Collection of Right-Wing Zionist Articles by Sokoloff 11:59am Wed Dec 3 '03 Arrest traitors! print article From Oslo to Geneva By Yitzhak Sokoloff Israel Resource News Agency | December 3, 2003 Despite its carefully orchestrated media campaign, the Geneva Initiative is actually the harbinger of much more tragedy for Israel, the international community and the Palestinian people. Instead of learning from the failures of the Oslo agreement, the Initiative compounds the likelihood of future bloodshed by rewarding terrorism in ways that would have been unimaginable just a few years ago. The Geneva Initiative teaches the world that political terrorism pays - a lesson that jeopardizes world peace with implications far beyond the confines of the Israeli-Palestinian dispute. As a result of the Oslo process, Israel and the international community recognized the Palestinian Liberation Organization as the legal representative of Palestinians. Armed with tens of thousands of rifles (from Israeli stocks), trained by the CIA, the security forces were charged with maintaining law and order, and in particular, with preventing attacks by other Palestinians on Israel. With some perspective, however, it is now apparent that the PLO used its newly begotten power in ways that were clearly not part of the Oslo Agreement, such as inciting the worst violence to have taken place between Palestinians and Israelis since 1948. Given the fact that many of the Israeli and Palestinian architects of the failed Oslo process were the key figures in the preparation of the Geneva accords, it should be patently obvious that the first responsibility of those interested in achieving peace, should be to ask themselves why the PLO instigated a sophisticated campaign that “inspired” hundreds of Palestinian youngsters to end their lives as mass murderers, killing over a thousand Israeli men, women and children in the last three years and leaving thousands more maimed and crippled. Who, after all, was responsible for unleashing an incitement campaign designed to convince Palestinian youngsters of the nobility of slaughtering defenseless Israelis, the salvation that results from “jihad”, and the creation of Muhammad Al Dura as a folk hero leading the march to death? Who produced a series of films spelling out the pleasures of the “black-eyed virgins” awaiting those who sacrifice themselves for the cause of Palestine? Who sent cameraman into the mosques of Gaza and broadcast a series of sermons calling for the total destruction of Israel and of the Jews that live there? It may seem hard to believe, but the chief Palestinian negotiator of the Geneva Initiative, is none other than Mr. Yasser Abed Rabo, former Minister of Information of the Palestinian Authority - that very individual who was personally, though not solely, responsible for the production and dissemination of some of the most violent incitement material in history. And yet, the Geneva Initiative is predicated upon the assumption that Mr. Yasser Abed Rabo, his patron Yasser Arafat, and their followers who have been acted upon the endless cries to engage in unrestricted warfare against Israeli civilians, have now, finally, turned over a new leaf and recognize “that peace requires the transition from the logic of war and confrontation to the logic of peace and cooperation”. Are there not any other Palestinians with who it would have been possible for Israel to make peace- perhaps those with a bit less Jewish and Palestinian blood on their hands? The answer to this question is equally tragic, because it flies in the face of thousands of years of human experience- the assumption that one can only make peace with oneג€™s most implacable enemies, in this case enemies who have worked to bring about the destruction of the Jewish state for the past 40 years. Tragically, Mr. Abed Rabo was not invited to join the “Geneva” process despite his role in inciting the Palestinian masses to commit atrocity after atrocity, but because of it. Since the end of the Second World War, Americans, Englishmen, Russians and Frenchmen no longer kill Germans and Japanese, and visa versa. Given the ferocity of the conflict, this is no less than astonishing. For this peace the world has to thank the formula arrived at by the U.S. and Britain at the end of the war for their defeated enemies. In addition to the economic largesse of the Marshall Plan, Germans and Japanese were told in the clearest of terms: 1) You must establish and maintain liberal democracies that respect human rights; 2) you must accept territorial compromise, and you may never again elect the Nazis (or their ilk in Japan). At Oslo, and once again in Geneva, these lessons were forgotten. For the international community, the empowerment of the Palestinian Liberation Organization as the masters of a new independent state has grave implications. The greatest threat to humanity today is the global terrorist movements who are currently searching for the means to arm themselves with weapons of mass destruction. Tolerance of the means and the ends of these movements endangers the very existence of much of humanity. The legitimization of the PLO has already served to encourage all those who believe that they can achieve their ends through the use of terrorism as a weapon. Given the success of an organizational career that included not only the wanton targeting of thousands of Israeli civilians, but also the kidnapping and execution of American diplomats, one wonders why the methodology of the PLO should not be adopted by other disenchanted groups, whose grievances are at least as justified as those of the Palestinians. Ultimately, the Palestinians are likely to be the chief victims of the Geneva Initiative, because the initiative purposely leaves out any guarantee of a democratic