Pipes: It's wrong to target all Muslims

Daniel Pipes call upon those who oppose Islamism (al-Qaeda, Hamas ) to
avoid targeting all Muslims. It's wrong and indefensible to target all
Muslims. //Mark Finkelstein jcrc@dmjfed.org

Pipes states:

" I have one concern:[some of those who oppose Islamism are taking on
an] increasing anti-Islamic tone. Misled by the Islamists' insistence
that there can be no such thing as "moderate Islam," my allies often
fail to distinguish between Islam (a faith) and Islamism (a radical
utopian ideology aiming to implement Islamic laws in their totality).
This amounts not just to an intellectual error but a policy dead-end.
Targeting all Muslims conflicts with basic Western notions, lumps
friends with foes, and ignores the inescapable fact that Muslims alone
can offer an antidote to Islamism. As I often note, radical Islam is
the problem and moderate Islam is the solution [to defeating Islamism.]"

Source: http://www.danielpipes.org/pubarticle.php?id=650

Viewpoints on Peace expressed by two ambassadors

 

Israel's Ambassador to the United States,  Michael Oren, expressed optimism in the peace talks.

 

In an opinion editorial, he writes:   Is there any reason for optimism?

Indeed, there is. For the first time in history, most Arab leaders view a Middle Eastern state other than Israel - Iran - as their major enemy. The Israeli government under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is strong, stable and deeply committed to resolving the conflict based on two states for two peoples, Israeli and Palestinian. In the West Bank, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is working to restore law, order and economic prosperity while similarly pledging to pursue the two-state solution. And President Barack Obama has placed achieving peace at the top of his foreign policy agenda. Never before, perhaps, have conditions been so conducive for a breakthrough.

 http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/09/01/99932_reason-for-optimism-in-mideast.html#ixzz0yToL72Il 

 

 

Palestinian Ambassador to Iran, Salah Zawawi, expressed his opinion, as well.

 

 Tehran, Sept 2, IRNA -- Palestine’s Ambassador to Tehran, Salah Zawawi, said on Thursday:  “With reliance upon Grace of Almighty God and through solidarity of world Muslims, we hope to witness complete eradication of [ Israel] the fabricated regime in due course.”

 

http://www.irna.ir/NewsShow.aspx?NID=253385 

 

Comments to jcrc@dmjfed.org

 

SF Interfaith Statement for One America

 

Interfaith Statement for One America

A Call to Action for Deeper Understanding & Mutual Respect

As religious leaders representing people of many faiths in the San Francisco Bay Area, we are deeply troubled by the current wave of bigotry and hate directed at Islam and Muslims in the United States.

We recognize that there is a wide range of strongly held views about the location selected for the Islamic Center in New York near Ground Zero and that disagreement with the decision is not tantamount to attacking a religious group. At the same time, there is a growing pattern of anti-mosque protests and other actions directed at American Muslims in many parts of the country that aim to demonize Islam in the name of protecting America from Muslim radicals and extremists.

We condemn these attempts to vilify an entire religious community and affirm that such bigotry has no place in a nation committed to religious liberty for people of all faiths and none. Fear mongering, scapegoating, and intimidating a religious group does not protect our nation against the real threats that it faces, but rather threatens our pluralistic democracy that is a beacon to those who seek freedom from oppression. As a nation of immigrants, we continue to see our diversity as one of the great strengths of our country.

Well-aware of the long and bloody history of religious conflict in Europe, the framers of the U.S. Constitution were determined to found a nation committed to religious freedom. Thanks to their vision and commitment, religious liberty in America is protected as a precious, fundamental and inalienable right for all people. This right is guaranteed by the first 16 words of the First Amendment to the Constitution:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.

From the beginning of our history, we have struggled as a nation to live up to this founding ideal. The current outbreak of fear and prejudice directed at American Muslims is reminiscent of earlier attacks on Roman Catholics, Jews, Mormons and other immigrant communities in America. . Anti-Catholic rallies of the 19th century, for example, warned of "Romanism" taking over America and condemned the Catholic Church as antithetical to American freedom.

Today, we are called once again to speak out against a rising tide of prejudice that threatens the religious freedom of American Muslims and thus undermines religious freedom for us all. Religious liberty is a universal right joined to a universal responsibility to protect that right - not just for ourselves, but for all others. We celebrate that in America we may practice our own faiths in diverse ways that deepen our religious commitment, bridge many of the chasms that divide us, and build doors in the walls that often separate us. We are dedicated to creating a community of mutual respect and common effort for the good of society. This is a salute to America’s legacy and future.

