Under high police protection, hundreds of Jews from Tunisia and around the world took part in an annual pilgrimage at the Ghriba synagogue on the Tunisian island of Djerba that's been depleted in recent years by fears of anti-Semitism from Salafist islamist groups.
The synagogue is considered the oldest in North Africa with tradition tracing its origins to exiles fleeing the destruction of the first Temple of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 BCE.
The pilgrimage is linked to the Jewish holiday of Lag Baomer and generally attracts thousands of Jews from Europe, Israel and the US.
At its peak in 2000, about 8,000 Jews came - many from Israel, Italy and France, where they or their forebears had moved over the years. Such crowds haven't returned since an al-Qaida-linked terrorist detonated a truck bomb at the synagogue in 2002, killing 21 people, mostly German tourists - and badly jolting the now-tiny Jewish community. Since then, lingering safety concerns following Tunisia's revolution two years ago reduced the number of pilgrims.
This year, organizers tried to inject new momentum to the pilgrimage, that's been depleted in recent years by fears of anti-Semitism.
The pilgrimage evokes a larger issue for Tunisia: How to convince Jews and other foreigners that stability has returned enough to merit a visit and help revive a weakened economy. The tourism trade accounts for about 400,000 jobs and 7 percent of economic output in Tunisia, an overwhelmingly Muslim country of nearly 11 million.
Despite the setbacks in recent years, Tunisia's Jews sounded optimistic.
"The atmosphere is good, and the preparations have been made carefully," said Perez Trabelsi, the president of Ghriba's Jewish community."Attendance will go up from one year to the next, to return to its top level - like before, » he stressed.
In 2011, the pilgrimage was called off in the wake of Tunisia's revolution which saw longtime President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali being ousted. Muslims Salafis chanted anti-Semitic slogans at their rallies.
Rene Trabelsi, a Paris-based tour operator, said the Tunisian government - led by the moderate Islamic party Ennahda - has "gone beyond our hopes" in providing security measures, police and troops for the pilgrimage.
After Saturday's Sabbath, the three-day pilgrimage culminated Sunday with the sale of necklaces, scarves and other craftwork to raise money for the synagogue. On Friday, as it got underway, families lit candles and the faithful marched through a white-washed archway lined with bunting and Tunisia's red crescent-and-star flag into the ornate, blue-and-white synagogue.
The pilgrims, mostly Sephardic Jews with roots in Tunisia, come for the festivities starting 33 days after the Jewish holiday of Passover that include singing, dancing and drinking the traditional "boukha" brandy made from dates or figs.
Tunisia’s religious affairs minister sent an adviser to "congratulate our Jewish brothers during their festival," and the Tourism Minister was expected at the Ghriba synagogue on Sunday.
Throughout the week, Tunisian police upped security on the island lof Djerba.Over a dozen military trucks were stationed on the island, and police checkpoints were set up around Jewish neighborhoods and along the road to the airport.
Tunisia’s Jewish population has shrunk to 1,500, down from 100,000 in the 1960s. Most left following the 1967 war between Israel and Arab countries.