Palestinian government that respects human rights and personal freedoms. For those Palestinians who are less than happy at the prospect of life under Yasser Arafat, Yasser Abed Rabo and their ilk, there are sadly very few alternatives. Certainly the international community has evidenced no concern at all for the plight of Palestinians condemned to send their children to schools whose curriculum includes the wonders of suicide, and whose sports teams are named after mass murderers. As long as the education and mobilization of their children is left in the hands of a despotic movement led by life-long terrorists, it is inevitable that innocent Palestinians will be forced to pay the price. They will be joined by Israelis, Americans, Europeans and anyone else who chooses to fight terrorism rather than cave in to it. Yitzhak Sokoloff is a fellow of the Rennert Center for Jerusalem Studies of Bar Ilan University and a Senior Fellow in the Jerusalem Public Policy Center. He is covering the Geneva Initiative event on behalf of Israel Resource News Agency. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- add your comments Source file

Successes in Iraq; Disappointments for Islamofascists by and for leftists 12:23pm Wed Dec 3 '03 Poor poor Saddam Leftists! print article This list has appeared in numerous venues, including Free Republic. Its contents are based upon the October 9, 2003, Press Conference of Paul Bremer, Coalition Provisional Authority Administrator -- The Editors. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...the first battalion of the new Iraqi Army has graduated and is on active duty· Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... over 60,000 Iraqis now provide security to their fellow citizens. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...nearly all of Iraqג€™s 400 courts are functioning. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... the Iraqi judiciary is fully independent. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...on Monday, October 6 power generation hit 4,518 megawatts—exceeding the pre-war average. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...all 22 universities and 43 technical institutes and colleges are open, as are nearly all primary and secondary schools. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1, by October 1, Coalition forces had rehabbed over 1,500 schools - 500 more than their target. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... teachers earn from 12 to 25 times their former salaries. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...all 240 hospitals and more than 1200 clinics are open. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...doctorsג€™ salaries are at least eight times what they were under Saddam. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...pharmaceutical distribution has gone from essentially nothing to 700 tons in May to a current total of 12,000 tons. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...the Coalition has helped administer over 22 million vaccination doses to Iraqג€™s children. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...a Coalition program has cleared over 14,000 kilometers of Iraq's 27,000 kilometers of weed-choked canals. They now irrigate tens of thousands of farms. This project has created jobs for more than 100,000 Iraqi men and women. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...we have restored over three-quarters of pre-war telephone services and over two-thirds of the potable water production. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... there are 4,900 full-service connections. We expect 50,000 by January first. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...the wheels of commerce are turning. From bicycles to satellite dishes to cars and trucks, businesses are coming to life in all major cities and towns. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...95 percent of all pre-war bank customers have service and first-time customers are opening accounts daily. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... Iraqi banks are making loans to finance businesses. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...the central bank is fully independent. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... Iraq has one of the worldג€™s most growth-oriented investment and banking laws. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... Iraq (has) a single, unified currency for the first time in 15 years. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...satellite dishes are legal. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...foreign journalists aren't on 10-day visas paying mandatory and extortionate fees to the Ministry of Information for “minders” and other government spies. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... there is no Ministry of Information. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...there are more than 170 newspapers. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... you can buy satellite dishes on what seems like every street corner. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... foreign journalists and everyone else are free to come and go. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...a nation that had not one single element—legislative, judicial or executive-- of a representative government, does. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...in Baghdad alone residents have selected 88 advisory councils. Baghdadג€™s first democratic transfer of power in 35 years happened when the city council elected its new chairman. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...today in Iraq chambers of commerce, business, school and professional organizations are electing their leaders all over the country. