The idea for a synagogue was originally requested by the 19th-century Italian Jewish statesman Giacomo Di Castelnuovo, and finally established in 1937 by French architect Victor Valensi [fr], who chose to design it in the Art Deco style.

[1] The synagogue was shut down by Nazi Germany during the German occupation of Tunisia, but resumed operations after the country was liberated by Allied forces.

[2] In 1967, anti-Jewish rioters motivated by the then-ongoing Six-Day War trashed and looted the synagogue, burning it to the ground and destroying the sacred Torah scrolls, resulting in the abandonment of the building.

[3] On 24 June 2022, a person ran towards the synagogue and stabbed two officers, lightly injuring them.

[4][5] Authorities identified the stabbing as a terrorist attack and said its perpetrator had previously been arrested on terrorism and violence-related charges.