When the Mosque Became a Sanctuary: The Muslim Families Who Defied Nazis to Save Jews

People lined up on the railway station after arriving at Auschwitz in the early days of the war. Pic: AP


While history books focus on European resistance to the Holocaust, a powerful new documentary reveals how Muslim communities across the Balkans and Middle East became unlikely safe havens for Jewish refugees. In Albania - the only European country with a Muslim majority - ordinary families sheltered Jews based on an ancient Islamic principle called besa (the sacred promise of protection). Their simple philosophy: "There is no such thing as a guest in our home - only family."

The film documents how Albanian Muslims, from farmers to government officials, risked execution to hide Jewish families in basements, mountain villages, and even plain sight - sometimes disguising Jewish children as their own. By war's end, Albania had not only protected its native Jewish population but saved hundreds of refugees, leaving the country with more Jews than when the war began.

(Source: Daily Maverick - Muslims Sheltered Jews in Holocaust)

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