Arab News Op-Eds

The entire interfaith community mourns the loss of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, the late president of the UAE, who oversaw dramatic transformation in his country — in terms of both economics and making the UAE a beacon of tolerance for the world.

Too often we have discussed the rise of the far right in Europe as the natural manifestation of a radical fringe, a pernicious threat that periodically wreaks social havoc but is far from the corridor of power and is ultimately contained. Last month’s French presidential election tells a different story.

When I was growing up in New York’s Jewish community, Ramadan was far from my consciousness. I knew little of its meaning for billions of Muslims around the world, much less the spiritual significance of the rituals.

Change is happening fast in Turkey, and countries from Europe to the Middle East and the US are taking note.

Indonesia is more than just the beaches of Bali, skyscrapers of Jakarta or coffee and clove fields of Java. It is also the fourth most-populous nation in the world, the home to more Muslims than any other country and a historic beacon of religious tolerance.

Last October, the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue decided to relocate from Vienna to Lisbon. The reasons why bear powerful lessons for us all.

The brazen missile attack on Abu Dhabi last week served as a reminder to the world that the Houthis pose a threat not just to the people of Yemen, but also to the broader stability of the Middle East and beyond. It is really a reminder no one should have needed.

As we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the US on Monday, let us recall the words of this peerless and universal civil rights leader, who emphasized that “our loyalties must transcend our race, our tribe, our class, and our nation.”

Much has been made in recent months about a weakened US, humbled by its setbacks in Afghanistan and distracted by internal turmoil, abandoning its allies in the Arab world, and leaving behind a region mired in confusion and turmoil.

In an era of unprecedented Jewish-Muslim breakthroughs, it takes a lot to surprise. Yet President Ilham Aliyev did just that last week when I met him in Baku, taking several groundbreaking actions to foster the long-term success of Azerbaijan’s Jewish community — the largest in the Muslim world — and elevate his country’s efforts to fight international anti-Semitism.