Operation Magic Carpet

A decade ago, the Wall Street Journal reported on the involvement of the United States’ government in a mission that brought approximately 100 Yemenite Jews to America, a little less than half the remaining Jewish population of Yemen. While Yemen’s President Ali Abdullah Saleh tried to protect this small remnant of a community, growing unrest made this nearly impossible. Harassment and outright violence have risen dramatically.

This mission may be the final step of “Operation Magic Carpet,” which began in the summer of 1949…

The history of the Jews of Yemen predates the Muslim religion by many centuries. But, when Yemen became a Muslim country, in the early 10th century, Jews became second-class citizens. Persecution and forced conversions were often governmentally approved (except during the period of Ottoman Rule, 1872-1918).

After the U.N. agreed to partition Palestine in 1947, anti-Semitic attacks became common. Miraculously, the Imam of Yemen allowed the Jews to emigrate. Between June 1949 and September 1950, approximately 49,000 Jews were transported on 380 secret flights to Israel. The flights were not made public until several months after the operation.

“Operation Magic Carpet,” as it was known, was a culture shock to most Yemenite Jews. Many had lived without electricity or running water, had never sat on furniture and certainly had never envisioned an airplane. In fact, many had to be convinced that the airplanes were safe (and they were quoted the Biblical verses referring to the redemption in Messianic times coming on the “wings of eagles” – Exodus 19:4, Isaiah 40:31).

It took a great deal of effort on the part of the Yemenites to assimilate into the modern world. Today, however, the Yemenite community is an integral part of both the Israeli and the worldwide Jewish community.