Sadik Ahmed

Sadiq-Šaralop, Ahmed Ahmed Sadiq-Šaralop, the father of Zayneba Hardaga*, was born in Salonika, in 1884. From there, he moved to Monastir (Bitola) in Macedonia, where he traded with many Jews and even learned to speak Ladino. Sadiq-Šaralop was a good-natured man, loved by those from whom he bought and those to whom he sold. He felt most at home in the Jewish quarter of Bitola. In 1913, Sadiq-Šaralop arrived in Sarajevo, where he again struck up many friendships with Jews. He traded mostly with Isidor Papo, a thread merchant. They became good friends, although they crossed swords more than once regarding business. After a while, though, since his business didn’t flourish, Sadiq-Šaralop picked up and moved on to Konjic, where he opened a shop. Every day at noon, Sadiq-Šaralop had the custom of sitting at a cafe in the railway station, sipping coffee and catching up on the world news. Thus, he was well informed about the horrors transpiring in Sarajevo and the destiny of the Jews. One day in mid-1941, while sitting in the cafe, he saw his friend Isidor Papo arrive from Dubrovnik with his wife and two children and get on a train heading for Sarajevo. Sadiq-Šaralop leapt up, rushed towards his friend, and asked in astonishment where he was going. When he answered that he was going home to Sarajevo, Sadiq-Šaralop told him what was happening in Sarajevo. He told him that all the Jews were being deported and that his home was probably destroyed, or confiscated. “You won’t even have a chance to get off the train before they deport you to a concentration camp.” Isidor Papo simply looked at his Muslim friend without knowing what to do. Sadiq-Šaralop was quicker, though. The instant the train’s departing whistle sounded, he grabbed the Papos’ suitcases and Isidor’s children and pulled them off the train. Without hesitating, Sadiq-Šaralop took them directly to his home, where they stayed until arrangements could be made for them to acquire documents that would enable themto reach the Italian occupied zone. For his heroic deeds, Ahmed Sadiq-Šaralop paid with his life. After being denounced, he was deported to Jasenovac on the last transport, where he was killed for rescuing Jews. All the Papos survived the war. One son later moved to Israel and another to America. On January 29, 1984, Yad Vashem recognized Ahmed Sadiq-Šaralop as Righteous Among the Nations.