Center for a New Middle East

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, today announced Ambassador Marcy Grossman as the new Director of AJC Abu Dhabi: The Sidney Lerner Center for Arab-Jewish Understanding. As part of AJC’s Center for a New Middle East, AJC Abu Dhabi is a trusted entity in the Gulf that cultivates connections and deepens diplomatic, economic, and civil society engagement across the region.

Over a month has passed since the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, and the region is now entering a new phase of negotiations and uncertainty. Facing the risk of further escalation, the United States and the Iranian regime agreed to a Pakistan-brokered ceasefire. Just two days later, against the backdrop of intensified Israeli strikes targeting Hezbollah, the Israeli and Lebanese governments announced their intent to pursue direct peace talks.

Experts were divided if Hamas’ alignment with Iran as it attacks Qatar will cause Doha to reassess the value of hosting the terror group

Since the coordinated U.S.–Israel military operations launched on February 28—following the Iranian regime’s direct attacks on Israel in 2024—the conflict has escalated dramatically, with the Iranian regime targeting nations and civilians across the Middle East and even parts of Europe. The onslaught underscores how a nuclear-armed Iran would imperil America, Israel, U.S. allies, and the world. Read perspectives from American Jewish Committee experts around the world.

Architects of Peace—a limited podcast series from American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people—pulls back the curtain on the high stakes diplomacy that led to the creation of the Abraham Accords five years ago. 

President Trump is making this visit at a time that requires Israelis and Arabs to be more interdependent in ways not previously imaginable. So while the challenges in the Middle East are clear, so too are the unprecedented opportunities. President Trump has a rare opportunity to once again make history in this too-long-troubled region.

At the AJC Global Forum 2025, the Center for a New Middle East hosted a timely and forward-looking business panel: "The Future of Peace and Prosperity in the Middle East." The session explored how economic cooperation, innovation, and regional investment can serve as powerful tools for building long-term peace and stability.

At AJC Global Forum 2025, Reem Ketait, Deputy Assistant Minister for Political Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, United Arab Emirates, shared a powerful vision for a more connected, innovative, and peaceful Middle East.

In early 2025, At the inaugural NXT Conclave, a Davos-style annual event in India, of which AJC is an institutional partner, AJC Chief Policy and Political Affairs Officer Jason Isaacson moderated a panel discussion on the future of the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), a transformative framework for connecting leading global economies and building stability and prosperity across the region.

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, brought together the Trump Administration, elected officials, diplomats, and thought leaders in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday to introduce AJC’s Center for a New Middle East and present a vision for a new path forward in the Middle East in a post-October 7 world. As outlined in the Center’s policy recommendations for the Trump administration, released at tonight’s event, the Center’s work focuses on interconnected initiatives that deepen ties throughout the Middle East with a focus on diplomacy, business, and civil society.

As part of AJC’s Center for a New Middle East introductory event in Washington, D.C., Jason Isaacson, AJC Chief Policy and Political Affairs Officer, and Steven Witkoff, Special Envoy to the Middle East, hold a wide-ranging conversation on the importance of bringing every single hostage home, President Donald Trump’s priorities in the Middle East, expanding the Abraham Accords, and more pressing issues that matter to Israel and the Jewish people.

Launched in 2024, AJC’s Center for a New Middle East fosters peace and civility between Israel and its neighbors through diplomacy, civil society, and business, convening the best and brightest from across the world to build bridges, shape policies, and instill the hope needed to truly create a new Middle East.

For decades, the American Jewish Committee (AJC) has worked with governments across the Arab world to increase cooperation with Israel and the Jewish people. AJC was the first American Jewish organization to open an office in Israel, and is the only Jewish organization with an office in an Arab state, having opened AJC Abu Dhabi: The Sidney Lerner Center for Arab-Jewish Understanding, in 2021.

The Abraham Accords, signed under the first Trump administration, ushered in a new era of Arab-Israeli peace.

An American Jewish Committee (AJC) leadership delegation concluded a week of meetings and conversations with senior government officials, policy analysts, business leaders, high-ranking military officers, U.S. diplomats, and other interlocutors in the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Bahrain. The group's talks continued AJC’s more than three decades of engagement, trust-building, and advocacy across the Middle East, furthered by the recent launch of AJC’s Center for a New Middle East.

American Jewish Committee’s Center for a New Middle East utilizes AJC’s unparalleled global advocacy network to foster deeper diplomatic, economic, and civic ties between Israel and its Arab neighbors. It builds upon AJC’s historic success in cultivating trust and opening doors to all levels of government across the Arab world.

The Abraham Accords marked a significant foreign policy achievement for President Donald Trump at the end of his first term in 2020. What’s next for the Abraham Accords under a new Trump administration Joining us is Rob Greenway, Director of the Allison Center for National Security at the Heritage Foundation and former senior director for Middle Eastern and North African Affairs on the National Security Council.

Despite Iran’s pursuit of Israel’s annihilation, the agreements have held, granting Israel a cushion of regional support as it fights for its borders

After more than 30 years of active engagement in the Arab world, American Jewish Committee (AJC) today announced the establishment of AJC’s Center for a New Middle East, an initiative that will bolster the organization’s decades of work to build trust, understanding, and interconnectedness throughout the Middle East.

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, this week spearheaded discussions on faith and climate change at COP28 in Dubai. AJC, the only Jewish organization with an office in the United Arab Emirates, was also the only Jewish organization to sponsor a panel at the first-ever Faith Pavillion at a UN Climate Conference.