Hanukkah welcome in Dubai - 16th December 2020

These people are celebrating Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Light. They are in the United Arab Emirates, which is holding its first public Hanukkah celebrations.

The UAE and Israel signed a new agreement in September. It is called the Abraham Accords. It brings peace between the countries.

Hanukkah is a magical time for the Jewish community. Rabbi Marc Schneier is American. He says it is God's magic.

Rabbi: "And celebrating Hanukkah here in Dubai, in 2020, I have to salute God's miracle workers, who are greatly responsible for making this modern day miracle happen."

Gil Gurevitch is an Israeli businessman. He hopes this magic will continue.

Gil: "It's a dream come true and it's a miracle and this is Hanukkah, it's to light candle that will be light. It says 'hor', 'hor' in Hebrew and this is what just happened. It's made 'hor' and I hope this peace, Inshallah, will bring all the Israeli here and all the Emirates there."

Gurevitch has booked 50 rooms in this Dubai hotel. He's also organised a kosher restaurant. This means Jewish guests can celebrate the Sabbath in the hotel.

The mezuzah is fixed by the doorway in Jewish homes. Gurevitch has given each hotel room its own mezuzah.

Rabbi Schneier is pleased to see this new relationship between the UAE and Israel.

Rabbi: "It has tremendous meaning and significance to actually participate, to witness, to experience the miracle of Gulf-Israel relations and the exponential growth of Jewish life here in Dubai."