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... 25 ministers, selected by the most representative governing body in Iraqג€™s history, run the day-to-day business of government. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...the Iraqi government regularly participates in international events. Since July the Iraqi government has been represented in over two dozen international meetings, including those of the UN General Assembly, the Arab League, the World Bank and IMF and, today, the Islamic Conference Summit. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs today announced that it is reopening over 30 Iraqi embassies around the world. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...Shia religious festivals that were all but banned, aren't. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... for the first time in 35 years, in Karbala thousands of Shiites celebrate the pilgrimage of the 12th Imam. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...the Coalition has completed over 13,000 reconstruction projects, large and small, as part of (a) strategic plan for the reconstruction of Iraq. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...Uday and Queasy are dead - and no longer feeding innocent Iraqis to his zoo lions, raping the young daughters of local leaders to force cooperation, torturing Iraq's soccer players for losing games...murdering critics. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...children aren't imprisoned or murdered when their parents disagree with the government. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...political opponents aren't imprisoned, tortured, executed, maimed, or are forced to watch their families die for disagreeing with Saddam. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...millions of longsuffering Iraqis no longer live in perpetual terror. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...Saudis will hold municipal elections.* Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... Qatar is reforming education to give more choices to parents.* Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... Jordan is accelerating market economic reforms.* Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded for the first time to an Iranian -- a Muslim woman who speaks out with courage for human rights, for democracy and for peace.* Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...he has not faltered or failed. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1...Saddam is gone. Since President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1... Iraq is free. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- add your comments Source file

Doing IT the Arab Way by Beth 12:26pm Wed Dec 3 '03 Leftist Axis of Evil with Islamofascism print article Doing It the Arab Way by Beth Goodtree Dec 02, '03 / 7 Kislev 5764 E-mail This Print Homepage Maybe the reason the Arab Palestinians hate Israel and Jews so much is because Israel treats them differently than their Arab brethren. If Israel were to deal with them in the same way, maybe there would be no problem with Yasser Arafat and his followers. Therefore, I propose that Israel begin dealing with them in exactly the same way as her Arab neighbors. Letג€™s start with Arafatג€™s people who occupy Lebanon. They have no legal status, are prohibited from practicing dozens of professions, lack any social security, are banned from acquiring real estate, and their freedoms of movement and association are restricted. It must be an acceptable way to deal with them, because we have yet to hear a peep from the UN, the EU, Russia or the United States. Nor is Arafat and his gang of terrorists screaming for Lebanon to cut out a piece of herself and give it to them. Israel should follow the Lebanese example. Syria also deals with the Palestinian Arabs in a manner different from Israel. None of them has citizenship, they are denied the right to vote and they do not get Syrian passports. Sounds good to me. There isnג€™t a single complaint from the international community and you never hear of any Palestinian Arabs blowing up busloads of Syrian families. Israel should treat them likewise. Egypt, Libya and Kuwait all have a unique way of handling the Palestinian Arabs. Kuwait expelled tens of thousands of long-term residents in the wake of the 1991 Gulf war. This left the Gazans among them, who carried Egyptian travel documents, with nowhere to go, because the Egyptian government denied them entry. In 1995, the Libyan government demonstrated its displeasure at Arafat's peace negotiations with Israel by not renewing the one-year residency visas of some 30,000 Palestinians and began summary deportations. Expelling troublemakers or potential troublemakers is an acceptable practice in other Arab countries. Israel should start implementing this same practice, just as her neighbors have been doing. A good analogy would be if one had termites in their house, you wouldnג€™t give them a portion of your house in exchange for the termites leaving the rest of the house alone. Those termites are never going to leave your house alone, so the only option is to get rid of them. Also, Arab countries, as well as the Palestinian Arabs, insist on their territories being Judenrein. There are no impassioned cries of ‘crimes against humanityג€™ coming from Kofi Anan or the UN members, so this must be acceptable. Therefore, Israel should do likewise and make its territory ‘Islamrein.