A new Arabic-language video about diversity and coexistence in Israel, produced as part of the American Jewish Committee's "An al-Yahud" (About the Jews) series, went live on Tuesday.
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The new animated short, Is Israel Only for Jews?, presents the reality of life in Israel. Although Jews make up a majority of Israel's citizens, approximately one out of every five Israelis is Arab, and all citizens are afforded the same rights and freedoms under the law. The government pays the salaries of imams and funds the construction of mosques in Israel, and Jerusalem is home to churches of almost every Christian denomination in the world. The film highlights the participation of Arab citizens in Israeli government, business, and academia and notes that while Israelis seldom agree on government policies, the right to protest and due process are ensured for all. The film is also being released in English.
"As the Arab world displays greater openness to Israel, it is important that perceptions of the Jewish state reflect its remarkable pluralism and diversity," said AJC CEO David Harris. "Israel is, at once, the homeland of the Jewish people and a thriving democracy that is home to more than 1.8 million Arab citizens, all of whom enjoy equal rights and freedoms.
While Is Israel Only for Jews? does not focus on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, it acknowledges that the conflict "requires meaningful and lasting resolution," while challenging the notion common in the Arab world that Israelis are all Jewish or that Arabs in the Jewish state are oppressed. The film acknowledges inequalities and outstanding social challenges within Israel.
"The barriers to peace between Israel and the Palestinians are political, not religious or ethnic," added Harris. "Muslims, Christians, Jews, Druze, Bahai, and people of other faiths live, work, and worship freely in the Jewish state, and Arab Israelis are prominent leaders in government, business, national defense, and many other fields. We hope this new film will help promote Arab-Israeli peace by upending stereotypes about Israel and fostering greater understanding of the Jewish state throughout the Arab world."
The "An al-Yahud" series has been viewed by tens of millions of Arabic speakers around the world. The top locations of the videos' viewers include Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Tunisia, the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates. The previous five videos focused on the origins and beliefs of the Jewish people, the history of Muslim-Jewish relations, the Holocaust, Jewish ties to Jerusalem, and the antisemitic forgery The Protocols of the Elders of Zion.
Along with the Arabic video series, the ACJ has launched launched Arabic-language social media accounts on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube, which to date have drawn more than 600,000 followers. Encouraged by this success, the global Jewish advocacy group recently launched AJC Farsi, a new social media effort to reach Iranians in Iran and around the world.
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