Djerba -- Tunisia plans to seek UNESCO World Heritage status for the island of Djerba, site of Africa's oldest synagogue and an annual Jewish pilgrimage, its culture minister said on Sunday. Speaking on the last day of the pilgrimage to the Ghriba synagogue, Mohamed Zine El-Abidine said the island was important for its "cultural and religious uniqueness". Some 3,000 pilgrims attended this year's Jewish pilgrimage to the island, which ended Sunday under tight security following a string of jihadist attacks in Tunisia. Around 1,500 Jews live in Tunisia today, down from an estimated 100,000 before the country won independence from France in 1956. "Firstly... Tunisia is a country several thousand years old, with a deep-rooted history of openness to all religions," he told AFP.

Source: The China Post May 14, 2017 16:18 UTC