ג€™ No jobs for Moslems, take over their properties, outlaw their religion (like Saudi Arabia does to any religion other than Islam), and use their headstones for urinals and paving blocks. Their mosques can be torn down and recycled into new settlement housing. It should work out fine, since the UN never raised a single objection or resolution when it was done to Jews. Meanwhile, the Islamic Conference recently called for a boycott of all Israeli goods, products, inventions, etc. It would seem only fair that Israel boycott anything Arab. And while Israel is at it, maybe they can help the Arab-led boycott along a bit. Any new medical breakthroughs - in fact, all Jewish medical assistance - should be withheld from Arabs. Maybe we can grandfather in such medical breakthroughs as the polio vaccine, for starters. And while at the Islamic Conference, the Malaysian Prime Minister told a summit of Islamic leaders that "Jews rule the world by proxy" and the world's 1.3 billion Muslims should unite, using non-violent means for a "final victory." (Final solution, maybe?) This statement in particular strikes me as ignorant to the point of being tragically humorous. I looked at the latest statistics regarding world religions and the pie chart didnג€™t even include Judaism, because there are so few of us. In fact, there are 18 times as many traditional Chinese (in a country that bans religion), as there are Jews. There are 35% more Jucheג€™s than there are Jews - and I never even heard of Juche. (Apparently, Juche is the only government-authorized ideology in North Korea, to the point of excluding all other religions. "Juche" means "self-reliance" in the Korean language. So how does that effect the cost of kim chee?) While I may have suggested that Israel do things ‘the Arab way,ג€™ for Israel to remain Jewish, it could not. Discrimination, stealing, lying, disrespect of others, murder, forced conversion and thievery are all the things which Judaism eschews. To do any of these things would condemn us as individuals and as a people. On the other hand, it speaks volumes about all the Arab/Islamic states that Israel must deal with. add your comments Source file

The Sheikh tells the Truth by Joseph 1:27pm Wed Dec 3 '03 Sheikh speaks for true peace lovers print article IsraPundit interviews Shaykh Prof Abdul Hadi Palazzi Israpundit: IsraPundit interviews Shaykh Prof Abdul Hadi http://israpundit.com/archives/003433.html Introduction This post is devoted to an e-interview with Shaykh Prof Abdul Hadi Palazzi, the remarkable Italian-Moslem cleric, whose support for Israel has been the subject of many articles. The object of the interview was to solicit Prof Palazzi's views on a variety of topics not covered elsewhere, ranging from the recent peace plans floated, to the Koranic passages which appear anti-Semitic. In contrast to many published interviews, where Prof Palazzi's responses are paraphrased and quoted in third person, the text given here quotes Prof Palazzi's responses verbatim. Biographical notes about Prof. Palazzi, as well as a selected list of links to relevant articles, are given at the end of the interview. E-Interview with Sheikh Prof. Abdul Hadi Palazzi, Director, Cultural Institute of the Italian Islamic Community IsraPundit: Professor Palazzi, from reading the web, IsraPundit readers are familiar with your biography, your writings and some of your views. We are, therefore, aware that you oppose terrorism, that you consider the Islamists' terrorism to be an aberration of Islam, and that you support Israel and her claim to Judea, Samaria and Gaza and Jerusalem. Similarly, Your pronouncements against the Oslo Accords are well-known, and I assume that you also oppose the "Roadmap", which is even worse. However, I have been unable to find any statement to that effect. What is your position about the "Roadmap" and what would be your advice to the current government of Israel? Prof Palazzi: My position is opposing every solution which involves the withdraw of Israel from Judea, Samaria and Gaza, and the creation of a so-called "Palestinian state". In my opinion, the area of Palestine is already divided into a Jewish Palestinian State (Israel) and an Arab Palestinian State (Jordan). Creating a third Palestinian state for the PLO in neither in the interest of Israel, nor in the interest of Jordan, and even less in the interests of those Arabs who would be compelled to live under that kind of barbaric regime. Moreover, accepting the creation of such a state would mean that terror works, and must be rewarded; it would represent a defeat of legality and an undue encouragement to terrorist groups. I think that a valid alternative to both Oslo and the Road Map is the one proposed by the Israeli Tourism Minister Benny Elon: annexation of Judea, Samaria and Gaza, while those Arabs who continue to live in those areas will be citizens of Jordan, administered by a local government. IsraPundit: Some of us have a major problem with passages from the Koran and Hadith that are clearly anti-Jewish (and anti-Christian). Here are two examples of the many that are quoted. The Koran, 5:52 states, " O ye who believe! take not the Jews and the Christians for friends. They are friends of each other. And whoso among you takes them for friends is indeed one of them. Verily Allah guides not the unjust people.". The second example is a quotation from Hadith, as given in Hamas' Charter: "The time [of resurrection] will not come until Muslims will fight the Jews (and kill them); until the Jews hide behind rocks and trees, which will cry: O Muslim! there is a Jew hiding behind me, come on and kill him!". My question is: How do you reconcile these passages with your views about Jews and Israel? Prof Palazzi: As for the text of the Quranic verse, it's translation is simply wrong. Awliya' (tutors and protectors) in Arabic is different from asdiqa' (friends), and a correct translation is "O ye who believe! take not the Jews and the Christians for tutors. They are respectively tutors to each other. And whoso among you takes them for tutors is indeed one of them. Verily Allah guides not the unjust people". The verse