MARCH 11 • 2021 | 9

At age 23, he posed as 
Richard Armstrong, the 
British representative of Near 
Eastern Airlines, to negotiate 
with the Iraqi government. 
Throughout the meeting he 
shifted in his seat, fearing he 
might be recognized by his 
cousin, the leader of the Jewish 
community. (He wasn’t). 
Shlomo Hillel published his 
story in Operation Babylon.

ROOTS IN IRAQ
Shlomo was the youngest 
of 11 children of an Iraqi-
Jewish merchant importing 
goods from India, Japan and 
Manchester. Iraqi Jews were 
not generally Zionist, but 
until the rise of pro-Nazi 
feeling in the 1930s, there 
was a small Zionist move-
ment, Achi-ever, where 
Shlomo and his brothers 
learned Hebrew.
In 1934, at age 11 on a 
family visit to Palestine, 
Shlomo insisted on remain-
ing with two elder brothers, 
attending the prestigious 
Herzliya Gymnasium in Tel 
Aviv. Having lived through 
the massacre of Assyrian 
Christians in Iraq in 1933, 
Shlomo’s father had a sense 
of foreboding: “If they do this 
to Iraqi Christians, what will 

they do to Jews?” He moved 
the rest of his family to Israel.
A founder of kibbutz 
Ma’agan Michael, Shlomo 
Hillel married Temima, 
who came as a refugee from 
Europe on the Patria. He 
reluctantly embarked on a 
political career, serving in 
seven Knessets, becoming a 
minister and Knesset speak-
er. He also served as Israeli 
ambassador to several African 
countries and was awarded 
the Israel Prize in 1988. But 
he was always modest about 
his achievements.

AIDING ETHIOPIAN JEWS
Later Shlomo Hillel was 
involved in the mass emigra-
tion of Jews from Ethiopia. 
The wheel came full circle 
when his son Ari fell in love 
and married an Ethiopian girl.
When asked what he 
thought of the match, Shlomo 
said he was delighted. The 
Jewish people were complet-
ing the “Ingathering of the 
Exiles.” 

Lyn Julius is a journalist and 

co-founder of Harif, an association 

of Jews from the Middle East and 

North Africa in the UK. She is the 

author of Uprooted: How 3,000 

years of Jewish Civilization in the 

Arab world vanished overnight.

continued from page 6

HAVING LIVED THROUGH 
THE MASSACRE OF ASSYRIAN 
CHRISTIANS IN IRAQ IN 1933, 
SHLOMO’S FATHER HAD A SENSE 
OF FOREBODING: “IF THEY DO 
THIS TO IRAQI CHRISTIANS, WHAT 
WILL THEY DO TO JEWS?”

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STORY
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STORY
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