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Zablon SimintovAfghan Jewish carpet merchant and restaurateur
Country:
 Afghanistan |
Content:
Afghan Jewish, carpet dealer and restaurateur
Zabulon Simintov, also known as Zebulon Simentov or Zabulon Simantov, was born in 1959 in the Turkmen SSR, Soviet Union. He is considered to be the last remaining Jew in Afghanistan. Simintov's life in Afghanistan was intertwined with his complicated relationship with Ishaq Levin, an elderly Afghan Jew who passed away. The two were believed to have clashed over control of the synagogue in Kabul. Simintov made the decision to close his restaurant, where he had four to five ovens working from morning till evening.
Biography
Zabulon Simintov was born in 1959 in the Turkmen SSR, Soviet Union. He is considered to be the last remaining Jew in Afghanistan. The Afghan Jewish community, which consisted of several thousand people scattered across different cities, had little contact with their fellow Jews outside the country. Over time, most of them left Afghanistan and settled mainly in Israel.
Simintov's relationship with Ishaq Levin, the caretaker of the only functioning synagogue in Kabul, garnered attention from the British press and even formed the basis of a theatrical production. In an interview with British journalist Martin Fletcher, Simintov spoke disparagingly about Levin. Initially, Levin had a favorable opinion of Simintov, but the two constantly quarreled after Simintov offered to help Levin immigrate to Israel to reunite with the rest of the Jewish community from Kabul. Simintov claimed that he made the offer because he believed it would be too cold for someone as old as Levin to remain in Kabul. However, Levin took offense, thinking that Simintov simply wanted to take over the synagogue. Before his death, Levin accused Simintov of accusing him of converting to Islam and abandoning Judaism. Simintov, on the other hand, claimed that a valuable copy of the Torah had mysteriously disappeared under Levin's leadership.
After Levin's death, the tensions subsided. Simintov, however, claimed that it was not easy for him to practice his religion alone. Nevertheless, he received special permission from a nearby rabbi in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, to perform kosher slaughter according to Jewish law for his own cattle. This procedure is usually entrusted to a trained Jewish butcher. Simintov lives alone in a small room next to the old synagogue on Flower Street in Kabul and receives donations from Jewish groups abroad and sympathetic local Muslims. His wife and two daughters live in Israel. When asked in an interview if he was ready to move to Israel, Simintov initially objected, saying, "To Israel? Do I have a business there? Why should I go there?" However, in an interview with Al Jazeera on September 17, 2007, Simintov mentioned his interest in moving to Israel because his children live there. He also mentioned receiving special Passover food from Afghan Jews living in New York. According to Simintov, Jews from abroad sometimes come to visit him during the High Holy Days.
Simintov states, "I don't want my Jewish heritage to be forgotten. My father was a rabbi, my grandfather was a rabbi. We were a large, religious family..." However, Simintov only wears his religious garment behind closed doors and does not allow visitors inside the synagogue, which he considers his home. In November 2013, Simintov announced that he would close his restaurant by March 2014 because the business could no longer sustain itself. With few customers left in Kabul, Simintov plans to rent out the space.