At this difficult time, we ask people of all faiths to take concrete steps to reach out to Muslims and members of other faiths - to host events and joint projects that will build relationships and promote mutual understanding.

We ask all Americans of goodwill to join us in countering this current wave of bigotry and hate by coming together to create our own wave of deeper understanding, mutual respect and common action for the good of all. In this spirit, we commit ourselves to speak and act according to the vision of religious liberty set forth in our Constitution, and urge our fellow citizens to do the same.

 

Maha Elgenaidi, Islamic Networks Group (ING)

Rabbi Doug Kahn, Jewish Community Relations Council of San Francisco, Peninsula, Marin, Sonoma, Alameda and Contra Costa Counties.

Rev. Brian Stein-Webber, Interfaith Council of Contra Costa County

Rabbi Melanie Aron, Congregation Shir Hadash

Imam Aladdin El-Bakri, West Valley Muslim Association

Rev. Gerald Sakamoto, San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin

Rev. Andrew Kille, Interfaith Space

Imam Tahir Anwar

Zahra Billoo, Council on American Islamic Relations – San Francisco

Rev. Canon Charles P. Gibbs, United Religions Initiative

Agha and Malley: Palestinian leader hard pressed to implement an agreement

Authors argue that because Palestinians lack a strong, legitimate central authority, " Palestinians would find it difficult to implement an agreement," argues Agha and Malley

At Mideast Peace Talks, a Lopsided Table - Hussein Agha and Robert Malley (Washington Post)

• Staggering asymmetries between the Israelis and Palestinians could seriously imperil the talks. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is the head of a stable state with the ability to deliver on his commitments. Celebrations of supposed institution-building notwithstanding, Palestinians have no robust central authority. Their territory is divided between the West Bank and Gaza. On their own, Palestinians would find it difficult to implement an agreement.
• Participation in direct talks was opposed by virtually every Palestinian political organization aside from Fatah, whose support was lethargic. Abbas' decision to come to Washington is viewed skeptically even by those who back him. If Abbas reaches a deal, many will ask in whose name he was bartering away Palestinian rights. If negotiations fail, most will accuse him of once more having been duped. Abbas will be damned if he does and damned if he doesn't.
• The demographic threat - the possibility that Arabs soon might outnumber Jews, forcing Israel to choose between remaining Jewish or democratic - is exaggerated. Israel already has separated itself from Gaza. In the future, it could unilaterally relinquish areas of the West Bank, further diminishing prospects of an eventual Arab majority.

  Hussein Agha is a senior associate member of St. Antony's College at Oxford University. Robert Malley is Middle East program director at the International Crisis Group and was special assistant to the president for Arab-Israeli affairs from 1998 to 2001. 

• Source:  summary by dailyalert.org on Sept. 2, 2010 .  Article from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/01/AR2010090105656.html

Cordoba Project Imam on Israel: Favors one-state solution in comments made in 2005

Again, whether you support or oppose placement of an Islamic Center near Ground Zero, 

you should know that  Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, the leader of the project ( The Cordoba Initiative,)

 appears to favor positions that can be characterized as anti-Israel. 

 

A win-win solution to the Palestinian/Israel conflict requires a two-state solution:  A safe and secure Jewish state and a safe and secure Palestinian Arab state.

 

 In 2005,  Imam Rauf  publicly advocated for a one-state solution, in which no separate State of Israel will exist.   

 

 Rauf said he does not favor the plan to establish a Palestinian state along with Israel.

 

 "The differences, perhaps, may lie on whether the solution lies in the two-state solution or in a one-state solution. I believe that you had someone here recently who spoke about having a one land and two people's solution to Israel. And I personally - my own personal analysis tells me that a one-state solution is a more coherent one than a two-state solution. So if we address the underlying issue, if we figure out a way to create condominiums, to condominiamise Israel and Palestine so you have two peoples co-existing on one state, then we have a different paradigm which will allow us to move forward."

 

Source:  http://www.investigativeproject.org/2121/rauf-lecture-reveals-radicalism  ( Steve Emerson)   Audio documentation  

 

 

 As you may already know, Imam Rauf declines to repudiate the terrorist organization Hamas.

