Breaking Walls, Building Bridges: Historic Jewish-Muslim Women’s Summit
Muslim women leaders including Dr. Anila Ali stand against antisemitism at personal risk, meeting Israeli counterparts in paradigm-shifting dialogue organized by Talking Peace and the Abrahamic Movement
In a discreet yet groundbreaking summit that has the potential to reshape voices in the Middle East and beyond, influential Jewish and Muslim women leaders came together for a historic dialogue that proved peace is not just a dream—but a plan in motion.
The Historic Breakthrough
What made this summit truly unprecedented was not just that it happened—but who participated and what they represented.
🌟 The Paradigm Shift
The summit witnessed senior leaders from Israel’s Religious Zionism meeting Muslim counterparts who embrace Israel and reject extremism. This encounter is vital to evolving the Israeli political discourse—moving toward a space that leaves room for partnership with those who seek it.
Concurrently, the summit showed the global Muslim community an Israel they rarely see: a tapestry of proud Arab-Israelis and religious Jewish pioneers of interfaith peace working side by side.
The Courageous Muslim Women
At the heart of this breakthrough were Muslim women leaders who answered Tom Wegner’s call despite immense personal risks. They traveled across vast geographical and cultural distances to tell Israeli women face-to-face that antisemitism does not represent them and that they are true partners in the fight against it.
🌹 Dr. Anila Ali: A Legacy of Bridge-Building
Dr. Anila Ali’s presence at this summit represents decades of courageous interfaith work. As the founder of AMMWEC—the first-ever Muslim women’s civil rights movement—she has consistently stood against extremism in all its forms, from Hamas to the Muslim Brotherhood, while defending persecuted Christians in Pakistan and worldwide.
Her participation in this Jewish-Muslim women’s summit is a natural extension of her family’s legacy. Her father, Qutub-ud-din Aziz, was one of Pakistan’s founding fathers and a journalist who defended minority rights. Her grandmothers founded institutions promoting respect for all faiths.
For Dr. Ali to stand with Israeli Jewish women and declare that antisemitism does not represent Islam—despite facing persecution herself for such stands—is an act of extraordinary moral courage.
What Made This Summit Different
Interfaith dialogues happen regularly. What made this summit historic was its strategic positioning and the specific participants involved:
⭐ Key Breakthrough Elements
- Religious Zionist leaders engaging with Muslims who support Israel’s right to exist—a conversation rarely happening in public
- Muslim women leaders explicitly condemning antisemitism to Israeli counterparts—challenging narratives that conflate criticism of Israel with hatred of Jews
- Arab-Israeli voices like Samah Sakran being highlighted, showing Muslim communities a complex Israel beyond simplistic narratives
- Personal risk being openly acknowledged—participants understand they face backlash from extremists on all sides
- Discrete but strategic—not a publicity stunt, but a serious effort to shift political and religious discourse
- Women-led—recognizing that women are often the most effective peace-builders and bridge-builders
The Israeli Perspective: A Tapestry Revealed
Tom Wegner emphasized that the summit was also about showing the global Muslim community “an Israel they rarely see: a tapestry of proud Arab-Israelis like Samah Sakran and religious Jewish pioneers of interfaith peace.”
Dr. Anila Ali was particularly moved by meeting Samah Sakran, describing her as “an emerging Muslim leader from Israel.” In a beautiful gesture of Islamic solidarity that transcends borders and politics, Dr. Ali publicly wished Sakran “Ramadan Kareem”—demonstrating that Muslim sisterhood can flourish even across the deepest geopolitical divides.
This personal connection between Dr. Ali—a Pakistani-American Muslim fighting for persecuted Christians—and Samah Sakran—an Israeli Muslim woman—symbolizes the summit’s deepest achievement: proving that Muslim women leaders can recognize each other’s humanity and share in their faith traditions regardless of national borders or political conflicts.
This two-way bridge-building is essential. Just as Muslim communities need to see Israelis committed to peace and coexistence, Israeli communities need to see Muslims who reject extremism and antisemitism—not as exceptions, but as representatives of a broader reality.
