Sharing the Same Fate: Muslims and Jews of the Balkans · 59Jewish properties, occupied their houses and shops, and burned their
quarters in western Anatolia. The occupation continued for three years.
After the War of Liberation, the Turks regained western Anatolia in Sep-
tember 1922. The exchange of populations between Greece and Turkey
was decided at the Lausanne Peace Conference in 1922–23. Muslims of
Greece and Greeks of Turkey were exchanged. The only exceptions were
Greeks of Istanbul and Muslims of western Thrace. Greeks of Turkey who
were exchanged were settled in the houses of Muslims who left Greece
in the exchange. Those Greeks accused the Jews of not supporting their
fight against the Turks. Registering in different election zones, the Greek
government prevented the cooperation of the Jews and Turks of west-
ern Thrace during elections. Several decisions were made in order to de-
stroy the Jews economically. Jewish schools were closed. Education in the
Greek language was made mandatory.^38
In 1936, the Venizelos government was dismissed and the bans on the
Jews were lightened. However, the beginning of World War II brought
heavier days for the Jews of Greece. Germany and her allies occupied
Greek lands. Bulgaria occupied western Thrace and eastern Macedonia.
More than 10,000 Jews were sent to death camps. Western and central
Greek lands—Lesvos, Chios, and Thessaloniki—were occupied by the
Italian troops. The situation of the Jews of those places was not as bad as
the others. However, in those places that fell under German occupation,
the Nazis and their Greek collaborators sent the Jews to Nazi camps in
September 1943. Approximately 56,000 Jews of Thessaloniki were sent to
camps. Jewish houses, shops, and synagogues were given to the Greeks.
Anti-Semitic regulations in Greece were not completely canceled until
after World War II. The number of Jews in Greece was 10,000 after World
War II and 6,000 in 2010. They are still under religious, educational, and
political pressure.^39
Both the Treaty of Athens, which was signed after the Balkan Wars,
and the Treaty of Lausanne, which was signed after the Turkish War of In-
dependence, mentioned the Muslims as a minority in Greece. However,
the Greek government did not recognize their Turkish identity. Cemiyet-i
Islamiye, their representative organization, had become inefficient.^40 The
Greek government involved itself in the religious life of the Muslims, did
not recognize its elected religious leaders (muftis), put their pious foun-
dations under government control, and forced the Turks to leave Greece.
Halit Eren points out that there are about 150,000 Turks in western Thrace,