refer to a time when Islam was developing, and is an appeal to avoid considering it as a sort of sub-sect depending on Judaism or Christianity. "Do not take as tutors" means "Do not depend on them for your understanding of religion, for guidance in theology and ethics, etc." Apart from this, Islam surely does not forbid friendship between Muslims and non-Muslims, to the point that a Muslim man can take a Jewish or a Christian woman as his wife and mother of his children. The Qur'an describes marriage as a relation of "intimate love and mercy" (mawaddah wa rahmah) and explains that this same relation can actually exist between a Muslim man and a Jewish or Christian woman. Were ordinary friendship with Jews and Christians forbidden, the Qur'an itself could never permit a relation of "intimate love and mercy" with those with whom friendship is not permissible. As for the Hadith, it refers to the time when there existed an alliance between Jews and Muslims in Medina, and everything was giving the impression that that alliance was stable, and based on the need of a common defense against pagan Arabs. As the Hadith announces, that alliance was going to end, and actually, a few years after some Jewish tribes broke the alliance and sided with the pagan Arabs, they where defeated by the Muslims. By inserting that Hadith in its Charter, Hamas tried to de-contextualize the Hadith and to interpret it as containing a prescription of for fighting the Jews, while the Hadith itself contains no such prescription, but only a prophecy of what was going to happen. IsraPundit Reading your works and interviews you have given to such outlets as World News Daily, it seems at times that your voice is a lone Moslem voice in the wilderness. This contrasts sharply with the situation among Christians, where you can find a large body of Christian Zionists. How much of a following do your views about Israel have among Moslems the world over, and among the half-million Moslems in Italy? Prof Palazzi: The situation is not ideal at all, and one must admit that in the Muslim world mosques, universities, Islamic schools, media, etc., are frequently under the total control of the Wahhabis, while Sunnis - who are until today the majority of the Muslims - have very limited resources. The role played in the religious programs of al-Jazirah TV by Dr. Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the ideologue of suicide terrorism, made this situation even more dramatic. Originally the Sunni position, represented by the then Sharif of Mecca al-Hussein and later by his son, the late King Feisal of Hijaz and then of Iraq, was openly pro-Zionist, while the Wahhabi one was extremely anti-Zionist Now the situation is such, that many of those who are Sunni from the point of view of belief, and consequently condemn terrorism and suicide bombing, are nevertheless reasoning like the Wahhabis for what concerns Israel and its relations with the Muslim world. This is especially true for the Arab world, while outside of it many Sunnis have preserved their original pro-Zionist stance. I am fully aware that I am voicing a minority orientation, but do not feel so isolated as it could appear. The former President of Indonesia and leader of Nadwat al-Ulema (i.e. the leader of the main Islamic organization of the most populous Muslim country of the world), Shaykh Abdurrahman Wahid, is known for his pro-Israel stance, and was also invited to lecture in New York by the American Jewish Committee. The Mufti of Sierra Leone, Shaykh Ahmad Sillah, is also pro-Israel, and so are the Grand Mufti of the Russian Federation, Shaykh Tajuddin, and the Mufti of European Russia, Shaykh Salman Farid, who wrote a fatwa against the intifadah. Same can be said about the Muftis of Chechnya, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. IsraPundit: An article published in 2001, described you as a "Muslim Zionist". Is this description appropriate, and if so, in what sense? Prof Palazzi: If by "Muslim Zionist" one means a Muslim who supports the right of the Jewish people to have their own independent and sovereign State, who is solidly behind the State of Israel when it is attacked by terror and when its existence in menaced, who thinks that developing friendly relations between the Muslim nations and the State of Israel is in the interest of the Muslims and of human civilization in general, then I think that the label of Muslim Zionist is appropriate. IsraPundit: In one interview, you mentioned death threats made against you. Has this form of intimidation ceased? Prof Palazzi: I have received harsh criticism, insults and even attempts of character assassination, but no threat which can be taken seriously. Most of those attacks do not come from Muslims, but from Italian left-wing or right-wing extremists. In almost one case, I have proof that one the persons who seems interested in circulating about myself the most absurd lies is actually supported by the Italian branch of the "Muslim Brotherhood" sect. IsraPundit You are listed in the directory of Root and Branch (R&B;) as the Italian member of the International Council of R&B.; Over the last while, however, I have not seen any R&B; activity at all. Is this organization still active? And can you tell us what R&B; has achieved in general, and what the Italian chapter has achieved in particular? Prof Palazzi: The Root & Branch Association is based in Jerusalem, and has no Italian chapter. One can subscribe to the Root & Branch Information Service by sending a request to: rb@rb.org.il. Root & Branch is very active, and its main activity is represented by the series of Conferences and public talks which are held in Jerusalem at the Israel Center (22 Keren HaYesod Street). The recent lecture by Mr. John Loftus, Esq., on "America's Secret Plans for