'I am pro-Abraham': Meet the unlikely allies risking everything for peace with Israel

The Jerusalem Post profiles the Abrahamic Movement, a group founded by Tom Wegner that brings together Israelis and Muslims from across the region to pursue normalization and peace based on a shared Abrahamic identity. Members risk severe legal consequences in their home countries by engaging with Israelis. Wegner argues that creating a collective 'in-group' identity, oppositional to Islamist movements like the Muslim Brotherhood, offers a way out of regional conflict without requiring surrender or loss of honor. The movement gained momentum after October 7, 2023, when 1,200 people were killed by Islamists.

The Jerusalem Post profiles the Abrahamic Movement, a grassroots initiative founded by Tom Wegner that seeks to build bridges between Israelis and Muslims across the Middle East based on a shared Abrahamic heritage. Members of the movement, some of whom spoke to the Post at great personal risk, live in countries where contact with Israelis is criminalized and can carry severe penalties including imprisonment or execution. Wegner, a former IDF officer and spokesperson for Ehud Barak and the Peres Center for Peace, argues that the region needs a collective identity similar to the European Union model, one that allows diverse groups to maintain their distinct traditions while belonging to a larger 'in-group.' He contends that this Abrahamic identity must be oppositional to the Muslim Brotherhood and Shia groups like Hezbollah, which currently offer all-encompassing ideological frameworks. Wegner cites Quranic verses acknowledging the return of the Children of Israel to the promised land as a foundation for 'Abrahamic Islam,' which he believes can allow Muslims to remain loyal to their faith while accepting Israel's legitimacy. The movement gained momentum after October 7, 2023, when 1,200 people were killed by Islamists. The article frames the initiative as a potential ideological alternative to extremism, offering a way out of conflict without requiring surrender or loss of honor.