The anniversary of the riots in Taksim Square in Istanbul brought about 25,000 police officers, 50 water tankers, armored vehicles, and helicopters to the streets. Police equipped with tear gas, water cannons, and batons filled Istiklal Avenue leading to the square, aiming to suppress the thousands of demonstrators.
A short distance from the heart of the storm, in the nearby Galata neighborhood, is the large Neve Shalom synagogue. The synagogue is the largest Sephardic synagogue in Turkey, with a congregation of nearly 1,000 people. The synagogue has suffered in the past, when several terrorist attacks were carried out there.
Last Saturday, the synagogue held a 'Cantor Shabbat' to celebrate the Bar Mitzvah of a son from one of the most important families in the Jewish community. Cantor Simon Cohen was invited to the Shabbat, who came especially from Israel with a choir, conducted by Meir Briskman.
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In a conversation with Cantors 10, the cantor tells the story of the unexpected harmony of cantorship with tear gas:
""On Saturday morning I passed in front of the Ark, with conductor Meir Briskman accompanying me with the choir. The synagogue was completely full by 8:00 a.m., with more than 800 people in the audience. We performed many works by Moshe Stern, Raymond Goldstein, the famous Our Father in Heaven, and 'Shema Yisrael' by the Glanz label. The atmosphere was very successful, and the public enjoyed themselves. While we prayed, we did not expect what was happening right outside, in the streets surrounding the synagogue.
""After the prayer, when we went outside, we realized that we had found ourselves in the heart of the demonstrations, in a cloud of tear gas, in front of an angry crowd. We saw police officers with batons all around us, and thousands of people running through the streets, water cannons, tear gas, a real sense of war. When we entered the hotel lobby, we saw many people who had been affected by the gas, sitting and crying, their eyes burning, they couldn't breathe, a really difficult atmosphere.
""Also on Saturday night, when we left for the airport, it became clear to us that the riots had just begun. Right next to us was a group of about 50 police officers. Suddenly they received a call. Within seconds they put the gas mask on their faces, and started screaming: 'Get out of here quickly..' Within 30 seconds they started spraying tear gas at the crowd that was across the road, with hundreds of people running towards them. We got into the car, suffocated from the gas, we couldn't breathe.".
Did you experience any anti-Semitism during your stay?
""Not exactly anti-Semitism. You know, when you get to the place itself, you don't see everything that's being said outside," says Simon. "I started performing in Turkey 7 years ago, and I travel there several times a year, for ceremonies, Bar Mitzvah Shabbats, and celebrations. Most of the Jews in Turkey are from the expulsion from Spain, so they pray in the Spanish style. They are very sympathetic people and the atmosphere in the Jewish community is very warm and nice. They are very caring and hospitable people who take care of you in every detail.". It turns out that the Ashkenazi cantor is hosted in Turkey on various occasions.
""We had an interesting episode on Shabbat night. When we ate the Shabbat meal in one of the halls of the Jewish community. The hall was open to an amazing and fascinating view, overlooking the connection between Asia and Europe, while in the middle of the sea, right in front of us, stood the famous 'Miracle', with pictures of the Turkish dead on it. A particularly moving moment was when we began to sing 'Shalom Aleichem', with the muezzin in the background and the 'Miracle' standing in front of us.
""I will never forget this Sabbath," Simon concludes.
