Anti-BDS coalition launches Unbreakable Bond Investment, elects Soraya Deen President

By Mutiu Olawuyi

Anti-BDS activists and interfaith leaders have launched the Unbreakable Bond Investment Initiative, a new campaign designed to counter the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement through investment, dialogue and Israeli-Palestinian economic cooperation.

The launch took place in New York on Thursday, July 9, 2026, with Soraya Deen elected as chairwoman and president of the initiative. Other elected leaders include Mansoor Laghari as secretary general and Tal Siegel as chief operating officer.

The campaign positions itself as an alternative to BDS, arguing that economic isolation does not build peace and may harm Palestinians whose livelihoods are connected to Israeli businesses, institutions and shared economic systems.

Sheikh Musa Drammeh, co-founder of Unbreakable Bond Inc. and president of Muslims-Israel Dialogue, said his visits to Israel and conversations with Israelis and Palestinians shaped his opposition to BDS.

“After having traveled to Israel several times and speaking with Israelis from all political affiliations and diverse Palestinian groups, I knew then whatever hurts Israel eventually would affect Palestinians, especially the Arab Israeli citizens whose socioeconomic strengths are tied up with their nation’s,” Drammeh said.

He said that realization strengthened his commitment to challenge BDS and other campaigns he described as efforts to isolate and weaken Israel.

“This realization catalyzed our commitment to help end BDS and all other political and economic schemes designed to isolate and weaken Israel,” Drammeh said. “Having a new anti-Israel mayor who supports BDS strengthened our commitment to end the BDS with innovative strategies.”

In her acceptance speech, Deen said her views were influenced by a Palestinian she met in Jerusalem, who told her that BDS harmed Palestinians who depended on cooperation with Israelis.

“He described it as a movement promoted largely by people living far from the realities on the ground,” Deen said.

Deen also cited the example of Eyal Waldman, co-founder and former chief executive officer of Mellanox Technologies, whose daughter, Danielle Waldman, and her partner, Noam Shay, were murdered by Hamas on Oct. 7. Waldman has been known for supporting peace efforts and helping create jobs for Palestinians.

According to Deen, Waldman’s continued support for peace after personal tragedy offers a lesson in moral courage and coexistence.

“It’s time for the world, and particularly diaspora Palestinians and Palestinian supporters, to ask not what they stand against but what they stand for,” Deen said.

She said the Unbreakable Bond initiative will counter BDS by promoting investment in Israel and supporting practical cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians.

“We stand for Israeli-Palestinian business partnerships, joint educational initiatives, Muslim-Jewish dialogue, investment in Palestinian economic development, leadership that rejects hatred and embraces coexistence, and equal dignity and security for both Palestinians and Israelis,” Deen said.

The initiative’s leaders argue that BDS has deepened division, discouraged relationships that could support peace, harmed people engaged in economic cooperation and made reconciliation more difficult.

“We are looking ahead to complement the initiatives of our government for peace in the Middle East,” Deen said.

She also rejected comparisons between Israel and apartheid-era South Africa, saying the path toward peace requires cooperation rather than separation.

“We reject the false comparison between South African apartheid and Israel,” Deen said. “Boycotts that discourage cooperation do not build peace. We choose dialogue over division, partnership over polarization, and solutions that empower both Israelis and Palestinians to shape a shared future.”

The launch comes amid heightened debate in New York over Israel, antisemitism, Muslim-Jewish relations and the role of local political leadership in foreign policy conversations. Organizers said the initiative seeks to offer a different path by using investment as a form of peace advocacy.

For supporters, the Unbreakable Bond Investment Initiative represents more than a financial campaign. It is an effort to move public conversation away from permanent confrontation and toward practical cooperation, shared dignity and long-term coexistence.

The challenge ahead will be to translate symbolic opposition to BDS into measurable support for Israeli-Palestinian partnerships, transparent investment structures and sustained interfaith trust-building.