היה היה. היה מלך, למלך הזה היו שתי בנות. יום אחד, הוא אמר להן, שהוא רוצה לנסוע לחאג', הוא נוסע לחאג'. מה אתן רוצות (שאביא לכן)? הוא רוצה ללכת לחאג', מה אתן רוצות (שאביא לכן)? אביא לכן... מתנות. הבכורה אמרה לו: תביא לי בגדים ותביא לי כאלה ותביא לי אחרים. הצעירה אמרה לו: לך בשלום ושוב בשלום, ואני אוהב אותך כמו מלח. כמה יקר הוא המלח. אוהב אותך כך. הוא חזר, הוא נסע וחזר. הוא חזר מן החאג', וקרא לבנותיו. אמר להן: הבכורה, מה היא ביקשה? הוא נתן לה את זה. הקטנה, מה היא ביקשה? לאהוב אותו כמו מלח. הוא גירש אותה. ואמר לה: למה מה זה מלח כך שאת אוהבת אותי כמו מלח? אינני מסכים, אני לא רוצה אותך ולא מעוניין במלח שלך. הוא כעס עליה. וגירש אותה מהבית. המסכנה הזאת, נשארה בשלה. יום אחד ראה אותה בן של סולטן. והתאהב בה, ונישא לה. היא אמרה שהיא רוצה להתנקם באביה. מדוע הוא גירש אותה מה...? היא הכינה להם סעודה גדולה. ולא שמה ולו טיפת מלח, במאכלים. הם התישבו לאכול, ולא יכלו לאכול. היא אמרה להם: למה אתם לא אוכלים? מה זה? הם אמרו לה: זה הכל בלי מלח, איך אנחנו יכולים לאכול את זה? היא אמרה לו: קיראו לאבא שלה. אימרו לו: איך זה שהוא לא הבין? עד כמה יש במלח יוקרה. אני עשיתי את כל זה בלי מלח כדי שידע עד כמה עזה יוקרתו של המלח. ושלום עליכם.

?A: So they were not (involved) in… smuggling… the people

.B: They didn't take money. They (just) assisted.

.A: They assisted, yes

.B: Yes. Anyone who wanted… they arranged a way (out) for him.

.A: It's a pity that they were caught. It's a pity that they were caught.

...B: Yes. That (smuggling from) Baṣġa was a disaster. A: How terrible was Baṣġa and its 

.B: I… I knew more or less all these boys. I used to go to my sister Widād. She was married (and lived) there. I used to go. They were all my age

...A: Oh no! B: All of them were the same… age of mine. So

.A: The one that they killed by hanging, a boy, they said (he was) 16 years old

B: This… Dawūd Ġāli, 1 Refers to Iraqi Jews that cooperated with the Jewish Agency and assisted Jews in being smuggled out of Iraq through the Iranian border. 2 Refers to 9 Jewish boys that were caught while trying to .

...escape out of Iraq and were hung in Baghdad on January 27th 1969. (was) our neighbor. The other Dawūd, he    

.A: How many boys did they kill by hanging in Baṣġa? From the boys, They said that only one boy

?C: No! How come only one boy? B: No! How come one? Six (or) seven. A: From the… from the Jews

?B: Six (or) seve… Yes! C: Yes! What (did you think) then

:(B: Six (or) seven. (coffee is brought to the participants

.D: This coffee didn't turn out good. You confused us with the talking and it boiled

:(C: What's that? D: The coffee. (back to the subject

...A: (Just) a second! B: They had killed six (or) seven by hangin

?A: Jews

B: Jews. They were eleven. Eleven (who were) hung at the same day. and I, I got out of the… at night we heard the… They said they are killing them by hanging.

!A: How terrible is that 

.B: There was… a trial. Ok, I had… I had (to go to) my college. We lived in Masbaḥ, I had to go to Bāb ᵊl-Mˁad̠̟d̠̟am 

.A: I… (but) We are talking about Baṣġa. B: They hung them in Baghdad, In Sāḥǝt ᵊl-Taḥrīr

?A: They brought Nāǧi Zǝlxa to Baghdad? B: They hung all of them in Sāḥǝt ᵊl-Taḥrīr. (Did you think) Otherwise

(C: Yes. (Did you think) Otherwise? All of them. A: Not in Baṣġa? B: Which Baṣġa? (Rhetorically

!C: No! A: Oh I wish their heads would come off! Oh let their name be erased 

C: All of them in Baghdad. B: So I took one of these service taxis. I got out of the house I took a service taxi, (and) went to the college. I didn't know! How could I know? I saw that the streets look different. The people are troubled and so on. I got till Sāhǝt ᵊt-Taḥrīr. And I saw them hung in front of me.

A: Oh no! (Literally: grief!)

B: Ok. I wouldn't go to the college anymore. (Rhetorically: who will go to the college anymore?) (Said to the taxi driver:) please let me get down! I got off, I made a turn from Sāhǝt ᵊt-Taḥrīr, (and) I went through Nid̠̟āl street, not through Saˁadūn street. I walked on Nid̠̟āl street and I went back, I went to Xālda's at the time.

The Jew and the jar It was… There were many… around four or five Jewish men, every Saturday they used to fill their pockets with watermelon seeds, and there was a coffee shop, they went to sit in the coffee shop. Then… they were sitting in the coffee shop, And there was someone who had a donkey on which he used to load jugs. He went to sell them. Every time he used to pass by (the coffee shop) he saw them and started to curse and to come down on the Jews. One time, One of the men that sat there said: No one but me can deal with him. What do you intend to do to him? he told them: I won't say. I will do the thing and then (you will see). He (the donkey owner) came by all cocky on Saturday cursing and coming down on the Jews. The other one prepared a needle, got close to the donkey, (and) pricked his ears with the needle. It hurt him (the donkey), (it was a) strong prick. It hurt him, and he started to jump. He shook off and all the jugs fell down on the ground. This guy went to complain about him, to the police. They brought him (to the police). Why did you break his jugs? he told him (to the police and shook off his cargo. I have nothing to do with it (rhetorically: what do I have with it?). They told him (to the donkey's owner): Quickly! They kickedofficer): I didn't break his jugs. I went to whisper in his (the donkey's) ears. I told him: If you are a Jew who is the son of a Jew like he says, how come... today is Saturday, How come you work on Saturdays? And he got angry him out, The donkey's owner. And he (the Jew) came out innocent.

התרגום באדיבות ד"ר אסף בר משה