Witness

The Last Jew of Babylon

In a personal tale, Ezra, an Iraqi Jew searches for a lost love from 50 years ago.

Ezra Levy is one of the last of his kind – a Jew in Iraq.

His tale is a quest for lost love, a woman called Daisy whom he last saw more than 50 years ago.

The Last Jew of Babylon follows Ezra, a garrulous, sprite-like figure with infectious energy, as he goes in search of a memory and his youth.

Clutching a photo of the young, beautiful Daisy, the spry 85-year-old sets off for Israel and a family he has not seen for many years.

Once there, Ezra challenges the assumption that in an anti-Semitic world, Jews are better off in Israel than elsewhere.  

He is proud of his heritage, both Iraqi and Jewish, but struggles to overcome the cultural differences in his new homeland.

As a tolerant man in an intolerant society, he finds he no longer quite fits in Israel – an Arab-Jew in a land where even those who once lived in Iraq have lost touch with their Arabic roots and now no longer even speak the language.

Yet he struggles on, determined to find his love, and keep a mischievous grin on his face while he does it.

In a very personal account, journalist Inigo Gilmore befriends Ezra and follows him as he tracks Daisy down, bringing the old man’s journey to life.

But is Daisy alive and can anyone live up to a 50-year-old ideal?

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