The Jews of Zakho, Kurdistan

The Jewish community of Zakho, which lies on an island in the Khabur River, in the Mosul region of modern-day Iraq, dates back to ancient times. Indeed, there are references in the Bible to the exile of the ancient Israelites to the banks of the Khabur River. The community, which in the early nineteenth century numbered around six hundred families, served as a religious center for Jews in surrounding villages.