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Western involvement in the Muslim countries led to changes in the teaching conditions, methods and curriculum that were common in Jewish communities. The Alliance Israélite Universelle was founded in Paris in 1860. The schools run by that organization in Muslim countries also gave rise to changes in the traditional religious schools (usually called kuttab) that only boys attended.
Alliance schools advocated equality and religious tolerance and encouraged a wide range of reforms. The organization sought to revitalize Judaism by contributing to the cultural and educational development of the Jews in Muslim countries. Influenced by the activities of the Alliance network, a new secular French-Jewish circle was formed.
