Growing Jewish community celebrates Passover in another Dubai premiere

DUBAI – This year, the Jewish Passover festival that began Friday will be celebrated in the United Arab Emirates, where a small Jewish community has planted the first new community in an Arab state since Israel’s founding in 1948.

Jewish immigrants see Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the UAE’s capital, as havens from anti-Semitism, which also benefit from low taxes and relaxed Covid rules. The country’s strict laws against hate speech against any religion — not just Islam — make some Jews feel safer wearing a kippah in Dubai than in some western cities.