The image of mosque imams from Europe standing in the presence of Israeli occupation president Isaac Herzog and singing the Zionist anthem alongside him is shocking to many — but it is neither a passing scene nor separate from a long-term political and security context: the UAE’s campaign to whitewash Israel.
Behind these so-called “tolerant” faces waving peace slogans stands a regional player that has mastered the art of shaping agendas and exploiting religion as a political tool — the Emirati regime.
The delegation that caused an uproar this week with its visit to occupied Jerusalem, which included imams and leaders of Islamic communities from France, Italy, the Netherlands, and Britain, was not some spontaneous religious initiative. It is part of a broader project, managed and funded by Abu Dhabi, aimed at infiltrating Europe’s Islamic sphere and reshaping its discourse to serve both Israel’s and the UAE’s interests.
Engineering “Emirati Islam”
Since 2018, Abu Dhabi has pushed forward an ambitious project to produce a new version of Islam that promotes normalisation with Israel, aligns with Western security narratives, and submits to the UAE’s dictates as the so-called “legitimate sponsor” of moderate Islam.
The most prominent face of this project has been the “Hedayah Centre for Countering Extremism” in Abu Dhabi. Marketed as a training institution for spreading tolerance, its real role is to produce religious and political figures who echo the Emirati regime’s policies.
This centre has partnered with European organisations — some of which carry anti-Muslim agendas disguised under the label of “counter-extremism.” One of the most notable is ELNET, the Zionist network that organised the recent meeting between the Muslim delegation and Herzog. ELNET works to strengthen political and media ties between Europe and Israel.
Manufacturing Imams Who Promote Normalisation
Hassen Chalghoumi — the French imam known for his blind loyalty to Israel and fierce hostility to the Muslim Brotherhood and resistance movements — is just one example of the imams the UAE has groomed to serve as ambassadors for this so-called “Islam of Tolerance.”
He, along with others like Youssef Mssihib, was recruited through training programs organised in Abu Dhabi and Marrakech, directly funded by the Hedayah Centre.
These programs were far more political than religious. They drilled these imams to preach a carefully crafted message: Islam as a religion of peace, but on the UAE’s terms. This means an Islam stripped of politics, submissive to normalisation, obedient to the Israeli narrative, and silent about massacres in Gaza or the West Bank.
A Campaign to Polish Israel’s Image
The meeting with Herzog was no mere protocol visit. Israel’s occupation regime is facing an unprecedented existential crisis due to its genocidal war on Gaza, which has embarrassed its Western allies in front of global public opinion. So Tel Aviv is desperate for new tools to whitewash its image — and what better tool than “Muslim imams” from Europe who come to sing its anthems, visit its sites, and send the message that Israel is a “state of coexistence and peace.”
This is exactly what Herzog conveyed when he praised the delegation, calling them the “voice of tolerance” who would carry a positive message about Israel to Muslim communities in Europe. In reality, it is the UAE pushing these figures to deliver that message as part of its wider plan to shape what it calls “moderate European Islam.”
The UAE: Israel’s Partner in Its Soft War
Here lies the danger of the Emirati role. While Israel kills children in Gaza and strangles the Palestinian people, Abu Dhabi provides it with religious and political cover — by recruiting imams and preachers to amplify the Israeli narrative. The most dangerous aspect is that this agenda hides behind noble slogans like fighting extremism or spreading tolerance.
On the surface, the UAE claims to fight extremism. In practice, it fights any independent Islamic voice that rejects normalisation, questions the West, or supports resistance. Anyone who does not stick to the lines of “Emirati Islam” is branded a terrorist or extremist.
Deals at Palestine’s Expense
The presence of the European Islamic delegation in Jerusalem is just the culmination of years of Emirati efforts to penetrate Muslim communities across Europe.
The UAE understands that these communities have growing social and political influence — their voices reach parliaments and the media. Abu Dhabi wants to hijack that voice and turn it into a lobbying tool for Israel, especially as boycott movements against the occupation gain traction across Europe.
Today, Abu Dhabi sees the road to Washington, Paris, and Berlin running through Tel Aviv — and is willing to pour money and effort into recruiting clerics, officials, and lobbying groups to promote normalisation, even at the expense of Palestinian blood.
A Threat That Reaches the Arab World
The danger is not limited to Europe. The UAE exports the same model to the Arab region. There are imams and sheikhs among us, presented as “moderate scholars,” but in reality, they are merely employees repeating Abu Dhabi’s talking points about “tolerance” and “fighting political Islam” — while ignoring genocide in Gaza and crimes in the West Bank.
These figures are even more dangerous than the European delegations. They speak in Arabic, hold huge media platforms, and spread the UAE’s agenda, which completely aligns with Israeli interests.
It is a soft war — but its victims are no fewer than those killed by bombs and bullets. Its first casualty is the truth. Its most important casualty is Palestine.
When are both sides going to stop and start living together. So the rest of the world can have some peace and earn a living for a better life