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You are listening to an art media podcast. It's Thursday, april 30th. This episode was recorded at 9:00pm new york time on Wednesday. I'm deborah pardes and this is arc news daily. The Iran war has been pulled, pulling the Gulf apart. On Tuesday, that split became impossible to ignore. The United Arab Emirates announced it is withdrawing from opec, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, which it joined nearly 60 years ago. The UAE's energy minister, Suhail Amazroui, told

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CNN, the whole world needs more energy. We need to be unconstrained. We need to be looking at it from a perspective that serves not only the producers but also at helping the consuming nations.

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The UAE's decision to walk away from OPEC is being seen as a major blow to the organization. It comes at a moment of intense regional tension as Iran has carried out repeated attacks across the Gulf, targeting the UAE and its energy infrastructure. Most of all. According to reports, the UAE has been increasingly frustrated, not just by the conflict itself, but by how other OPEC members have responded to Iran, which is a founding member of the group. Rather than help defend the uae, Saudi Arabia and Qatar have pushed for diplomacy with Iran. At the same time, there's a more practical issue at play. The UAE has long felt constrained by OPEC production quotas, producing far below what it's actually capable of and effectively leaving money on the table. Analysts say the UAE has been moving in this direction for years, seeking more control over its own production and economic strategy. The country has been investing heavily to expand its oil capacity and wants the freedom to use it rather than sticking to limits set by the group. And that's why this exit was inevitable, even though tensions with Iran and disagreements inside OPEC may have accelerated the decision. From Israel's perspective, the UAE's exit is a direct blow to Iran. Leaving OPEC suggests the UAE is done doing business with them formally, at least one analyst called that a rare opening. Closer ties with the UAE could help move the region beyond the symbolism of the Abraham Accords and build something more consequential in the Middle East. That could include joint energy infrastructure, trade corridors and deeper security cooperation with a Gulf partner that has now shown its willingness to break from its past ties. Israel has also been more willing to help defend the uae. Two days before the OPEC announcement, Axios reported that Israel had secretly sent an Iron Dome battery and dozens of troops to the UAE at the start of the war. This was the first time Israel has ever deployed Iron Dome abroad. A UAE official told Axios that The war has been, quote, a real eye opening moment to see who our real friends are. Israel has not yet officially responded to the UAE's exit, but when it does, it could provide some insight into whether this emerging alliance continues to strengthen the erosion of Democratic support for Israel in the US has been well documented, but several recent events show there may be some resistance and not from the usual places. The first sign comes from Michigan, where State Representative Mallory McMaro is running for the U.S. senate in a three way primary. The race has become a test case for where the Democratic Party stands on antisemitism. On Tuesday, on a Detroit radio station, McMorrow revealed something she hadn't said publicly before at last month's Michigan Democratic Party convention. She said a man walked up to her Jewish husband and screamed an anti Semitic slur at him. She added, quote, you can be angry about what you're seeing happening in the Middle east, but the second you decide that you're going to take it out on a neighbor because they're Jewish, they that's antisemitism and we need to find a way to grapple with it. One of McMarrow's primary opponents is Abdul El Said. He's been a hostile critic of Israel and is campaigning alongside the far left influencer Hassan Piker, who has voiced support for Hamas. McMarrow said inviting someone seen as anti Semitic could deepen divisions when leaders should be building trust across communities. Two U.S. congressmen have also come together on this issue. Josh Gottheimer and Mike Lawler introduced a House resolution on Tuesday. It condemns Piker and far right podcaster Candace Owens by name both for spreading antisemitism. The resolution is significant because it's sponsored by one Democrat and one Republican, targeting the left and the right simultaneously. It cites Piker's support for Hamas and Owens Holocaust denial. And finally, in New York, the first candidate endorsed by Mayor Zoran Mamdani lost badly. Lindsey Boylan was defeated for a West side City Council seat by Carl Wilson. Mamdani had recently vetoed a bill requiring police buffer zones around schools during protests. That was legislation Jewish community groups had pushed for after attacks on Jewish institutions. Wilson was the only candidate who pledged to override that veto. He won the election by 17 points. The question now is what all this adds up to. Are these events just outliers or signs of a growing movement? There's more violence in London to report on. Two Jewish men were stabbed Tuesday morning in Golders Green, a largely Jewish neighborhood in northwest London. Before the police arrived, volunteers from a Jewish Neighborhood Watch used a vehicle and a Taser to stop the attacker. Metropolitan Police Police called it a terrorist attack and arrested a 45 year old man on suspicion of attempted murder. The response from officials was immediate. Prime Minister Keir Starmer called it utterly appalling. London Mayor Sadiq Khan promised increased police patrols. And Israeli President Isaac Herzog said it had become dangerous to walk the streets of a great Western capital as a Jew. The UK's Community Security Trust recorded 3,700 antisemitic incidents in Britain last year alone. That's more than double the figure from 2022. Just this past Monday, a memorial wall honoring victims of the October 7 attacks was set on fire. And a synagogue in northwest London was attacked a week before that. The stabbing on Tuesday also occurred in the same neighborhood where arsonists destroyed several Hatzola ambulances last month. Something that cuts through all of these statements and stats was posted by Britain's Chief Rabbi, Sir Ephraim Mervis. He said, words of condemnation are no longer sufficient. This must be a moment that demands meaningful action from every institution, every community, every leader and every decent person in our country. The Chief Rabbi has set the bar. Starmer and Khan now have to clear it. I'm Deborah Pardes and this is ARC News Daily. See you tomorrow.