20 | DECEMBER 2 • 2021
OUR COMMUNITY
The groundbreaking diplomacy between Israel
and a number of its Arab neighbors, long sworn
enemies, overturned traditional thinking in the
region, leading to new chapters of economic activ-
ity, security cooperation, cultural partnerships and
expanding Jewish life.
At the heart of these tectonic shifts are people
fostering change and building bridges in ways never
thought possible. And I got to see and experience it
firsthand last month.
I was joined by eight other young professionals
from Detroit, and a handful of peers from the U.S.
and Israel who explored this transformative narra-
Local leaders travel to the UAE on a JDC Entwine mission.
From Detroit to Dubai
ADAM FINKEL CONTRIBUTING WRITER
A
s I sat down to write this piece, another historic first occurred: Israel, the
U.S., Bahrain and the UAE held joint military exercises together. This
moment is but one of many over 15 months of near-miraculous progress
since the launch of the Abraham Accords.
tive in the UAE. We saw an emerging Jewish com-
munity full of possibility, through the lens of shared
responsibility.
NEXTGen Detroit helped to organize the trip
run by Entwine, the young professionals’ plat-
form of the American Jewish Joint Distribution
Committee (JDC). Tomer Moked, director of
NEXTGen Detroit, said the trip came on the heels
of a virtual experience organized by Entwine during
the pandemic for young professionals in the com-
munity to have an immersive visit to see Jewish life
in Morocco.
“We knew it would be incredibly interesting to
make connections between Detroit and other global
Jewish communities,” Moked shared. “The idea to
1: Majed Alseyabi of
the UAE, center, joins
Roman Golshteyn
and Adam Finkel of
Detroit. Alseyabi also
joined several hundred
Russian Jews visiting
the UAE over Shabbat.
2: Warren Frenkel,
Shimon Gal Levy and
Adam Finkel of Detroit
with Ambassador
Houda Nonoo of
Bahrain. Ambassador
Nonoo was the first
Jewish ambassador
from the Arab region.
3: The Entwine
delegation visited with
one of the last few
Jewish families that
immigrated to the UAE
from Yemen.
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