Draft:Anila Ali

Anila Ali is the Board Chair and President of The American Muslim & Multifaith Women's Empowerment Council (AMMWEC), formerly The American Muslim Women's Empowerment Council (AMWEC).

Interfaith Dialogue

In January 2017, Ali spoke at an interfaith town hall in Newport Beach, CA to discuss hate crimes against Jews and Muslims. At the town hall, Ali stressed that "Hard working, patriotic Muslims like me are feeling displaced and under attack because of our faith. I'm a Muslim. I'm an American. I'm a woman and I'm proud of it."

In March 2022, Ali traveled to Israel with Pakistani-Americans to promote interfaith dialogue between Muslims and Jews, and on that trip she met with Israeli president Isaac Herzog. She criticized politicians hindering interfaith dialogue, stating that "Whenever I've spoken to politicians, and behind closed doors, they'll say, 'You know, we don't have a problem with Israel.' They also say, 'We don't have a problem with Jews.' But then, when you're a politician, that's it, you use that rhetoric. You use the rhetoric to divide...We must, as people say, 'We don't want you to use that.'" The trip to Israel generated controversy inside of Pakistan, including from Pakistan's ex-prime minister Imran Khan.

In August 2023, Ali attended the Parliament of World Religions, an-interfaith gathering that dates back to 1893. In an interview with NPR about her attendance, she argued that Islam has been misinterpreted: "Islam came at a point in Arabia where girls were being buried alive...Islam came to liberate women. It was a modern, progressive religion. And a lot of the teachings have been stolen [by religious radicals, according to the interviewer]. And I feel that it's time we set the record straight."

Opposition to Hamas

Following the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack against Israel, Ali has made numerous statements in support of Israel and against Hamas. In November 2023, Ali spoke at the Rally for Israel on Capitol Hill, where she stated that the "wars against the Jews and the Jewish homeland must end once and for all," and that there is a passage in the Koran that "insists that the Children of Israel will be gathered from exile, back into their homeland. During her speech, Ali also asserted that the Koran explicitly forbids the killing of civilians. Additionally, Ali stated that "I have been to Israel three times...and I can see how Muslims can gain from peace with Israel, by partnering with the Jewish people, focusing on a future together."

In December 2023, Ali spoke out about the "hypocrisy" of women's groups not condemning sexual violence against Israelis committed by Hamas on October 7, 2023.

In October 2024, Ali published an op-ed in Newsweek on her thoughts on Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack on Israel. She stated, "We cannot allow the complexities of the Israel-Palestine conflict to be flattened into a simple narrative of oppression and resistance. Hamas is a terrorist group; Israel is a legitimate nation-state with the right to defend itself."