II, Libya's Jewish population was subjected to anti-Semitic laws by the Fascist Italian regime and deportations by German troops. After the war, anti-Jewish violence caused many Jews to leave the country usually for Palestine. A savage pogrom in Tripoli on 5 November 1945, killed more than 140 Jews and wounded hundreds more. Almost every synagogue was looted. In June 1948, when there was a recorded 38,000 Jews in Libya, rioters murdered another 12 Jews and destroyed 280 Jewish homes. Thousands of Jews fled the country after Libya was granted independence and membership in the Arab League in 1951. After the Six-Day War, the Jewish population of 7,000 was again subjected to pogroms in which 18 were killed, and many more injured, sparking a near-total exodus that left fewer than 100 Jews in Libya. Under former ruler Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, the situation became a lot worse, as all Jewish property was confiscated and all debts to Jews cancelled. In 1999, the synagogue in Tripoli was renovated, however, it was not reopened. The last Jew living in Libya, Esmeralda Meghnagi, died in February 2002. This marked the end of one of the world's oldest Jewish communities, which traced its origins to the 4th century BC. Religiosity According to a survey by Arab Barometer, the percentage of Libyans identifying themselves as non-religious increased from around 10% in 2013 to around 25% in 2018. In the survey, about a third of the young Libyans described themselves as non-religious. According to the Arab Barometer Survey in 2018, 99.9% in Libya identified as Muslim, while 0.1% identified as having No Religion. This survey was based on a sample size of 1,962 people in Libya. Buddhism With 0.3% of its population identifying as Buddhist, Libya has the largest proportion of Buddhists of any North African country. Many Buddhists are immigrants from Asia. However, there are no Buddhist pagodas or temples in Libya. Hinduism There are very few Hindus in Libya. They mainly traveled from India to work in Libya. Around 15-16 thousand Hindus resided till 2011. But when war broke out, many returned to India. See also Demographics of Libya References