WIndia–Israel relations refers to the bilateral ties between the Republic of India and the State of Israel. The two countries have an extensive economic, military, and strategic relationship.
WThe history of the Jews in Kolkata, formerly known as Calcutta, in India, began in the late eighteenth century when adventurous Baghdadi Jewish merchants originally from Aleppo and Baghdad chose to establish themselves permanently in the emerging capital of the British Raj. The community they founded became the hub of the Judeo-Arabic speaking Baghdadi Jewish trading diaspora in Asia.
WMagen David, or the Shield of David, Synagogue is located at the junction of Brabourne Road and Canning Street in Kolkata. Magen David is the second operating synagogue in Kolkata, the other is the Beth El Synagogue at Pollock Street.
WThe history of the Jews in Mumbai, India, began when Jews started settling in Bombay during the 18th century, due to its economic opportunities. The Jewish community of Bombay consisted of the remnants of three distinct communities: the Bene Israeli Jews of Konkan, the Baghdadi Jews of Iraq, and the Cochin Jews of Malabar.
WThe Goa Inquisition was an extension of the Portuguese Inquisition in colonial-era Portuguese India. The Inquisition was established by the colonial era Inquisition in Portuguese India to enforce Catholic orthodoxy in the Indian colonies of the Portuguese Empire, and to counter the New Christians, who were accused of "crypto-Hinduism", and the Old Christian Nasranis, accused of "Judaising". It was established in 1560, briefly suppressed from 1774 to 1778, continued thereafter until finally abolished in 1812. The Inquisition punished those who had converted to Catholicism but were suspected by Jesuit clergy of practising their previous religion in secret. Predominantly, those targeted were accused of Crypto-Hinduism. Many criminally-charged natives were imprisoned, publicly flogged and, dependent on the criminal charge, sentenced to death. The Inquisitors also seized and burnt any books written in Sanskrit, Dutch, English, or Konkani, on the suspicions that they contain deviationist or Protestant material.
WThe Sassoon family, known as "Rothschilds of the East" due to the immense wealth they accumulated in finance and trade, is a family of Baghdadi Jewish descent. Originally based in Baghdad, Iraq, they later moved to Bombay, India, and then spread to China, England, and other countries. It is said that the family descended from one of the court families of the Iberian Peninsula in the 12th century. They later served as financial advisors to Islamic rulers.
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