Israel: What the United States intends for Israel and the Middle East over the next two Years" (October 18), saw an extraordinary public participation. The Fourth Conference on the Rabin Assassination was also successful. IsraPundit: European governments (as well as in my own Canadian government) treat Israel with nothing but hostility. What, in your view, can average citizens like IsraPundit's readers do to reverse this sad situation? Prof Palazzi: The same situation characterized Italy for a long period, too. Intellectuals, media operators, academics were almost unanimously supporting the PLO and blaming Israel from every possible point of view. The election of Berlusconi as Prime Minister and the defeat of the left, to a certain extent reversed the situation, and convinced people that one should not be afraid to voice opinions which are not "politically correct". On April 15, 2003, our Institute, the Italian Muslim Association, another Jewish Association, and the Italy-Israel Fellowship organized in Rome an "Israel Day", a demonstration in support of Israel and of her struggle against terror. See:http://members.xoom.it/amislam/gferrara.htm. That initiative changed a general perception: demonstrating in support of Israel was possible, and the reaction of the public opinion was good. If intellectuals are so fond of the PLO, this is not the attitude of the majority of the Italian population, a population which remembers very well the carnage at Fiumicino Airport, the hijacking of the Achille Lauro ship and the terror attack against the Rome synagogue. It was the first time that a pro-Israel demonstration took place in Italy with the participation of many local administrators and members of the Parliament. After that, the political change was also effective in the field of media, and State TV ceased being an exclusive fiefdom of the left, as they have been during the last years. It was now possible to deal in TV with Stalin's and Mao's crimes (and not only with Hitler's crimes), and it was also possible to deal with the PLO from an objective point of view. Images of how children in PLO schools are trained to play with plastic arms and dressed as suicide bombers shocked the public, and people started asking why the European Union is funding PLO and its schools. Presently I am working as a consultant in a TV program, and we are going to deal with antisemitism in the contemporary Arab world, and to show some excerpts from the Egyptian antisemitic soap opera "Knight Without a Horse". I believe other European countries and Canada can take the example of Italy in promoting a general change of attitude. IsraPundit: The author of an article entitled "The Koran On Jews' Right To Land" (Feb 19, 2001), based his work on an interview with you. In this interview you described the influence of Wahhabism and the Saudi money that propels it throughout the world. Since the publication of the article, the world has experience 9-11 as well as endless terrorist acts perpetrated by Islamic fundamentalists. Do you see any progress at all in curbing the Wahhabi influence since 9-11? What in your view needs to be done? Prof Palazzi: I see some progress, which is nevertheless diminished by some other developments. Some leaders of the pro-terror lobby in the U.S. are in jail, some of their organizations are outlawed, and some of their funds are confiscated. Exponents of those same organizations are no longer invited to the White House as honor guests, etc. That is positive, but surely not enough. One cannot forget that after 9/11 President Bush invited Saudi crown prince `Abdullah to his ranch in Texas, and told him, "You are our ally in the struggle against terror." Now, that man is - from the very beginning - the real mastermind behind al-Qa'idah, and the one who used al-Qa'idah to hospitalize King Fahd and to become the de facto ruler of the country. That is like inviting the Emperor of Japan after Pearl Harbor, and telling him, "You are our ally in the struggle against Nazi-Fascism." The relatives of the victims of 9/11 sued three members of the House of Sa`ud for damages, and the State Department tried to create obstacles. While many Taliban are held in Guantanamo, 50 members of the Bin Laden families who were in the United States on 9/11 were on the contrary immediately sent back to Saudi Arabia, in order to prevent investigations. Taking into account that many of those people were in the U.S. as businessman for investments, a U.S. court could surely benefit from questioning them about the level of involvement of the Bin Laden family within the U.S. economy. Those people surely knew about their relative more than most of the Taliban detained in Guantanamo, many of whom are only illiterate militiamen of a local tribal war between Tajiks and Pashtus. A member of the Al Sa`ud family declared that he is not afraid of the recent developments since, "We control the West, but the West cannot control us". If one reflects on how the evident links between the Al Sa`ud family and al-Qa'idah were and still go on being passed over without scrutiny or public outcry, one must admit that unfortunately that claim is well founded. I heartily support the liberation of Afghanistan from the Taliban, heartily support the liberation of Iraq from Saddam Hussein, but am convinced that unless an urgent change of regime is realized in Saudi Arabia, winning the war against terror is totally impossible. One cannot win a war without attacking the headquarters of the enemy. IsraPundit: As a Canadian, I am particularly interested in the following questions. In May of 2002, you travelled through Canada. Generally, did you find any differences between Canadian Moslems and US Moslems? Were you able to make any inroads among Canadian Muslims? Were you able to convince any of them to