Overview:
Abdulla Al Shehhi is the current Executive Director of “Abrahamic Family House”. Before working with the “Special Projects Team” at the Abu Dhabi City Municipality, Shehhi worked on public projects at Abu Dhabi’s Miral tourism development company. Abdulla holds an Urban Planning MA from Columbia University, in New York.1
The Abrahamic Family House was built in Abu Dhabi in 2023 with the approval of Pope Francis representing the Catholic Church and Ahmed El-Tayeb representing the al-Azhar Mosque on 4th February 2019. The House encompasses the St. Francis Church, Imam Al-Tayeb Mosque, and Moses Ben Maimon Synagogue in separate structures.2
While cloaked with an otherwise legitimate mission of upholding “inter-religious dialogue,” the Abrahamic Family House has been developed with an overstated emphasis on Judaism – at times even ignoring Christian events – in the context of the UAE’s 2020 Abraham Accords recognition deal with Israel. Previous investigations (hyperlink) have shown how the Israeli regime has used Jewish religious culture and communities in the UAE to advance its illegitimate political and cultural foothold in the country. In this regard, al-Shehhi can be regarded as an Israeli asset, and the “Abrahamic Family House” as a Zionist hangout.
Zionist Hangout
Using the so-called Abrahamic Family House as a front whitewashing the UAE’s recognition of the Zionist regime, Al Shehhi regularly participates in various Western governmental gatherings representing the country.
The UAE embassy in Washington has held an annual “Interfaith Iftar” for six years in a row, with the participation of Abdulla Al Shehhi. It’s noteworthy that some senior members of the US Government and elected officials took part in 2023, including Deborah Lipstadt, US Special Envoy to “Monitor and Combat Antisemitism”, US Congressman Brad Schneider, and Rashad Hussain, US Ambassador-at-Large for “International Religious Freedom”.
Moreover, in July 2023, an interdenominational delegation of 12 members of the Zionist Rabbinic Coalition (ZRC) visited the UAE, among other countries to discuss the impact of the Abraham Accords. They were hosted by Al-Shehhi in the Abrahamic Family House.3
1: https://milkeninstitute.org/events/a0c1u00000cf19quab/speakers/abdulla-al-shehhi
2: https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/2023/02/17/abrahamic-family-house-in-pictures/