The large city of Vlore was the center of Albanian Jewish life in modern times, although little remains of it today.
Near the Historical Museum of the city is the Street of the Jews. A plaque on one of the buildings pays homage to the Jewish inhabitants of Vlore. An adjoining plaque indicates that the Street of the Jews is “protected by the state”.
Honoring Albanian rescuers
The Street of the Jews was so named after a ceremony where a plaque was unveiled honoring the rescue of the region’s Jews by Catholic and Muslim inhabitants during the war. Among them Anna Kohen, who with her family was in hiding and then took refuge in the United States, and was the source of this recognition.
Then head to the Muradie Mosque. Adjacent to the building, you will notice a beautiful three-storey building. This building, built in 1928, was successively one of the city’s three synagogues, a library, and then a private school. It is still owned by the Jewish community.