refrain from their consistent and strident anti-Israeli actions? Prof Palazzi: My speaking tour of 2002 involved three cities (Montreal, Toronto and Winnipeg) and lasted ten days only. Due to lectures, participation in TV and radio programs, and interviews with the media, the time left for meeting Muslims (and for meeting people in general) was very limited. In Toronto, I was able nevertheless to visit a mosque, participate in an Islamic meeting by the Municipal House, and have dinner with the imams of the local mosques. That was not enough to realize the difference between Muslims in Canada and in the United States. I must say that most of the Muslims I met agree in considering terrorism and suicide bombing as forbidden by Islam, but nevertheless have a negative opinion about Israel. That last circumstance is not surprising, if one considers that the Canadian Islamic Congress (CIC) is the Canadian equivalent of the U.S. Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), and that mosques and Islamic centers which exist in Canada need the contributions of the CIC for their survival, and that both CAIR and the CIC consider anti-Israeli propaganda as one of their most important activities. CAIR and the CIC are local branches of the "Muslim Brotherhood", and the CIC openly denounce my speaking tour, and claimed that those Jewish organizations which had invited me were "playing with fire". IsraPundit: Another question related to your Canadian tour. The "Ottawa Citizen", my home-town daily, included this paragraph in reviewing your tour (http://leb.net/pipermail/lexington-net/2002-April/002661.html): "But John Esposito, author of Unholy War: Terror in the Name of Islam and a professor of Islamic studies at Georgetown University in Washington, said Sheik Palazzi's Koran interpretations are "not credible." "I'm not too sure who, other than Palazzi, supports his position" that the Koran endorses Jerusalem as an Israeli-held capital, said Mr. Esposito, who is also editor of the Oxford History of Islam. "I understand why Jewish groups like him -- he's got a good product to sell -- but when you talk about top scholars on Islam, I've never heard his name mentioned." Would you care to respond to this statement? Prof Palazzi: First of all, I must say that Prof. John Esposito owes his academic prestige to his close relations to the Saudi-sponsored fundamentalist network is in the United States, and that the Department of Islamic Studies at Georgetown University is a known center of pro-Saudi academics. That is one of the reasons why Prof. Esposito is inclined to exaggerate the credentials of fundamentalist scholars, and to denigrate those Islamic scholars who voice an opposite point of view. Dr. Khalid Duran of the Ibn Khaldun Institute, who abides by a point a view which is anti-fundamentalist, but different from my own, also attributes to Prof. Esposito the wall of silence with which the US academic world reacted to his sharp analysis of the structure of the Islamist movement in North America. Apart from this, ShiaNews, the official Web site of the Shi'ite Community in Pakistan, republished an article of mine and considers me one of the "prominent scholars of Ahlul Sunnah". The International Islamic University of Tashkent translated some of my articles into Uzbek in order to use them as part of the courses for the local imams. The same Saudi Ministry of Religious Affairs goes on inviting me to the Annual Meeting of Muslim scholars which is held in Mecca, and the Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammed also invited me to participate in the World Assembly of Muslim Scholars which was held in Putrajaya (July 2003), before the OIC Conference. I obviously do not accept Saudi invitations, exactly like I will not accept any more invitations coming from Dr. Mahathir, but those invitations were nevertheless received. IsraPundit: In his book, "Christian Attitudes towards the State of Israel", Prof. Paul Charles Merkley makes the point that the distinction between dar-al-harb and dar-al-Islam is fundamental to Islamic theology. From this distinction flows the assertion that "Islam forbids that there should ever be peace for Muslims so long as any part of Allah's world withholds submission. Reconciliation between dar-al-Islam and any part of dar-al-harb is not envisioned for the moment. A state of truce is permitted, so long as it is modelled on the ...Treaty of Khudaibiya". This would imply that there could never be peace between Israel and her Moslem neighbours. What is your assessment of this claim? Prof Palazzi: Dar al-Islam and dar al-harb are not related to Islamic theology, but to the history of Islamic jurisprudence. They are categories which the Islamic jurists of Middle Age conceived in order to describe the political situation of their time. One must also take the meaning those same jurists attributed to those categories. "Dar al-Islam" means a territory which is ruled by a Caliph who ruled on the base of Islamic law, while "dar al-harb" means a territory wherein a Muslim cannot manifest publicly his religious identity without fear or persecution or forced conversion. One of those same jurists, Imam Fakhr ad-Din ar-Razi even theoretically conceived the existence of something which in his time was not common, i.e. dar as-sulh (also called dar ad-da`wah or dar al-islah), a territory which is not under the authority of a caliph, but wherein the religious freedom of the Muslims is not at stake. In our time, due to the absence of a caliph - no part of the world is dar al-Islam in the legal sense, and limited areas (e.g. some parts of China) can be considered dar al-harb. Countries in which the right to be a Muslim and to practice Islam are protected by the law are included in the category of dar as-sulh, not of dar al-harb, and