Jonah visits Washington D.C.'s Abrahamic House with interfaith activist Mohammed Al Samawi
Being Jewish with Jonah PlattShow Notes
What happens when a boy raised on antisemitic propaganda becomes a Muslim bridge-builder whose life is saved by Jewish friends?
Mohammed Al Samawi, Yemeni refugee and author of The Fox Hunt, joins Jonah on location at Abrahamic House in Washington, D.C., for a conversation about the painstaking work of learning another person’s story. Al Samawi founded the multi-faith co-living and community space, where Jewish, Muslim, Christian, and Bahá’í fellows share meals, host Shabbat and Ramadan gatherings, and create a safer way for people to ask hard questions. In this episode, Al Samawi describes growing up in Sanaa, where slogans like “Death to America” and “Death to Israel” were used to redirect anger away from corrupt leaders and toward Jews. As a teenager, he internalized violent antisemitic ideas, but learning English through movies, reading the Bible in secret, and asking forbidden questions began to unravel what he had been taught.
The conversation follows Al Samawi, from reading Torah and messaging Israelis on Facebook to attending his first Muslim-Jewish conference. Later, as the Houthis and Al-Qaeda closed in, three Jewish friends and one Christian friend helped coordinate his evacuation from Yemen. Those experiences became the foundation for Abrahamic House. After October 7, Al Samawi says the house became even more necessary: a place where grief did not have to become separation, and where hospitality could make room for truth.
Ultimately, Mohammed’s story makes the case that interfaith work is not abstract idealism; it can be the difference between inherited hatred and real human connection.
MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE:
00:01:22 — Inside Abrahamic House, Where Shabbat Meets Ramadan Mohammed shows Jonah the dining room where fellows host Shabbats, Ramadan celebrations, Eid gatherings, and family-style meals for the community. Abrahamic House
00:08:15 — From Antisemitic Indoctrination to Questioning Jewish Hate Mohammed recalls the violent anti-Jewish ideas he absorbed as a teenager and how religious curiosity eventually pushed him to investigate for himself. The Against the Odds Escape of Mohammed Al Samawi | AJC
00:23:30 — How Facebook Became a Window Past Propaganda Mohammed explains how social media helped him meet Jews and Israelis, ask forbidden questions, and discover shared values outside state-controlled narratives. Mohammed Al Samawi: How Interfaith Activism Became, and Saved, His Life
00:34:00 — The 13 Days Hiding from Houthis and Al-Qaeda Mohammed describes hiding in Aden with no safe way out, praying for help, and posting on Facebook in hopes someone could evacuate him. How Facebook friends saved one man from execution
00:42:45 — Why Mohammed Created Abrahamic House in Washington, D.C. Mohammed explains how loneliness as a refugee, his love of friendship, and the model of Friends inspired a real-life interfaith home.
00:51:00 — How to Meet Muslims Beyond Fear and Stereotypes Mohammed urges listeners to investigate Islam the way he investigated Judaism: by meeting people, asking human questions, and resisting extremist narratives.
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Learn more about Mohammed Al Samawi: Mohammed Al Samawi - Abrahamic House The Fox Hunt: A Memoir of Yemen and My Odyssey to America – A True Story of Courage and Escape Through Social Media Mohammed Al Samawi Instagram
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