Rabbi Dr. Elie Abadie, the former senior Rabbi of the Jewish Council of the Emirates and the Association of Gulf Jewish Communities, spoke to Arutz Sheva about how Jewish life in the UAE has changed since October 7.

Rabbi Abadi began by describing how the Jewish community in the UAE flourished after the Abraham Accords, with the Jewish population increasing from 200 to over 1,500. “They built Jewish businesses, kosher restaurants, and shuls,” he said. “We were doing everything very publicly with the support of the government. The Emirati population was very welcoming.”

However, things began to change post-October 7. “Many Israelis came back to Israel. The government was concerned for the safety of the Jewish people and communities and they requested that we be much more quiet in a sense, not to engender any animosity for either tourists or anybody who may live there who has animosity toward the Jewish people.”

Due to the new security measures, Rabbi Abadie said that Jews don’t wear yarmulkes or other signs of Judaism on the streets and even refrain from gathering in shuls to daven. “The Jewish community continues to live, continues to work, continues to do what they need to do as residents of the place, but they are trying to live much more carefully.”

Rabbi Abadi stressed that the government’s directives are intended for the Jewish community’s benefit, not an act against it. “The UAE is one of the safest countries in the world, probably number two or three in the world. So they’re very concerned about the population, including the Jewish population, and certainly, they don’t want any event against the Jewish community.”

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)