AlManarah - The Association for Arab Persons with Disabilities

08/10/2026

We’re delighted to join the ALLMEP family! 🕊️

AlManarah is proud to join the The Alliance for Middle East Peace (ALLMEP) , a network of civil society organizations advancing cooperation, equality, mutual understanding, and peace between Israelis and Palestinians.

This is an opportunity to broaden our connections and partnerships, learn from fellow organizations, and strengthen our impact in promoting solidarity, peace, and dignity for all communities in our country and across the region — especially people with disabilities.

We believe a shared society grows when everyone has the opportunity to be heard, participate, and make a difference. We look forward to bringing the voices, experiences, and abilities of people with disabilities to this partnership, as full partners in building an equitable, accessible future rooted in dignity for all.

We’re excited to connect, collaborate, and turn shared hope into meaningful action.

https://www.allmep.org/about-us-allmep/members/

ALLMEP is a coalition of over 125 peacebuilding organizations. Meet our members from shared society and cross-border sector.

27/09/2026

Yesterday, we shared a particularly moving moment at AlManarah House: Imam Refad Ghanem visited us to present a donation he had raised from worshippers following his Friday sermon in support of our work.

The sermon was preceded last week by a talk to the congregation by Adv. Abbas Abbas. He shared his personal story as a person with a disability and his journey to becoming a social entrepreneur and founding AlManarah.

This heartfelt initiative reflects solidarity, mutual support, and social responsibility at their finest. We sincerely thank the Imam and all the worshippers who opened their hearts and contributed to our work with people with disabilities and their families.

We would welcome similar initiatives at other mosques across Arab society, expanding our circle of giving, partnership, and community action together.

15/09/2026

In an atmosphere of excitement, partnership, and harmony 🚲🌿, people with visual impairments and the volunteers accompanying them came together once again as part of CoVision’s tandem cycling activity — this time on a special route in the Kfar Baruch area.

Cycling through open nature and fresh air 🌳☀️ was much more than a sporting activity. It was an opportunity to strengthen trust, communication, and mutual understanding between each rider and their captain, proving once again that visual impairment is no barrier to movement, independence, enjoyment, and adventure. 💪

The activity is led with dedication and professionalism by our instructor, Nadav Shanan, who accompanies the group and leads the rides with a strong commitment to creating a safe, empowering, and enjoyable experience for everyone involved. 🙏🚴

At AlManarah, we are also especially proud and appreciative that many of the captains guiding riders with visual impairments are women volunteers 👩‍🦰🚲. Through their dedication, responsibility, and spirit of partnership, they generously give their time and energy and turn every ride into a true experience of trust, connection, and friendship. ❤️

CoVision is part of the wide range of activities organized by AlManarah Association, with the aim of enabling people with visual impairments to take part in sports and social experiences, strengthen their independence and self-confidence, and build bridges of inclusion, equality, and friendship between people. 🤝

A big thank you to Nadav, all the female and male captains, the volunteers, and the participants for another successful, joyful, and energetic ride. 🌟

See you soon on the next route! 🚲💨

13/09/2026

With great excitement, the AlManarah Musical Ensemble officially began its activities today — a unique and inspiring group whose core members are people with disabilities, joined by people without disabilities. Together, they create music that connects people and reflects partnership, inclusion, and a shared love of creativity.

Throughout the program, the ensemble will develop a diverse repertoire of songs, with the aim of performing for different audiences and bringing its unique voice to many stages.

The ensemble is guided and conducted by the talented musician and instructor Qasem Hamad, and we wish all the members of the group great success and much enjoyment throughout this shared musical journey.

A heartfelt thank you to all the partners who helped us turn this initiative into reality, especially the Ministry of Culture and Sports, for its important support and partnership in promoting accessible, inclusive, and equal cultural opportunities.

02/09/2026

🎉 Celebrating a Summer of Hebrew, New Experiences, and Meaningful Connections! 🎉

With great excitement, AlManarah Association has concluded its summer Spoken Hebrew Course, attended by 15 children and teenagers—approximately half with disabilities and half without disabilities.

Led by the dedicated and talented instructor Gur Barkai, the course was lively, interactive, and full of hands-on learning. The participants did not simply study Hebrew; they practiced it through real-life situations, such as ordering at a restaurant, shopping, and managing everyday conversations. They also enjoyed experiential activities, including baking a cake and taking part in a special studio experience at AlManarah House.

The closing session was particularly festive and included a moving musical performance by two sisters who participated in the course, Raya and Manar, who delighted everyone with their beautiful oud playing. 🎶

To conclude the celebration, AlManarah Association presented each participant with a gift package filled with snacks and delicious treats—bringing the course to a truly sweet ending! 🍰🎁

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Arison Foundation for its valuable support of this project, and to Gur Barkai for his devoted, creative, and professional guidance.

The participants’ enthusiasm and achievements inspire us to continue. We look forward to opening new groups and giving more children and teenagers the opportunity to learn, grow, connect, and speak Hebrew with confidence.

Because language is much more than words—it is a bridge between people. 💙

31/08/2026

🌟 Where Education Meets Inclusion: The "Karem Al-Sahab" School Staff Visits Almanarah 🌟

Some days, you leave a little different from how you arrived. That was the case when more than 50 teachers from the "Karem Al-Sahab" special education school in Nazareth came to Almanarah House for a professional development day — one where they didn't sit in chairs listening to lectures, but experienced, tried, and felt.

