Click here to watch: Plundered Syrian Torah scrolls said held by Al-Qaeda-linked rebels

Torah scrolls and other Judaica plundered from an ancient Damascus synagogue are being held by an Islamist group inside Syria, which is demanding the release of prisoners captured by the Assad regime in return for the items, The Times of Israel has learned. Reports on the destruction and looting of the millennia-old Jobar synagogue in Damascus emerged as early as March, but those responsible for the theft have never been clearly identified, as government and opposition forces traded accusations.

The Jobar synagogue was said to be built on the site where the prophet Elijah concealed himself from persecution and anointed his successor, Elisha, as a prophet. It had been damaged in March by mortars reportedly fired by Syrian government forces.

A source involved in negotiating for the release of the Judaica and their extraction from Syria, speaking to The Times of Israel on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, said the objects were being held inside Syria by a group affiliated with the Al-Nusra Front, an Islamist organization associated with al-Qaeda and defined as a terrorist organization by the US. He said the stolen items include at least three or four Torah scrolls as well as ancient Jewish scrolls and silverware. “They took everything they could get their hands on,” the source said. “They want prisoners held by Assad [in exchange for them].” The source said that Qatar may become involved in negotiating the release of the items as part of its diplomatic bid “to play both sides” and demonstrate negotiating capabilities with the Assad regime. Members of the expatriate Syrian-Jewish community are also reportedly involved in the talks. “They [the Qataris] have a certain interest in showing that they can handle elements they usually don’t get along with … the Qataris like to play on all fields,” he said.

Only a handful of Jews remain in Syria as a remnant of the ancient community which numbered 4,000 as late as 1992. Syrian rebels accused the government in March of looting the synagogue before burning it to the ground, allegations the regime vehemently denied. An inscription in English at the synagogue reads, “Shrine and synagogue of prophet Eliahou Hanabi since 720 B.C.,” although the actual date of founding is disputed. One of the earliest mentions of the synagogue is in the Talmud, which states that Rabbi Rafram bar Pappa prayed there. Another inscription, in Arabic, said it was the tomb of Al-Khidhr, held in some Islamic traditions to be a prophet who traveled with Moses.

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