AUGUST 5 • 2021 | 61
R
uth Pearl, the mother of
slain Wall Street Journal
journalist Daniel Pearl,
died on July 20, 2021, at age 85.
In 2002, Ruth and her hus-
band, Judea Pearl, were thrust
into international attention
after Al-Qaeda terrorists in
Pakistan kidnapped their son,
Daniel Pearl, and executed him
nine days later.
Ruth Pearl, an electrical
engineer and computer ana-
lyst, was born Eveline Rejwan
in Baghdad on Nov. 10, 1935.
According to the University
of Southern California Shoah
Foundation, her childhood
was interrupted in 1941, when
a coup attempt in Iraq left a
power vacuum in the British-
controlled territory, allowing
thousands of Iraqi civilians,
soldiers and paramilitary gangs
inspired by Nazi propaganda
and anti-Zionist fervor to
start a pogrom against the
Jews, known as the “Farhud.”
According to the release, at
least 179 Baghdadi Jews were
killed in the Farhud and hun-
dreds of others raped, injured,
or had their homes and liveli-
hoods destroyed. Pearl recalled
seeing a bullet fly past her
mother while she held her baby
sister and watched Jewish-
owned shops being looted.
In 1951, she, her younger
siblings and her parents were
transported to Cyprus and then
Israel as part of the mass exo-
dus of Jews from Iraq, forfeit-
ing citizenship and possessions.
Ruth met her husband, Judea
Pearl, while studying electrical
engineering at the Technion–
Israel Institute of Technology
in Haifa. They married in 1960
and moved to New Jersey to
pursue graduate degrees. They
had three children; Daniel
Pearl was the middle child.
When Daniel was kid-
napped, Ruth dreamt that he
was in trouble. She woke up
and sent her son an email.
“I said, ‘Danny … please
humor me and answer this
email immediately.” Daniel
Pearl never responded.
She and her husband went
on to form the Daniel Pearl
Foundation, which sponsors
fellowships to bring journalists
from Muslim countries to the
United States, among other
programs. They also started the
Daniel Pearl Foundation Music
Day project, held on their son’s
birthday.
Ruth Pearl served as the
chief financial officer for the
foundation, which aims to
perpetuate Daniel’s commit-
ment to reaching across divides
through journalism and music.
In addition to her hus-
band, Ruth Pearl is survived
by daughters Michelle and
Tamara. She is also survived by
her daughter-in-law Mariane;
her sister Carmella; and grand-
children Leora, Tori, Ari, Evan
and Adam.
— JNS.org
Ruth Pearl, Mother
of Daniel Pearl
WHITE HOUSE PHOTO BY JOYCE N. BOGHOSIAN/JNS
Ruth and
Judea Pearl
light a
menorah at
the White
House in
2007.
The Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit
The Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit
Honors the Memory of
Honors the Memory of
Graham A. Orley
1924 - 2021
On Behalf of a Grateful Community
On Behalf of a Grateful Community