Muslim and Jewish leaders forge new group to promote dialogue
Lord Wajid Khan, the new Communities Minister with responsibility for faith, attended in first official engagement
A group of 60 Muslim and Jewish leaders took part inthe launch of what new Board of Deputies President Phil Rosenberg has dubbed the “Optimistic Alliance”.
The event, organised by the Board, philanthropist Maurice Ostro OBE, and the Faiths Forum for London, was the first official event of Lord Wajid Khan, the new Communities Minister with responsibility for faith.
The evening focused on a range of issues including how to tackle anti-Jewish and anti-Muslim hatred; challenge extremism and support mainstream voices; defend shared religious freedoms; confront societal challenges like poverty and climate change; and find ways to engage better over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Following the success of the first event, discussions are now underway about how to expand the initiative over the coming months.
Speaking at the event, President Phil Rosenberg, said: “This ‘Optimistic Alliance’ is the beginning of a journey together, from a place of death and destruction, of division and despair, to a place called hope. A place called empathy. And a place called peace.”
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