"With the growing normalization between Muslim countries and Israel, we can expect to see a significant increase in the number of Jewish travelers and businesspeople to these areas,” Rabbi Yehuda Krinsky said on Monday,at the Chabad-Lubavitch World Headquarters in New York.
“Chabad is exploring the possibilities of establishing centers to serve the religious and educational needs of Jews who will come to visit, do business or live there,” he added.
"Chabad has been serving Jewish communities in more than a dozen Muslim countries, some for decades. And even where it was not possible to establish centers until now," Krinsky continued, saying "Chabad has served local Jews with limited visitation programs."
“But as attitudes change, and a spirit of mutual respect and cooperation replaces old hostilities, we look forward to the strategic placement of Chabad centers to support the growth and flowering of Jewish life wherever it is welcome,” Rabbi Krinsky concluded.
Last Friday, the Chabad-Lubavitch movement announced its appointment of Rabbi Levi Duchman, the rabbi of the United Arab Emirates, as the Chabad emissary to the UAE.
“Thank G-d, Jewish life here in the UAE has been able to blossom like a desert rose,” Duchman said after the announcement.
“The coexistence and true respect people have for one another here is beautiful and unfortunately all too unique. It’s also clear that none of this could have happened without the support and vision of the UAE’s benevolent leader, his highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and is something the entire world can learn from,” he added.