Courtesy of JNS.
Jewish businessman Eitan Neishlos (second from left) and Emirati strategist Amjad Tahad (second from right) meet with Australian Israel Parliamentary Group Senators Debra O’Neill and David Fawcett in Canberra, Australia, Nov. 5, 2024
(JNS) — A Muslim political strategist from the United Arab Emirates and a Jewish entrepreneur based in Dubai are promoting the landmark Abraham Accords during a joint tour of Australia this week, seeking to combat antisemitism and spread Jewish-Arab coexistence.
The unusual 10-day mission to Australia comes as Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza enters its second year, with Jewish communities facing a sharp rise in antisemitism around the globe.
“We are standing shoulder to shoulder and sending a message of Arab-Jewish solidarity,” Eitan Neishlos, a Dubai-based Jewish businessman, told JNS on Tuesday. “It is especially during times of chaos that we need to introduce a new narrative and adopt the values of the Abraham Accords where Muslims, Christians and Jews are living side by side,” he added.
The 2020 Abraham Accords, reached under the Trump administration, saw Israel make peace with four Arab countries, led by the United Arab Emirates.
“Even when there is darkness in the Middle East, the light is in the Abraham Accords, which is the best example of peace,” said Emirati strategist Amjad Tahad.
He noted that the UAE has maintained its strong relationship with Israel despite the pressures of the Islamic Republic and Iran’s proxies in the year since the war began.
The private 10-day tour — supported by the Jewish National Fund and StandWithUs Australia — includes meetings with lawmakers and parliamentarians in Canberra, and with students and Jewish communities in Sydney and Melbourne.
The two first connected at a Holocaust Remembrance Day event organized by the Israeli Embassy in Abu Dhabi last year and felt that coming together on a joint trip was stronger than anything they could do individually.
“We are here to send a message to Jewish communities and people of all faiths that we have no tolerance for antisemitism, hate and extremism,” said Tahad. “Antisemitism is not an opinion, it is a crime,” he said.
The Emirati said that he had also held political discussions in Australia about banning the Muslim Brotherhood, as Arab countries in the region, including Egypt and the UAE, have done.
The Australian government has maintained a strongly neutral policy during the war, and, along with other countries, has urged Israel to work toward a ceasefire.
Neishlos, a grandson of Holocaust survivors who relocated to the UAE from Australia after the Abraham Accords were signed and has been involved in Holocaust education in the Gulf state, said that he could “see the pain in the eyes” of members of Australia’s Jewish communities.
“We are breaking stereotypes and showing what real peace looks like,” he said.
“In light of the profound challenges we have faced since the events of Oct. 7 and amid the ensuing war, we are presented with a unique and powerful opportunity to reflect on and encourage the prospects for peace between Jews and Arabs,” said Steven Salamon, president of JNF Australia in a written statement.
“The ongoing spirit and strength of the Abraham Accords has shown that even in difficult times, pathways to cooperation and understanding can continue to emerge and strengthen our collective future.”