 

 When asked to acknowledge Hamas as a terrorist organization, Imam Rauf refused, saying, in part:

"I am a peace builder. I will not allow anybody to put me in a position where I am seen by any party in the world as an adversary or as an enemy." 

Souce : http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/imam_terror_error_efmizkHuBUaVnfuQcrcabL 

In writings translated from Arabic, Imam Rauf states that he sees Hamas, Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad -- organizations identifed by the U.S. State Department as terrorist organizations -- as organizations seeking 'justice."  

Source: http://redcounty.com/content/walid-shoebat-translation-ground-zero-mosque-imam-faisal-abdel-rauf-%E2%80%9Cafter-911-%E2%80%9Chamas-hezbol

 

//Mark Finkelstein    jcrc@dmjfed.org

 

Imam should have no role in Cordoba Project because of his support for Hamas

 

Whatever your opinion about the Islamic Center proposed for construction near Ground Zero in Manhattan, you should be aware that the imam of the Cordoba Project, Imam Faisal Abdul Rauf has refused to acknowledge Hamas as a terrorist organization.  

 

 In my opinion, this is unacceptable, no matter the rationalization.   If the imam cannot clearly repudiate Hamas, the imam should have no role in the project.

 

 Hamas is listed by the U.S. State Department as a terrorist organization.  Hamas regularly and intentionally targets Israeli civilians.  Hamas both conducts and plans military attacks while embedded among Palestinian civilians, and its Charter embraces the hope that Jews will be subjected to genocide.

 

When asked to acknowledge Hamas as a terrorist organization, Imam Rauf refused, saying, in part:

"I am a peace builder. I will not allow anybody to put me in a position where I am seen by any party in the world as an adversary or as an enemy." 

Souce : http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/imam_terror_error_efmizkHuBUaVnfuQcrcabL

Given the deeds and intentions of Hamas it is surely in American interests, in Israel's interests, and in Jewish interests to stand against Hamas as an adversary. 

 

To go further into the matter,  go beyond what individuals, such as Imam Rauf, say in English and attend to what they say in Arabic.

 

The following is from Walid Shoebat, an anti-Islamist [ not anti-Muslim, but anti-Islamist] activist.  The text suggests that Imam Rauf is not 'neutral' towards Hamas ( as he would claim) but indeed embraces Hamas.

 

//Mark Finkelstein    jcrc@dmjfed.org

 

 

Imam Faisal Abdul Rauf. In his translation  from the Arabic in an article “Sharing The Essence Of Our Beliefs” by Feisal Abdul Rauf, published in the  Al-Ghad Newspaper in Jordan, 5/9/2009, Shoebat noted:

In it, Imam Rauf reveals his views to Muslims right after the 9/11 attacks that Hamas, Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad were born as a result of the Muslim hunger for Islamic law and justice. 

The words of Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf:

(Translated from the Arabic by Walid Shoebat)

If someone in the Middle East cries out, “where is the law”, he knows that the law exists. The only law that the Muslim needs exists already in the Koran and the Hadith. People asked me right after the 9/11 attack as to why do movements with political agendas carry [Islamic] religious names? Why call it ‘Muslim Brotherhood’ or ‘Hezbollah (Party of Allah)’ or ‘Hamas’ or ‘Islamic Resistance Movement’? I answer them this—that the trend towards Islamic law and justice begins in religious movements, because secularism had failed to deliver what the Muslim wants, which is life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. 

Source: http://redcounty.com/content/walid-shoebat-translation-ground-zero-mosque-imam-faisal-abdel-rauf-%E2%80%9Cafter-911-%E2%80%9Chamas-hezbol

Clarification: Pro-Israel event in Des Moines, August 19

Neither JCRC nor the Jewish Federation endorses candidates for elective office. No endorsement of any candidate is implied.

 

Keynote Speaker: Senator Charles Grassley

Greetings from the Israel Consulate to the Midwest, Robert Schwartz, Senior Policy Advisor

Thursday, August 19th  7:00 pm - 9:00 pm

Location:  Christian LIfe Church, 2000 NW 100th St, Clive

  The significant effort that Christians United for Israel has made to educate about Israel and to develop support for Israel in its quest for peace is endorsed by JCRC. 

For additional information, contact the Iowa Chapter of Christians United for Israel.  E-mail: IowaCUFI@cleavelandinsurance.com