For far too long the pervasive Middle Eastern qualification of Jews as murderers and bloodsuckers was dismissed in the West as an extreme view of radical fringe groups. But it is not.?It is time for the region's secular movements to start a counter-education in tolerance.
Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi meets with Republican Sen. John McCain, at the Presidential Palace in Cairo, Egypt, Jan. 16. Op-ed contributor Ayaan Hirsi Ali writes: 'In the wake of the Arab Spring' the people 'want to see their ideals turned into policy. For too many...one of those ideals is the end of peace with Israel. The United States must make clear to Morsi that this is not an option.'
Egyptian Presidency/AP
EnlargeEgypt?s newly elected president, Mohamed Morsi, was caught on tape about three years ago urging his followers to ?nurse our children and our grandchildren on hatred? for Jews and Zionists. Not long after, the then-leader of the Muslim Brotherhood described Zionists as ?bloodsuckers who attack the Palestinians,? ?warmongers,? and ?descendants of apes and pigs.?
Skip to next paragraph' +
google_ads[0].line2 + '
' +
google_ads[0].line3 + '
Subscribe Today to the Monitor
These remarks are disgusting, but they are neither shocking nor new. As a child growing up in a Muslim family, I constantly heard my mother, other relatives, and neighbors wish for the death of Jews, who were considered our darkest enemy. Our religious tutors and the preachers in our mosques set aside extra time to pray for the destruction of Jews.
For far too long the pervasive Middle Eastern qualification of Jews as murderers and bloodsuckers was dismissed in the West as an extreme view expressed by radical fringe groups. But it is not.
All over the Middle East, hatred for Jews and Zionists can be found in textbooks for children as young as 3, complete with illustrations of Jews with monster-like qualities. Mainstream educational television programs are consistently anti-Semitic. In songs, books, newspaper articles, and blogs, Jews are variously compared to pigs, donkeys, rats, and cockroaches, and also to vampires and a host of other imaginary creatures.
Consider this infamous dialogue between a 3-year-old and a television presenter, eight years before Mr. Morsi?s remarks.
Presenter: ?Do you like Jews??
3-year-old: ?No.?
?Why don?t you like them??
?Jews are apes and pigs.?
?Who said this??
?Our God.?
?Where did he say this??
?In the Koran.?
The presenter responds approvingly: ?No [parents] could wish for Allah to give them a more believing girl than she ... May Allah bless her, her father, and mother.?
This conversation was not caught on hidden camera or taped by propagandists. It was featured on a prominent program called ?Muslim Woman Magazine? and broadcast by Iqraa, the popular Saudi-owned satellite channel.
It is a major step forward for a sitting US administration and leading American newspapers to unequivocally condemn Morsi?s words. But condemnation is just the first move.
Here is an opportunity to acknowledge the breadth and depth of the attitude toward Jews in the Middle East, and how that affects the much desired but elusive peace process between Israel and the Palestinians.
So many explanations have been offered for the failure of successive US administrations to achieve that peace, but the answer is in Morsi?s words. Why would one make peace with bloodsuckers and descendants of apes and monkeys?
Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/vr57PJxM7mQ/Why-Middle-East-Muslims-are-taught-to-hate-Jews
acm awards 2012 january jones ncaa final game reba mcentire acm awards the killing april fools
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.