Germany to compensate 25,000 Algerian Jews who survived the Holocaust

The German government has agreed to officially recognise 25,000 Algerian Jews as Holocaust survivors eligible for compensation.

The landmark ruling means later this year the survivors will be eligible for a one-time payment of €2,556.46 (£2,258.65).

During the World War II, Algeria in north Africa, like other French colonies, was under the control of the Vichy government in France, which collaborated with the Nazi regime that occupied the country between 1940 and 1944.

Jews who resided in Algeria between July 1940 and November 1942 will now be recognised as Holocaust survivors.

According to estimates, of the 25,000 Algerian Jews Holocaust survivors, approximately 20,000 reside in France, while 3,900 are based in Israel and the remainder are scattered across the world.

The Conference on Material Claims Against Germany, an international Jewish group that distributes Holocaust compensation funds on behalf of the German government, began negotiations with Berlin over the recognition of Algerian Jews in August 2017.

"This is a long overdue recognition for a large group of Jews in Algeria who suffered anti-Jewish measures by Nazi allies like the Vichy Regime," Greg Schneider, executive vice president of the Claims Conference, was quoted as saying by the Times of Israel.

"The Vichy government subjected these people to restrictions on education, political life, participation in civil society and employment, abolishing French citizenship and singling them out only because they were Jews."

While the payment sum was modest, Ruediger Mahlo, a Germany-based representative of the Claims Conference, said the importance of recognising survivors far outweighed any financial consideration.

"This payment is a small measure of the justice these survivors deserve, but the recognition is important and we will continue to fight until every survivor has been recognized," he said.

"It says to the world: 'this happened, we [Germany] caused this and we regret it so much we are willing to acknowledge it through a symbolic payment to those who are still alive'."

The compensation will be paid through the Claims Conference Hardship Fund and a registration centre has already opened in Paris - where the majority of Algerian Holocaust survivors live - and will remain open until April.

Smaller centres in Lyon, Marseille and Toulouse will also be set up.