INTRODUCTION

During long periods of its history, Yemen lived in a state of tolerance, goodwill and acceptance of the other. It also involved bloody sectarian conflicts in intermittent periods of history. The original inhabitants of Yemen before Islam embraced Judaism and Christianity, along with other religions. With the introduction of Islam in Yemen in the 1st AH (660 AD), Yemenis converted from followers of previous religions to Islam while a Jewish minority remains. With the establishment of the modern Yemeni state in September 1962 and the drafting of the constitution that considered Islam the official religion of the state, the Jewish minority enjoyed freedom of religion and the state's protection.