the rule for Muslims living in those conditions is abiding by the local law (principle of "obedience to the sultan"), except for local law which infringes on Islamic law. If living in one of these countries prevents a Muslim from abiding by Islamic law, he is nevertheless forbidden to rebel against the government or to cause sedition, but must migrate to another country where those negative conditions do not exist. Of course, words can be used in the ordinary sense, and consequently dar al-Islam - in its non-legal and ordinary sense - can simply mean a country which is inhabited by many Muslims, exactly like dar al-harb can mean an area where wars are frequent. The ordinary language, however, is always distinct from the specific use of words in Islamic law. Consequently, the idea that "A state of truce is permitted, so long as it is modelled on the ... Treaty of Hudaibiya" is baseless. The treaty of Hudaybiyyah was temporary since it was a treaty between idol-worshippers and Muslims, and cleaning Arabia from idolatry was a basic duty of Islam. After that, no jurist objected to the circumstance that a Muslim state like the Ottoman Empire ratified permanent peace treaties with countries where Muslims were not persecuted, or that the Ottoman Sultan - who was also the Caliph - exchanged ambassadors with States in peace with the Islamic State. IsraPundit: Thank you for your time, Prof. Palazzi, and on behalf of IsraPundit's readers, I wish you success in your efforts for a real peace between Israel and her neighbours. Above all, as a friend of Israel myself, I wish to thank you for your steadfast support for Israel, particularly at this very difficult time. Prof Palazzi: Thank to you for the opportunity you are giving me to make my position known. Biographical notes, Shaykh Prof Abdul Hadi Palazzi 1984 - M.A., Faculty of Philosophy, University of Rome, Rome, Italy 1984-1989 - Chairman, Cultural Department, Italian Muslim Association 1986 - Degree in Islamic Sciences, University of al-Azhar as-Sharif, Cairo, Egypt 1986 Ijazzah (authorization to teach) for Islamic Law, by Shaykh Husayn al-Husayni al khalwati, University of al-Azhar as-Sharif, Cairo, Egypt 1987 - Ijazzah (authorization to teach) for Quranic exegesis, by Shaykh Isma'il al-Azhari, University of al-Azhar as-Sharif, Cairo, Egypt 1987 - Ph.D., Institute for Islamic Studies and Research (Naples), by appointment of the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, Shaykh Abdul Aziz Ibn Baz 1987 - Ordained as Imam for the Italian Islamic Community >From 1989 - Consultant for Middle East Affairs R.A.I. (Italian State TV), Rome, Italy; Co-author of TV reports from Iran, Iraq, Kurdistan and Turkey >From 1989 - Secretary General and Member, Board of Governors, Italian Muslim Association >From 1991 - Co-founder and Director, Cultural Institute, Italian Islamic Community >From 1997 - International Council Member, Root & Branch Association, Ltd. >From 1998 - Muslim Co-founder and Co-Chairman, Islam-Israel Fellowship, Root & Branch Association, Ltd 1998-1999 Lecturer in the History of Religions, University of Velletri, Rome, Italy >From 1999 - Muslim Chairman, Jerusalem Embassy Initiative, Root & Branch Association, Ltd. 2000 - 2001 - Resident Professor of Middle East Studies, Research Institute for Anthropological Sciences, Rome, Italy Prof Palazzi is listed by Hasbarah as a speaker of the Speakers Bureau. Prof Palazzi is in his early forties, married and father of a son. He is the author of several books and many articles. Source: Root and Branch website and other sources. Links to selected articles by or about Prof Palazzi. A google search under "Hadi Palazzi" and "Israel" will render well over 1,000 links. The following represent merely a random assortment. (a) World Net Daily. Six articles were posted since 2001, e.g., "Sheik joins rabbi's condemnation of Arafat". (b) Jerusalem Post: Several articles going back to 1997, some of which are available on the web. See, for example, "For Allah's sake". (c) A short article at the website of the World Jewish Congress. (d) Pro-Israel bloggers, including IsraPundit and LGF, as well as pro-Israel websites have posted many relevant articles. Two exaples of the latter are "A Muslim Scholar Speaks on Islam & Jerusalem" and "The Muslim Zionist". Additionally, on October 14, 2003, the Think Israel website posted an interview with Prof Palazzi, under the heading, "JIHAD OF THE PAGANS". Posted by Joseph Alexander Norland at December 3, 2003 10:02 AM | TrackBack Comments Update: Today's IMRA (http://www.imra.org.il/story.html3?id=19018) reports as follows: Tuesday, December 2, 2003 Italian Muslim Association asks Bangladesh to release Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury As-salamu `alaykum wa rahmat-Ullahi wa barakatuH. Dear Brothers and Sisters, Brother Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, a pro-dialogue anti-fundamentalist Muslim journalist from Bangladesh, was arrested at the airport while leaving for Israel and is presently detained. We attach the text of a recent article of his and ask all of you to support our courageous brother Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury with your supplications. The Board of Governors of the Italian Muslim Association asks the authorities of Bangladesh for the immediate liberation of our detained brother. Wa-s-salamu `alaykum wa rahmat-Ullahi wa barakatuH. Sheikh Professor Abdul Hadi Palazzi Director, Cultural Institute of the Italian Islamic Community http://amislam.com mailto:info@amislam.com Muslim Co-Chairman, Islam-Israel Fellowship, Root & Branch Association, Ltd. www.rb.org.il Had there been more Palazzis, there would have been no need for IsraPundit. Posted by: Joseph Alexander Norland at December 2, 2003 10:58 PM add your comments Source file