Some of the Worst Tragedies Experienced by the Jewish People

720 BCE - Assyrian Exile of the 10 Tribes

The Assyrian Empire conquers northern Israel and exiles 10 tribes, later called the Lost Tribes.

586 BCE - Destruction of the First Temple & Babylonian Exile

Babylonians destroy the First Temple and exile the Jews to Babylon.

175-164 BCE - Oppression Under Antiochus IV & Maccabean Revolt

Jews revolt against religious persecution and Hellenization under Seleucid rule.

135 CE - Roman Ban on Judaism

The Roman emperor bans Torah reading, circumcision, and declares Judaism illegal.

613 - Forced Baptisms in Hispania

King Sisebut orders Jews in Hispania and Septimania to convert.

642 - Jews Expelled from Arabia

1066 - Granada Massacre

Mobs massacre thousands of Jews in Granada.

1096 - First Crusade Massacres Jews in the Rhineland

Crusaders kill thousands of Jews en route to the Holy Land.

1114 - First Blood Libel Case (Norwich, England)

A boy’s murder sparks false accusations of Jewish ritual killing.

1190 - York Mass Suicide

150 Jews commit suicide to avoid forced conversion in England.

1215 - Jews Ordered to Wear Badges

The Fourth Lateran Council requires Jews to wear identifying clothing.

1261 - Jews expelled from Belgium

1290 - Jews expelled from England

1298 - Rindfleisch Massacres

A German knight leads massacres across 146 Jewish communities.

1306 & 1394 - Jews Expelled from France

1347-1351 - Black Death Persecutions

Jews are accused of causing the plague; thousands are massacred and entire communities destroyed.

1412-1415 - Forced Conversions in Spain

Vincent Ferrer compels two-thirds of Spanish Jews to convert.

1478 - Spanish Inquisition Targets Conversos

Jews who had converted to Christianity are targeted for secretly practicing Judaism.

1492 - Jews Expelled from Spain

1496 - Jews Expelled from Portugal

1516 - Venice Establishes First Ghetto

The Venetian Senate confines Jews to a designated quarter.

1543 - Martin Luther’s Antisemitic Writings

Luther calls for the destruction of Jewish communities.

1553 - Burning of the Talmud in Italy

Pope Paul IV orders the burning of Jewish texts in Rome and Venice.

1555 - Jewish Ghettos Mandated in Italy

Jews required to live in segregated quarters.

1648 - Chmielnicki Massacres in Ukraine

Cossacks and peasants kill tens of thousands of Jews and destroy hundreds of communities.

1727 & 1742 - Jews Expelled from the Russian Empire

1793 - Jews Restricted to the Pale of Settlement

Jews confined to a designated region in the Russian Empire.

1881-1920 - Pogroms in the Russian Empire

Waves of state-supported violence kill thousands and cause mass Jewish emigration.

1894 - Dreyfus Affair Begins

French officer Alfred Dreyfus is falsely convicted of treason, revealing deep antisemitism.

1929 - Hebron Massacre

Arab rioters kill 67 Jews in Hebron, ending centuries of Jewish life there.

1938 - Kristallnacht

Nazi mobs destroy Jewish property; 30,000 Jewish men sent to concentration camps.

1945 - Tripoli Pogrom

Arab mobs kill 130 Jews in Libya and destroy home and synagogues.

1948-1949 - War of Independence

After Israel declares independence, five Arab nations invade. 6,200 Jews are killed and 7,500 wounded.

1948-1953 - Black Years of Soviet Jewry

Jewish institutions are closed, leaders purged, and antisemitism becomes state policy. Hundreds of doctors are falsely accused in the “Doctors’ Plot.”

1948-1970 - Expulsion of Jews from Arab Lands

856,000 Jews face riots, persecution, and expulsion across the Arab world after Israel wins the War of Independence.

1967 - Six-Day War & Jewish Expulsions

Israel captures Jerusalem and key territories. Jews expelled from Egypt and Libya.

1968-1970 - Polish Antisemitic Purge

17,000 Jews are expelled by Poland’s Communist regime.

1971-1978 - Soviet Refuseniks Denied Emigration

Tens of thousands of Jews denied exit visas face harassment and economic penalties.

1972 - Munich Olympics Massacre

Palestinian terrorists murder 11 Israeli athletes.

1973 - Yom Kippur War

Egypt and Syria attack Israel; 2,656 Israelis killed and 7,500 are wounded.

1974 - Ma’alot Massacre

31 Israelis, including 22 children, killed by Palestinian terrorists.

1982 - Lebanon War/Operation Peace for Galilee

Israel invades southern Lebanon to stop PLO attacks from across the border. The war results in 657 Israeli deaths and 3,887 wounded.

1987-1993 - First Intifada

Widespread Palestinian violence against Israeli civilians and soldiers in the West Bank and Gaza results in 150 Israeli deaths.

1991 - Gulf War

Iraq fires Scud missiles at Israel; 3 killed directly, 77 indirectly.

2000-2005 - Second Intifada

Suicide bombings kill 1,063 Israelis in public places.

2003-2019 - Global Antisemitic Terrorism

2003 – Istanbul: Synagogue bombings kill 30
2008 – Mumbai: Chabad House attack kills 7
2012 – Toulouse: School shooting kills 4
2014 – Brussels: Museum attack kills 4
2015 – Paris: Hyper Cacher attack kills 4
2018 – Pittsburgh: Tree of Life synagogue shooting kills 11
2019 – Halle: Synagogue attack kills 2
2019 – Monsey: Hanukkah stabbing kills 1, injures 4