The international Jewish organization Chabad-Lubavitch has announced that it will open its first permanent center in Albania, a development accompanied by praise for the role Albanians played in sheltering Jews during the Holocaust. The announcement places the tradition of Besa and hospitality at the center, while linking the expansion of the organization’s activity to this well-known chapter of Albanian history.
The announcement was made at an international conference
The opening of the center was announced during the International Conference of Chabad-Lubavitch Emissaries. In an article published on November 11 on the organization’s official website, attention is focused on the history of Albanians who sheltered and protected Jews from Nazi persecution during World War II.
According to the organization, this historical background is one of the elements behind the decision to establish a permanent presence in Albania.
Rabbi Yossi Fridman will settle in Albania with his family
Rabbi Yossi Fridman, together with his wife Etka and their son Meir, is expected to settle in Albania to establish the new center. In his statement, Fridman describes Besa as a tradition of keeping a promise to a guest, even in dangerous circumstances.
He said that during the Holocaust, Albanians kept that promise to Jews, and that their aim is to create a space where every Jew who enters is treated like a member of the family.
What the new center will offer
According to the public plan, the center will serve the local Jewish community and Jewish tourists visiting Albania, especially those from Israel.
It is expected to offer a place for prayer, kosher food, traditional Shabbat meals, and other religious and community activities.
An old history, from wartime shelter to isolation under communism
The organization’s presentation also mentions the millennia-old presence of Jews in Albania, as well as the discovery of the remains of an ancient synagogue in Saranda.
It also recalls the period of the communist regime, when religious practices were banned and the Albanian Jewish community remained isolated from other Jewish communities around the world.
According to the version published by the organization, Albania was the only European country where more Jews were living at the end of World War II than before it began, a claim linked to the shelter Albanian families gave to persecuted Jews.
The opening of this center once again brings attention to a part of Albanian history that is often used as a symbol of national pride, but which in this case is also serving as the basis for a new religious and community presence in the country.
Beyond the symbolism of Besa, it remains to be seen how this center will be built in practice and what role it will play for the Jewish community in Albania and for visitors coming from abroad.