Organizational Profile: The Center for Normalization in the Middle East (New NGO)

"The Center for Normalization in the Middle East" (NGO Registration No. 580796845) was founded to encourage dialogue and understanding between Israeli society and the Muslim world. Following a series of significant meetings, the center aims to create a unique platform where people from the Muslim world and Israelis can converse, fostering mutual respect and cooperation.

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Vision and Mission:

The center seeks to build a bridge between Israel and the Arab and Muslim world through meetings, discussions, conferences, and social media activities. We aim to promote grassroots and direct dialogue involving people from all walks of life, with the goal of renewing understanding between nations, promoting de-radicalization, and facilitating dialogue.

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The center currently operates a network of Facebook and WhatsApp groups for direct discussions between Jews and Arabs, Israelis and Palestinians, Israelis and Iranians, Israelis and Lebanese, Israelis and Syrians, and more. In parallel, we host dialogue sessions via Zoom.

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Our mission is to maintain and expand the momentum of these dialogues, create ongoing meetings between Israeli groups and various organizations in the Muslim world, and operate social media pages that amplify joint voices calling for understanding and de-radicalization in the Middle East. We aim to build a network of relationships between Israelis and peace and dialogue activists from across the region, serving as a catalyst for strengthening and deepening relations between Israel and Muslim countries that have already signed political agreements with it.

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Activities and Goals:

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1. Operating bilateral friendship associations: This includes bilateral friendship associations like the Israel-Iran Friendship Association and the Israel-Syria Friendship Association, which currently operate as WhatsApp groups. We intend to run joint social media pages and amplify a unified voice against incitement, aiming to reach tens or hundreds of thousands.
    

2. Zoom meetings: We have hosted prominent speakers before Israeli audiences, including Imam Hassan Chalghoumi, the exiled Prime Minister of Syria, senior members of the Iranian opposition, and more. Each of these meetings included hundreds of participants and generated media coverage that reached hundreds of thousands. We aim to strengthen this activity and involve additional stakeholders.
    

3. Encouraging and guiding the Israeli public to directly engage with the Muslim world on social media, responding to individuals or groups from the Muslim world interested in contact with Israel.
    

4. A liberal Arabic news website: We plan to create an Arabic news site for the Arab world, providing a counterpoint to Al Jazeera, offering a liberal and Western perspective on issues often silenced in the Arab world, from women's rights to the acceptance of Israel.
    

5. Encouraging business ties: The Center for Normalization operates a group of businesspeople working to promote trade relations in the Middle East.

 

Collaborations:

The Palestinian organization "The Holy Land Shared Condominium Peace Initiative"
The "Syrian Government in Exile" organization
The Israel-Iran Friendship Association (in Iran)
The Egyptian Normalization Movement "The Sacred Triangle"
The "Iraqi Peace Flag" movement in Iraq
The Iranian Monarchy Institute
"The New Middle East Peace Institute" (Syrian-Christian organization)
"Maroc Coexistence" - Director of the Moroccan Coexistence Organization
The Kurdish "Komala" Party
The Ahwazi Liberal Party
The "New Jordan" project
"Lady Levant" - A Lebanese women's group
The "International Nations Front" movement from Sudan
The Iranian Christian Party
The Syrian Rescue Front
The Jewish-Muslim Study Hall in Gush Etzion
And additional normalization activists, religious figures, intellectuals, journalists, and opinion leaders from across the Middle East.

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Current Status:

We have completed the registration process as an NGO, and are now fundraising for our activities. The organization will serve as a home for these dialogues and initiatives, ensuring continuity and growth in interactions between Israeli society and Muslim world countries.

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Future Plans:

We are committed to fostering meaningful and ongoing dialogue, and to building a broad community of engagement and cooperation.

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Among the members of the public council of the NGO:

Mr. Tom Wagner, Israeli strategic consultant, founder of the "Middle East Center"
Ali Kashkoush, director of "Arabs with Israel"
Samah Skaran, director of "Sofra’a al-Mahabba" NGO operating in Israel’s Arab sector
David Hermelin, director of the Israeli Institute for Public Diplomacy
Khalifa Khalifa, co-founder of the World Druze Council
Ashwak Abu Kandil, Israeli Druze entrepreneur, co-founder of the Abrahamic Peace Forum