The day opened with an inspiring talk by Adv. Abbass Abbass, who shared his personal story as a person with a disability — not a story of obstacles, but a story of leverage. A talk that reminded everyone in the room why they chose this profession in the first place.

From there, our guests split into five groups and moved through five experiential stations from the "Hikayatna" program — each one a world of its own:

🔹 Feeling Differently — experiencing the daily reality of physical disability, from the other side of the chair.
🔹 Words That Make a Difference — because the language we use to speak about people with disabilities is itself a tool of either inclusion or exclusion.
🔹 The Secret of the Dots — decoding hidden writing through Braille, and that moment of realizing reading can happen through your fingertips.
🔹 Speaking in Silence — a first encounter with sign language, and with the insight that communication doesn't always need a voice.
🔹 The Lost Light — an experience in the dark room, where the senses sharpen and the world rebuilds itself without a single glance.

This meeting — between an organization devoted to accessibility and empowerment, and an educational setting that supports children with blindness, hearing impairments, and learning disabilities — is exactly what we mean by synergy: not a lecture about inclusion, but inclusion happening in practice, among adults who return to their classrooms the next day and meet their students a little differently.

Our heartfelt thanks to the school principal, Ms. Basma Jarjoura, and to the entire teaching staff for their openness, full participation, and trust; and thank you to Almanarah's dedicated team and facilitators who led such a professional and moving day.

This is only the beginning. We're already looking ahead to further collaborations — the Special Theater and the Almanarah Music Band and much more to come... 🎭🎶

16/08/2026

**When Partnership Becomes a Bridge Between Communities 💙**

Last Friday, AlManarah House hosted a deeply moving event celebrating the fruitful, long-standing partnership between AlManarah Association and The Road to Recovery בדרך להחלמה.

We were delighted to open the doors of AlManarah House and welcome approximately 100 volunteers from The Road to Recovery. During their visit, they attended an inspiring and moving talk by AlManarah’s founder and CEO, Adv. Abbass Sidkey Abbass.

Abbass shared his personal journey—from growing up as a person with a disability in Arab society to becoming a social entrepreneur who founded an organization with both local and international impact. AlManarah works to build a better, more inclusive society by promoting the inclusion and full participation of people with disabilities, their families, and society as a whole.

We were also honored to host singer-songwriter Amir Lev / עמיר לב, whose heartfelt performance captivated the audience and added a truly special and unforgettable atmosphere to the gathering.

Yuval Roth, founder of The Road to Recovery, delivered moving remarks in which he highlighted the long-standing partnership between our two organizations, including their joint efforts on behalf of sick children from Gaza and their families.

For us at AlManarah, our partnership with The Road to Recovery represents far more than joint activity—it is a bridge of humanity, hope, and connection between people and communities.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to The Road to Recovery, its founder Yuval Roth and CEO Yael Noy, its dedicated volunteers, and Amir Lev for this inspiring event.

AlManarah House will continue to open its doors to organizations and partners who wish to join forces and work together for the benefit of all.

06/08/2026

Another sweet, enjoyable, and enriching day in AlManarah’s Hebrew course! 🍰📚

During this session, the children learned Hebrew in a different and creative way—through the kitchen. Together, they read a cake recipe in Hebrew, learned new words and expressions, became familiar with the names of the ingredients, understood the preparation steps, and followed the instructions one by one.

The activity gave the children an opportunity to practice reading, comprehension, conversation, and teamwork, all in a fun, practical, and engaging atmosphere. Every child took part in the process: measuring, mixing, asking questions, explaining, and helping friends—until they created a delicious and successful cake.

At AlManarah’s Hebrew course, we believe that language learning should not remain only in notebooks. When children use the language during real-life activities, they gain confidence, develop independence, and discover that Hebrew can be accessible, useful, and enjoyable.

At the end of the session, we enjoyed the cake the children had prepared together, and most importantly, we celebrated their sense of achievement, cooperation, and pride in the learning process.

Well done to our wonderful children for their enthusiasm, teamwork, and determination to learn and progress! 💙

03/08/2026

https://almanarah.org/almanarah-launches-pilot-version-of-smart-voice-assistant-in-the-arabcast-books-app/?lang=en

31/07/2026

A defining and historic moment for AlManarah Association!

Today, the pilot version of the smart voice assistant was launched in the ArabCast Books app—another significant step forward in the technological accessibility revolution we are leading.

Powered by artificial intelligence, the new assistant enables users to access a library of thousands of audiobooks and podcasts through natural conversation. Users can ask it to find a book, start playing it, and perform a variety of actions while listening, including navigating between chapters, skipping forward, rewinding, and more—all using voice commands alone.

This is far more than a technological development. It represents a new, simple, and accessible way to enjoy knowledge, culture, and content. It was designed to enhance the experience of all ArabCast Books users, especially people with disabilities.

The pilot launch is only the beginning. In the coming period, we will continue learning from our users, improving the assistant’s capabilities, and expanding the services it offers.

We would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to our partners at Discount Bank for helping advance this project, and to MigoyaTech, led by Gil Meller, for its professional partnership and valuable contribution to the development of the voice assistant.

We are proud of this moment and excited about the journey ahead—a journey in which technology opens doors and enables everyone to listen, discover, and enjoy an entire world of content.