Jewish, Zionist and Israeli connections to Benin
Benin's 1993 cooperation agreement with the Zionist state, Israeli water and farm-training aid, the honorary consulate in Cotonou and a Christian support group for it
Benin signed a cooperation agreement with "Israel" in Jerusalem on 22 February 1993 and ratified it in 1997.[1] "Israel" has an honorary consul in Benin.[2] A Christian group in Cotonou campaigns to support the consulate.[3]
Jewish community and religious life
History
No historic Jewish community in Benin was found in the sources consulted.
The community today
No organised Jewish community was found in Benin.
How far is it Zionist? No Jewish communal body was found. Support for "Israel" in Benin comes from Christian supporters (see below).
Chabad
- Main article: Chabad-Lubavitch movement
There is no Chabad Bot page for Benin, and no permanent Chabad centre was found there. Benin is not among the ten countries with permanent centres under Chabad of Central Africa.[4] The Alliance of Rabbis in Islamic States lists no rabbi in Benin.[5]
Zionist movement and advocacy
The Groupe d'appui du Consulat d'Israël au Bénin (Gracib), chaired by Grâce Lawani, is a support group for the Israeli consulate. Its stated aims are to pass on "les valeurs du peuple israélien" to young Beninese, to let Benin benefit from Israeli commercial and intellectual assets, and to strengthen diplomatic relations. In late March 2014 it held a day of reflection in Cotonou for religious leaders and diplomats. Lawani framed the work in Christian terms: "Ce sont ceux qui croient en Jésus-Christ qui sont les enfants de Dieu… nous avons pensé qu'il faut agrandir le Consulat d'Israël au Bénin pour permettre aux jeunes de se former." Gracib and the consulate set up a joint working team to follow up the decisions.[3]
Israeli state and commercial ties
Cooperation agreement
The 1993 agreement covers cooperation in the political, economic, scientific, technical and cultural fields. It was signed in Jerusalem on 22 February 1993. Decree 97-355 of 21 July 1997 ratified it.[1]
Water and agriculture
Eli Ben-Tura was accredited as Israeli ambassador to Benin on 12 July 2018. When he presented his credentials he promised Israeli support on water management. On 16 October 2018 ten students from the Médji de Sékou agricultural college flew to the Agrostudies centre in "Israel" for training.[6]
Arms
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute records no Israeli deliveries of major weapons to Benin.[7]
Trade
The Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics does not list Benin separately in its main table of trade by country. Benin falls under "Other Countries".[8]
Migration and aliyah
The Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics does not list Benin separately in its table of immigrants by country of birth.[9]
Political interference
No sourced case of Israeli political interference in Benin was found.
No credible sourced link between Jeffrey Epstein and Zionist or Israeli activity in Benin was found, so this page has no Epstein section.
See also
- Christian Zionism
- Zionist movement
- Jewish, Zionist and Israeli connections to Togo
- Jewish, Zionist and Israeli connections to Nigeria
External links
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Government of Benin, Décret n° 97-355 du 21 juillet 1997 portant ratification de l'Accord de Coopération entre la République du Bénin et l'État d'Israël sgg.gouv.bj, 21 July 1997 (Beninese government-side).
- ↑ Benjamin Augé, Israel-Africa Relations: What Can We Learn from the Netanyahu Decade? Études de l'Ifri, Ifri, November 2020.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 La Nouvelle Tribune, Journée de réflexions du Gracib : pour la consolidation des relations bénino-israéliennes La Nouvelle Tribune, 2 April 2014.
- ↑ Shloimy Galperin, Getting Central Africa's Rabbis Into One Room Isn't Easy Chabad.org, 10 June 2026.
- ↑ Alliance of Rabbis in Islamic States, The Rabbis rabbisalliance.org, accessed 21 October 2026 (Alliance of Rabbis in Islamic States-side).
- ↑ JForum, Gestion de l'eau : La coopération Bénin-Israël se renforce JForum, 18 October 2018.
- ↑ Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, SIPRI Arms Transfers Database SIPRI, accessed 20 October 2026.
- ↑ Central Bureau of Statistics (Israel), Foreign Trade Statistics Monthly, Table D1: Trade Countries – Imports and Exports CBS, December 2025 issue (library copy) (Israeli government-side).
- ↑ Central Bureau of Statistics (Israel), Statistical Abstract of Israel 2024, Table 2.55: Immigrants, by period of immigration, country of birth and last country of residence CBS, 2024 (Israeli government-side).