Alleged Muslim Brotherhood-Linked DAWN Appoints Omar Shakir as Executive Director
DAWN announced the appointment of Omar Shakir, who was deported from Israel in 2019 over BDS advocacy, as DAWN itself faces ongoing scrutiny over alleged ties to Muslim Brotherhood-linked figures.
Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN) announced on February 25, that it has appointed Omar Shakir as its new Executive Director, succeeding Sarah Leah Whitson. The appointment follows interviews conducted in late January and takes effect on March 2. Shakir, who previously served as Israel and Palestine Director at Human Rights Watch (HRW) for nearly a decade, brings to DAWN a record of activism that includes documented associations with alleged terror-linked individuals.
Shakir's Deportation from Israel and BDS Advocacy
Shakir was deported from Israel in November 2019 after his work permit was revoked under Israel's anti-boycott law. He has been an active promoter of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which is illegal in Israel.
Following Hamas' October 7 attack, Shakir posted on X that "so long as there's impunity, Gaza remains an open-air prison, and Israel's apartheid isn't dismantled, bloodshed and repression will continue," language attributing the massacre to Israeli policies rather than Hamas agency.
Shakir’s Associations With Alleged Terror-Linked Figures
Shakir has been photographed with Shawan Jabarin, Director of Al-Haq, who was convicted in 1985 of recruiting for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a designated terrorist organization.
According to Israeli Supreme Court records, Jabarin was sentenced to 24 months for his PFLP work while simultaneously operating as a human rights advocate, a pattern the court described as operating as “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.” In 2021, Israel designated Al-Haq as a terrorist organization, classifying it as “an inseparable arm” of the PFLP that operates “on its behalf and upon its instructions.”
Shakir also spoke at an event featuring Sami Al-Arian, a convicted financier of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), a U.S.-designated terrorist group. Al-Arian pleaded guilty in 2006 to providing support to PIJ and was deported from the United States. He later established CIGA, a Turkish-based institute, where he continues to host conferences featuring anti-Israel advocates and alleged terror-linked figures.
Additionally, Shakir appeared at an event with Wadah Khanfar as a “special guest.” Khanfar has been described as allegedly holding positions for Hamas in Sudan and South Africa, and has publicly praised Hamas’ October 7 attack. The Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs reported that Khanfar was a Muslim Brotherhood member in Jordan, where he was arrested. Former Al Jazeera colleagues who resigned from the network complained that Khanfar packed the network’s staff with Islamists, many sympathetic to the Muslim Brotherhood.
Staff and Board Ties to Alleged Muslim Brotherhood-Affiliated Organizations
The appointment occurs within a leadership structure with alleged ties to the Muslim Brotherhood and its affiliated networks in the United States. DAWN’s founding chairman Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi journalist killed in 2018, acknowledged that he joined the Muslim Brotherhood as a university student.
Esam Omeish, DAWN’s co-founder and a board member, previously served as national president of the Muslim American Society (MAS). A legal brief from federal prosecutors stated that MAS “was founded as the overt arm of the Muslim Brotherhood in America.”
Omeish resigned from the Virginia Commission on Immigration in 2006 after a video emerged of him stating at a 2000 rally that “…the jihad way is the way to liberate your land.” He also serves as chairman of the Washington Trust Foundation, which according to Influence Watch, is allegedly connected to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).
According to the Anti-Defamation League, some of CAIR’s current leadership had early connections to organizations allegedly affiliated with Hamas. The Investigative Project on Terrorism reported that CAIR’s Executive Director, Nihad Awad participated in a 1993 summit of U.S.-based Hamas members and supporters. In a 1994 statement, Awad said: “I am in support of the Hamas movement.”
Documented Record vs. Public Framing
Although DAWN's announcement of Shakir's position focuses on his history of involvement in apparent humanitarian efforts and human rights advocacy, the documented record presents a substantively different picture. His associations with individuals connected to designated terror organizations, his 2019 deportation from Israel for BDS advocacy, and his positioning within an organization whose leadership maintains ties to alleged Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated networks collectively suggest a profile that extends well beyond conventional human rights work.