Among the Righteous

Disturbed by the growing rift between Arabs and Jews, particularly some Arabs' denial of the Holocaust, author Robert Satloff undertook an eight-year quest to find out if any Arabs had tried to help Jews escape the Nazis. Directed by William Cran and narrated by Robert MacNeil, this PBS-aired documentary based on Satloff's titular book describes that effort, which eventually required numerous researchers and trips to 11 countries on four continents. During World War II, the Nazis' penetration in Arab nations like Morocco and Tunisia was extensive, and aided by Vichy French and Fascist Italian collaborators, they set out to eliminate local Jews (at one time, Arab lands held 100 concentration camps, in which Jews were routinely rounded up, and sometimes deported to Europe, where certain death awaited). But Satloff, director of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, also uncovered individual acts of Arab kindness and compassion, including a man who hid Jews on his Tunisian farm and an Arab nobleman who harbored Jewish escapees from a nearby detention center. Interspersed with archival and contemporary footage are interviews with Jewish survivors, Arab witnesses to atrocities against Jews, and others from both communities who provide first-hand accounts of their experiences. A moving presentation of a little-known aspect of WWII history, this is recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (S. Rees)