Dan Alexe

Cabale à Kaboul

Dan Alexe

This is the story of the last two Jews in Afghanistan. All the other Jews have left a long time ago. Isaac and Zabulon live alone in the abandoned synagogue. The older of the two, the ruddy-faced Isaac, is Kabul’s sorcerer-healer. He makes cabalistic amulets, which he sells to Muslims to drive out demons from women, or from soldiers exhausted by the war. The other Jew, Zabulon, has the same Afghan customers, but sells them the wine, which he produces illegally.