In the News

In a powerful Ynet feature by Ben-Dror Yemini, a delegation of Moroccan Muslim educators—organized by WeAreMENA (WRM) in partnership with Mimouna—traveled to Auschwitz to deepen their understanding of the Holocaust. Their journey reflects a broader and often overlooked reality: a new generation across the Muslim world seeking knowledge, empathy, and connection. At a time of rising demonization and conflict, these young leaders represent a bottom-up movement for dialogue, historical awareness, and a shared future between Jews and Muslims.

In the midst of escalating conflict across the Middle East, WeAreMENA Director Tom Vizel was interviewed by Sky News Arabia (سكاي نيوز عربية) on the critical role of moderate youth in shaping the region’s future. Highlighting the work of WRM—a network of organizations across MENA—Vizel emphasized how young leaders are advancing dialogue, resilience, and cross-cultural cooperation, even in times of war, as a foundation for long-term regional stability.

When I joined the European Union Visitors Programme, I arrived in Brussels at a moment of deep uncertainty in my own region. What I did not expect was that this visit would sharpen, rather than suspend, the questions I carry in my work, about cooperation, identity, and the role of young people in shaping a different future.

The Women Champions for Change (WCC), a partner organization of WeAreMENA (WRM), recently hosted a regional webinar on Women, Voice & Narrative in partnership with FNF Jerusalem, bringing together diverse voices from across the MENA region. We are proud that Wisam Ziadeh, CEO of Takadumת a WRM member organization and Miryam Younne, the WRM communications team participated in this meaningful discussion, which highlighted the role of women’s storytelling in promoting empathy, dialogue, and cross-cultural cooperation.

As part of our network spotlight, we are pleased to highlight a recent interview on Abramundi (in French) featuring Simon Suleymani — a Kurdish human rights activist, journalist, and filmmaker, and the learder of a member organization in the WeAreMENA network. In this conversation, Simon shares his personal journey from political persecution and imprisonment, and share about his work advocating for Kurdish rights and cultural preservation through journalism and cinema. The discussion explores themes of exile, resistance, and the future of peace in the MENA region, including the role of regional cooperation and what Simon describes as an “Abrahamic” framework for coexistence.

The Peres Center for Peace and Innovation highlights its Peres Center Knights initiative — a global network of leaders and changemakers advancing regional cooperation and innovation. We are proud to see Einat Levi, lead researcher at WeAreMENA and head of Strategic & Partnership Development, among those contributing to this growing ecosystem of regional leadership and collaboration.

Founder and Executive Director of WeAreMENA, Tom Vizel, was recently featured in Fox News Partners in an in-depth interview titled “Beyond the Handshake,” together with Abdou Ladino, a leading partner from the Mimouna Association in Morocco and a member organization of the WRM network. In the conversation, they highlight the transformative role of young leaders and civil society networks in building meaningful, sustainable cooperation across the Middle East and North Africa — moving beyond surface-level diplomacy toward people-to-people engagement grounded in trust, partnership, and shared action.