Interview: Syrian Government Licenses Foundation to Return Assets to Syrian Jews Abroad, and to restore Holy Sites

In a historic shift for the Syrian Jewish community, the new government has officially authorized a dedicated organization to locate and return seized assets to community members in the United States, Israel and elsewhere, and to restore ancient holy sites.

The initiative is being spearheaded by the Hamra family, related to Syria’s last Chief Rabbi, who have returned to Damascus to coordinate directly with high-level officials.

On Wednesday, Syrian authorities granted a license to the “Jewish Heritage in Syria Foundation.” The organization is led by Rabbi Henry Hamra, who fled Syria for the United States in the 1990s with his father, Rabbi Yosef Hamra. His uncle, Rabbi Avraham, was Syria’s last chief rabbi.

Joseph Hamra, Henry’s son, was in Damascus assisting his father in high-level government meetings earlier this week.

Speaking to Belaaz in an exclusive interview, Joseph described the scale of the Jewish assets remaining in the capital.
“There’s a lot,” Joseph told Belaaz. “We’ve been walking around the Jewish quarter and almost at every turn we see Jewish houses and synagogues.”

The Hamras have traveled to Syria several times since the new government arose.  According to Joseph, they were invited to an event marking the anniversary of the fall of the Assad regime.
“My father was invited by the President himself,” Joseph revealed to Belaaz, referring to the new Syrian President Ahmed Al Sharaa. He added, “My father has been talking to almost every government official here, including the new president.”

The Syrian government publicly confirmed this cooperation on Wednesday. Hind Kabawat, the Minister of Social Affairs and Labor, announced the authorization of the foundation, framing it as part of a broader effort to build an inclusive state.

“This is a strong message from the Syrian state that we do not discriminate between one religion and another,” Kabawat told AFP. She emphasized that the new government intends to help all Syrians, regardless of sect, who wish to rebuild the nation.

The primary goal of the new foundation is to inventory Jewish properties confiscated under the Assad regime and facilitate their return to their rightful owners.
When asked by Belaaz how the restitution process would work, Joseph Hamra explained that the recovered value “will, beezrat Hashem, go back to the Jewish people in America and Israel.” He advised families looking to reclaim assets “to reach out to my father to get their property and belongings back.”

Joseph noted that the current government’s motivation appears to be a desire to “normalize the Jewish people in Syria,” adding that while they hope to possibly bring Jews back to live, they are “definitely” encouraging visits.

However, Joseph clarified that these high-level meetings have remained strictly focused on the Jewish community and the internal Syrian situation, rather than geopolitics. When asked if the topic of Israel was raised during meetings with the President, Joseph said “They did not. Not a word.”

Instead, the conversations focused on the shares experiences that Jews and non-Jews had under the previous regime. “They were talking about… how the Assad regime affected everyone in Syria, and how, since he’s gone, it’s been going,” Joseph said.

The Hamras davened inside the al-Franj synagogue in Damascus, a site Henry had visited previously with his father. The foundation aims to ensure such holy sites are restored and made accessible to Jews worldwide.

The father and son also visited Jewish cemeteries, and stumbled upon a grave with a matzeivah that had a yahrtzeit date of 19 Kislev; the very same day they were visiting.

Beyond Damascus, the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that a delegation, which reportedly included two Israeli rabbis, visited closed synagogues in Aleppo in northwestern Syria. According to SOHR, the governor of Aleppo promised to assist in the restoration of stolen Jewish property in a city once famous for housing the Aleppo Codex.

Syria’s Jewish community, which dates back centuries, faced severe travel restrictions and persecution under Hafez al-Assad. While restrictions were lifted in 1992 allowing many to flee, the subsequent years saw the community dwindle to a handful of individuals.

With the new foundation now licensed, the Hamra family hopes to reverse the erasure of Jewish history in Syria, turning a page on decades of confiscation and exile.