Since the end of World War II, Israel honors what they call the Righteous Among the Nations. Yad Vashem's website explains what being righteous means:
In a world of total moral collapse there was a small minority who mustered extraordinary courage to uphold human values. These were the Righteous Among the Nations. They stand in stark contrast to the mainstream of indifference and hostility that prevailed during the Holocaust. Contrary to the general trend, these rescuers regarded the Jews as fellow human beings who came within the bounds of their universe of obligation.
Although not honored (yet) by Yad Vashem, a little known Iranian diplomat assigned to his country's embassy in Paris, was responsible for saving anywhere from 500 to 1,000 Jews in the French capital. Abdol Hossein Sardari was a young, rich, dandy who suddenly found himself responsible for Iran's mission in Paris when the staff moved to Vichy. Many Iranian Jews were living in Paris at the time and logically went to the mission for help in getting the hell out of France (they obviously didn't want to be rounded up and killed simply because they were Jewish).
Sardari strongly believed that his job was to help ALL Iranians, regardless of race. The Jews of Iran are among the oldest of the diaspora. The Biblical Queen Esther and her uncle Mordechai are buriedunderneath a synagogue in the Iranian city of Hamadan. The Germans warped view of racial purity had actually worked in Iran's favor. Like Germans, Iranians (Iran means Land of the Aryans) were/are considered Aryans. Sardari used his lawyerly skills to argue that Iranian Jews were just that: Iranian and, as such, Aryan. Surely, the would not want to kill their own people. So persuasive was his argument, that the Racial Policy Department asked the opinion of the loftily named Research Institute for the History of the New Germany for their official opinion. Try as they might, they could not come up with an answer.
Tomb of Esther and Mordechai. Hamadan, Iran
He used this time to issue Iranian passports to as many Iranian Jews (and non Iranian Jews) as possible. Amazingly when Jews were forced to wear the yellow Star of David, an order was issued that exempted Iranian Jews. Even after Iran declared war on Nazi Germany, he stayed on as long as he could. Using his inheritance to continue issuing passports. Interestingly, President Ahmadinejad's administration thought it fitting to give the green light on a mini series loosely based on his life and exploits.
When asked by Yad Vashem about his wartime activities, Sardari simply said, “As you may know, I had the pleasure of being the Iranian consul in Paris during the German occupation of France, and as such it was my duty to save all Iranians, including Iranian Jews.” Indeed.
Featured photograph via bbc.co.uk
