600 ARABIA
Jews had formed many warlike tribes. They were renowned, especially in Yathuolb (Medina), Khaiba and Taima, for their advanced knowledge of irrigation. They introduced the date palm, grape vines and the honey bee.
602 - 628 PERSIAN CAMPAIGN - PERSIAN CAMPAIGN – KHOSROW (Khosroe) II (King of Persia)
Attacked Heraclius, the Eastern Roman Emperor, and succeeded for a time in reconquering all of Western Asia and some of Egypt. Heraclius, supported by Caucasian tribes and the Khazars, defeated him at Ctesiphon. These loses led to his murder in 628 by Persian assassins. The Jews took an active part in many of his campaigns believing that this was the beginning of the Age of Redemption.
607 JERUSALEM
Despite a Roman ban, Jews had settled in Jerusalem. The local Byzantine governor ordered all of them to be baptized, partly as a result of the tension between the Persian and the Byzantine kingdom.
608 - 610 BYZANTINE EMPIRE
Anti-Jewish pogroms broke out from Syria to Asia Minor.
608 September, ANTIOCH (Syria)
Upon receiving word of the imminent approach of the Persians, the Jews rioted, killing the Christian Patriarch in revenge for the severe repression they had suffered. This facilitated the entrance of Persian troops under Khosrow II . In Trye, the Jews supposedly began a rebellion and called for their co-religionist help, which resulted in the gates being closed to Jews, and those there were held as hostages.
|