Iran's 9,000 strong Jewish community is experiencing this holiday season with food shortages, illness and the death of dozens of its members. "They were buried at the Jewish cemetery without religious rituals," a member of the community said, "They were covered with burnt lime."
Weeks without kosher slaughter left the community without meat for the holiday as members celebrated Passover in seclusion in their homes.
Iran is not under any curfew, but the Jewish community has imposed one on its members. The chief Rabbi decided as early as the Purim festival, that all Iranian Jews must avoid danger and stay away from synagogues. All 60 of them around the country remain closed since. The Book of Esther was read online, and 4,000 people joined the feed.
Members of the community say they are not experiencing any anti-Semitism and the authorities are respectful of their faith.
In Mosul in northern Iraq, a Jewish family celebrated Passover for the first time. They just recently returned to their Jewish roots after living among Muslims, their entire lives and were never before told by their families that they were Jewish.
Last year they happened on a video clip disseminated by Achim, a Jewish organization hoping to reach Jews living in the Arab world who were born to Jewish mothers and Muslim fathers and therefore considered Jewish according to religious law. They were even supplied Mazo for the Seder meal.
The organization said they had names of thousands of Jews given by their relatives who had reached Israel over the years.
Some have already responded to the call and are maintaining contact with the organization.