JEWS MARK 190TH ANNIVERSARY OF THEIR COMMUNITY IN ZAGREB

ZAGREB, Dec 2 (Hina) - The Jewish Community of Zagreb was founded in 1806 when it included 20 families with 75 members. From the early nineteenth century to 1940 the number of the Jewish Community's members rose to 11,000, representing seven per cent of all Zagreb residents at the time. At the moment there are about 1,500 members of the Community in the Croatian capital, who will mark the 190th anniversary of the Community by several events from 4 to 6 December, 1996. The central ceremony would be a symposium entitled "Two Centuries of History and Culture of Jews in Zagreb and Croatia," the Community's head Ognjen Kraus said at a news conference in Zagreb on Monday. An exhibition entitled "Zagreb Synagogue - Reliquiae Reliquiarum," would be opened on December 5, Kraus added. The construction of the Zagreb synagogue began in 1866, and the synagogue was consecrated on September 27, 1867. It was pulled down in May 1942 during the Independent State of Croatia. According to Kraus, the Jewish Community intends to build a memorial and multicultural centre at the spot of the former synagogue, where memorial synagogue and the Jewish Museum are to be constructed as well. (hina) mm mš 022047 MET dec 96