The Jewish community in Rayda have refused an offer by the Yemeni President to relocate to the capital, Sana’a. Three weeks ago, a Jewish teacher was killed there by a former air force officer demanding his conversion to Islam.
About 270 Jews live in the Rayda area and they have been living in fear since the murder of Moshe Yaish Nahari by former pilot Abdul Aziz Yahya Hamoud Al-Abdi, who has already confessed to the murder. In his defence he said that he had given Nahari a choice between converting to Islam, fleeing the country or death.
Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh offered each family of the community plots of land in Sana’a, where they will be defended by security forces.
The community leaders refused the offer because the deal does not involve compensation for the loss of their property and jobs.
