudan subsequently allowed al-Qaeda to operate from its borders and supported Hamas, Hezbollah, and other terrorist organizations. Meanwhile, the country was mired in internal conflict which erupted into a civil war that was not settled until South Sudan gained independence in July 2011. The following day, the State of Israel officially recognized South Sudan and three days later Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with South Sudan President Salva Kiir and said that Israel would happy to help the fledgling country in “any way.”

Less than two weeks after their declaration of independence, South Sudan and Israel formalized their diplomatic relations. Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman announced the establishment of ties between the two countries, issuing a statement saying “the cooperation between the two countries will be based on solid foundations, relations of equality and mutual respect.” A parallel announcement was made in Juba, South Sudan’s new capital, where President Kiir met with Jacques Revach, head of the Foreign Ministry’s Africa division, and Dan Shacham, Israel’s nonresident ambassador to a number of African countries.

In August 2011, President Kiir announced that he would maintain South Sudan’s relations with Israel despite pressure from Arab countries. That same month, Danny Danon, a Likud Party Knesset member, visited South Sudan and expressed hope for the future of trade between the nations. “Israel’s technological wealth and South Sudan’s wealth of natural resources are a sure recipe for prosperity in both states,” Danon said.

Israeli President Peres with South Sudanese President Kiir (Dec 2011)

In December 2011, President Kiir made his first official visit to Israel during a whirlwind 24-hour trip in which he met with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, President Shimon Peres, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Lieberman.

“I am very moved to come to Israel and to walk on the soil of the promised land,” President Kiir said. “As a nation that rose from dust, and as the few who fought the many, you have established a flourishing country that offers a future and economic prosperity to its children, I have come to see your success.”

“This is a moving and historic moment for me and for the State of Israel,” President Peres noted. “Israel’s link with Sudan began when Prime Minister Levy Eshkol and I, as Deputy Defense Minister, met in the 1960’s, in Paris, with local leaders from southern Sudan. We provided them with extensive assistance in agriculture and infrastructures. Israel has supported, and will continue to support, your country in all areas in order to strengthen and develop it. We know that you courageously and wisely struggled against all odds to establish your country and for us, the birth of South Sudan is a milestone in the history of the Middle East and in advancing the values of equality, freedom and striving for peace and good neighborly relations.”

Netanyahu announced that an Israeli delegation would go to South Sudan in the beginning of 2012 to investigate how to assist the South Sudanese in developing their new country.

In August 2025, Israel announced it will send urgent humanitarian aid to South Sudan to help combat a severe cholera outbreak and worsening shortages of basic resources, a crisis further aggravated by refugees fleeing conflict in neighboring Sudan. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar made the announcement while hosting his South Sudanese counterpart, Semaya Kumba, in Jerusalem, emphasizing Israel’s solidarity in times of need. The aid, coordinated by Mashav and in cooperation with IsraAid, will include medical supplies, hygiene kits, water purification systems, and food packages. Meanwhile, South Sudan’s government dismissed recent media claims that it was in talks with Israel about resettling Palestinians from Gaza, calling them baseless

Sources: “South Sudan Leader Makes First Visit to Israel,” Yahoo News, (December 20, 2011).
“President Peres and PM Netanyahu Meet with South Sudan President Kiir,” Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, (December 20, 2011).
“The World Factbook: South Sudan,” CIA, (November 10, 2011).
“After agreeing to normalize ties, Israel to send $5 million of wheat to Sudan,” Al Arabiya, (October 26, 2020).
“Israel to send urgent aid to South Sudan amid cholera outbreak,” Jerusalem Post, (August 18, 2025).

Photo of Presidents Peres and Kiir courtesy of the Israeli GPO.