🤝 True Partnership Defined
These Muslim women leaders didn’t come to this summit to lecture Israelis or demand concessions. They came as partners in the fight against antisemitism—a fight that threatens not just Jewish communities but all who value human dignity and reject hatred.
As Tom Wegner put it: “Your stand against antisemitism, often at great personal cost, is the foundation upon which a lasting Abrahamic partnership will be built.”
The Personal Costs
Wegner specifically acknowledged the “immense personal risks” these women took to participate. This is not hyperbole. Muslim leaders who engage with Israeli counterparts and condemn antisemitism face:
- Death threats from extremist groups within their own communities
- Social ostracism and being labeled as traitors or sellouts
- Family pressure to cease their advocacy
- Online harassment campaigns designed to silence them
- Professional consequences in communities where anti-Israel sentiment is dominant
- Character assassination through false accusations about their motives
Dr. Anila Ali knows these risks intimately. As we’ve reported previously, she faces persecution from multiple sides—from extremist Muslims who see her defense of Christians as betrayal, from those who question why a Muslim would stand with Israel against antisemitism, and even from bureaucratic obstacles in her advocacy work.
The Abrahamic Movement’s Vision
Tom Wegner’s Abrahamic Movement is built on the belief that Jews, Christians, and Muslims—as children of Abraham—share far more than divides them. This summit embodies that vision by creating space for:
- Honest dialogue about difficult topics like antisemitism and Islamophobia
- Strategic partnerships that can shift political discourse
- Women’s leadership in peacebuilding
- Personal relationships that transcend geopolitical conflicts
- Showing both communities alternatives to extremism
🕊️ A Shared Mission
We are leaving this summit with a shared mission: to prove that peace is not a dream, but a plan in motion.
What Comes Next
The success of this summit will be measured not by the dialogue itself, but by what follows. Can these relationships:
- Influence Israeli political discourse to make space for partnership with peace-seeking Muslims?
- Change Muslim community narratives about Israel and Jewish people?
- Create models for other interfaith engagements?
- Empower more moderate voices on all sides?
- Demonstrate to extremists that their hatred doesn’t represent the majority?
The organizers believe the answer is yes—but only if this summit is the beginning, not the end.
Why This Matters Now
This summit takes place at a critical moment. Antisemitism is rising globally. Anti-Muslim hatred is also increasing. The Middle East remains a powder keg. And voices of moderation are often drowned out by extremists on all sides.
Events like this summit prove that another path exists. When Muslim women leaders like Dr. Anila Ali, Soraya Deen, Manel Msalmi, and Salima Al Musalima stand with Israeli Jewish women and declare that antisemitism is not Islam, they are doing more than building bridges—they are dismantling the foundations of hatred itself.
A Testament to Courage
Faith & Freedom News has long reported on Dr. Anila Ali’s extraordinary work—from founding the first Muslim women’s civil rights movement, to standing with persecuted Christians in Pakistan, to confronting the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas. Her participation in this Jewish-Muslim women’s summit is entirely consistent with her lifelong commitment to fighting hatred in all its forms.
But she didn’t go alone. Soraya Deen, Manel Msalmi, and Salima Al Musalima joined her in this courageous stand. Together, they represent a voice within Islam that refuses to be silent, refuses to let extremists define their faith, and refuses to accept that peace is impossible.
🌍 The Global Impact
This wasn’t just a meeting between Israeli and Muslim women. It was a declaration to the world: We will not let hatred win. We will not let extremists on any side define our faiths. We will build bridges even when others try to burn them.
And we will do it together—as partners, not adversaries.
About this summit: This historic Jewish-Muslim women’s summit was organized by Talking Peace and convened by Tom Wegner, Founder of the Abrahamic Movement. For more information about AMMWEC and Dr. Anila Ali’s work, visit our previous coverage. For more faith and freedom news, visit Faith & Freedom News.
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