Saudi-born linguist creates dialogue for peace

He calls himself a Muslim Zionist, and has gone from being an Israel hater to supporting the Jewish state as a matter of principle and integrity, despite how unpopular this may make him.

Since 2012, Loay Alshareef has used YouTube and other platforms to spread deeper understanding between Jews and Muslims, advocating for peace in the Middle East. His study of languages – Hebrew, Arabic, and Syriac – has emphasised to him that there is more similarity than difference between cultures.

“After all,” he said, “there are 1.8 billion Muslims, with many named after Jewish prophets, kings, and heroes”. He acknowledged that his message is a minority view in the Muslim world, but fervently hopes that will change.

Alshareef was brought to South Africa in August by the Academy of Jewish Thought & Learning for a series of speaking events.

His father is Egyptian, his mother Saudi, and he was born and raised in Saudi Arabia. He now lives in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. Since 7 October 2023, he has been travelling around the world to promote peace in the Middle East. He’s preached his message in Austria, France, Italy, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, the United States, among others, and now in South Africa.

“Growing up, I had very negative views of Jews and Israel. I learned hate. I was a radical,” said Alshareef. He went to live with a family in France in 2010 that happened to be Jewish. “Many of my ideas were challenged in France. This traditional Jewish family was also from the Middle East. I developed a set of answers to debunk misinformation about Jews. We had very fruitful discussions, which spurred me to dig deeper. I was open to understanding more and making a positive change. I discovered there was no real reason behind the hate and indoctrination. I discovered hope, and that people can change if we conquer the roots of hate. When I got back to Saudi Arabia, I started to study Hebrew and Judaism. I left behind the hate, but still remain a practising Muslim”.

“I believe in Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state, and for the Palestinians to live in dignity and honour. The land belongs to two peoples. I love Israelis and Palestinians,” said Alshareef.

Alshareef studied as a software engineer at The Pennsylvania State University in the United States. He worked in the industry for a long time, but gave it up to become a peace advocate. “I’m an extrovert and wanted to communicate with people, not be locked in a room solving software problems,” he said. He has a flair for languages, and created his own public relations company.

“Languages open lots of doors to anyone who learns and speaks them,” Alshareef said. “They can bridge gaps. Hebrew and Arabic are similar, as are the cultures. They show how stupid we are to be fighting. We must use common languages for peace.”

He looked at the text of the Quran in the context of when it was written to understand how Muhammad the prophet was caught up in the geopolitics of the day. This included hostility to Jews living in the Arabian peninsula. “Many Muslims still have the mentality of the seventh century. We need to fight against extremists on both sides who hijack the discussion.”

Alshareef believes education is the key tool to solving this intractable conflict. “The orphans of Gaza could be the greatest tool to defeat Hamas, or they could be the next generation of terrorists. The Arabs should take these children and give them education, healthcare, work on their postwar trauma, and give them pathways to professions. Teach them not to cherish Hamas, but bury Hamas.”

He said G-d made him go through a transformation to allow him to have empathy and work on changing hearts and minds. “I try to see the full picture. We have to expunge hate.”

He denies that he is doing hasbarah – the Hebrew word both for “information” and “propaganda” – for the government of Israel. “I’m pro-Palestinian, and I’m pro-Israeli” Alshareef said. “Because it’s not mutually exclusive. I’m not pro-Hamas. They are radical extremist fanatics who rule by the sword and want a caliphate. They will never survive.”

“I believe this war should end, all the hostages should be released, and Hamas needs to lay down its arms and not threaten another 7 October. The Jewish state has every right to exist. It’s a democracy. There are almost 50 Muslim states. No-one ever argued about that.”

But he also believes that Israel is losing the information war, and that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent comments on a “greater Israel” aren’t conducive to peace. “There is a lot of bad noise coming from his Cabinet. That government isn’t helping the cause,” Alshareef said.

“I want the people of South Africa to know that there are amazing people [in the Middle East] with good hearts, and that you can support the Palestinian people without supporting radical fanatics like Hamas. And, listen to the people in the region, they know better.

“With United States President Donald Trump, I’m hopeful that the Abraham Accords can be extended to other Muslim countries,” Alshareef said. “But the Saudis won’t join the Accords until there is peace. This war has to end first.”

The cold peace between Israel and Egypt and Israel and Jordan he described as “ceasefire agreements” or “security agreements”, while he said the Abraham Accords with the United Arab Emirates had led to a lot of people-to-people connections, mutual travel, and considerable business ventures. The situation had changed slightly since 7 October 2023, but relations had held.

On the issue of genocide, Alshareef said, “It’s clear that Israel had the might to commit it in the first week of war if it wanted to, but it didn’t. Whereas Hamas wants to commit genocide, but it can’t.”

“My message is that peace is the only way forward in the Middle East,” he said, “and we must understand each other’s history. Jews, Christians, and Muslims must live side by side. Wars aren’t the solution.”