Wikipedia says Jews prospered even under the Dhimmitude of the Arab Muslims, where they had fled seeking protection from the Christians.
"Despite such setbacks, the Jews controlled much of the commerce in Palestine and as dhimmi prospered despite certain restrictions against them. Culturally, the Jews continued to advance, and the niqqud seems to have been invented in Tiberias in the era of Islamic Caliphate. Preferring the benign descrimination of the Arabs to the outright slaughter frequently suffered under Christian rule, the Jews defended Jerusalem and Haifa against the Crusaders in 1099 during the First Crusade: failure, in this instance, meant massacre. At the time of the First Crusade there were Jewish communities throughout the country which included Jerusalem, Tiberias, Ramleh, Ashkelon, Caesarea, and Gaza. While these population centres were not specifically targeted by the Crusader Kingdoms, Jewish quality of life under Crusader rule was undoubtedly worse and more dangerous." |
