When Benjamin Netanyahu visited Oman in 2018 in a gesture of goodwill to Israel’s neighbours, the welcome was not universal. For an Israeli Prime Minister to be warmly greeted in a proud Arab state was, for some, far too much. The Omani foreign minister, Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, was asked on Al Jazeera why the visit had been allowed. The reply went viral: ‘Why not? Is it forbidden to us? Israel is a nation among the nations of the Middle East. We should embark on a new journey for the future.’
A new narrative is emerging in the Middle East. New maps of the Muslim mind are being drawn and old hatreds are on the run. The anti-Semitic craze to destroy Israel was powerful in the 1960s, uniting Egypt’s President Nasser with his fellow Arabs. But now, Sunni Arab neighbours are changing course. Islamist leaders are losing their appeal — at a time when Iran, with its brand of theological fascism, poses a threat to Israel and the Arab world alike.
Polls show that the percentage of Arabs expressing trust in Islamist parties has fallen by well over a third since the uprisings of 2011. Three-quarters of Iraqis say they do not trust Islamist parties at all, and the number of young people who say they’re ‘not religious’ is also on the rise. This generation wants Arab leaders to increase economic prosperity and minimise political conflicts. And to build alliances, including with Israel.
New maps of the Muslim mind are being drawn and old hatreds are on the run
This has been the ‘Year of Tolerance’ in the United Arab Emirates. In February, an open-air mass for 170,000 Catholics was celebrated by Pope Francis, the first pontiff to visit the Arabian peninsula. To commemorate the Pope’s visit, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Mohammed bin Zayed, announced the construction in the UAE capital of the Abrahamic Family House: a synagogue, a church and a mosque within a single complex, a hub for highlighting history and a symbol of hope for a new future of co-existence.
In Dubai, Jews have been worshipping at a synagogue for several years now.
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