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Holiday miracle in the Gulf - 16th December 2020

Hanukkah is the Festival of Light in the Jewish religion. This year the festival has been celebrated publicly for the first time in the United Arab Emirates.

This follows the UAE and Israel signing a new statement in September. It is known as the Abraham Accords and brings peace between the two nations.

Hanukkah remembers God’s miracles and is celebrated as a magical time. This event is another example, for American Rabbi Marc Schneier.

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."

Israeli businessman Gil Gurevitch hopes that it will have even greater importance going forward.

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 arranged with a hotel in Dubai to take 50 rooms. In addition, he’s set up a kosher restaurant so that Jewish people can celebrate the Sabbath in the hotel.

He has placed the mezuzah at the entrance of the rooms. In Jewish homes, it’s a custom to locate the mezuzah beside the door.

Rabbi Schneier feels honoured to witness the first public Hanukkah in Dubai.

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."