Last week, president Obama met with Israeli, Palestinian and Jordanian leaders. In Ramallah, Obama addressed the peace process under a huge picture of Yassir Arafat, a terrorist icon. Obama also spoke to Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority (who on wag pointed out is now completing the seventh year of his four year term.) Because of the movement detected by Obama towards peace, the president announced that American aid to the Palestinian Authority would be resumed. Indeed, over half a billion dollars was released to the PA.
Of course, that was last week, and, as we all know, things change. Now, Abbas is in Doha at an arab summit to discuss Syria as well as the Israeli-Palestinian issues. Here is what Abbas had to say about Jerusalem in his speech:
"The Israeli occupation is working in a systematic and hurried way to Judaise East Jerusalem, change its features and uproot its Palestinian inhabitants, attacking the al-Aqsa Mosque and its Muslim and Christian holy sites,"
Let's look at this statement.
1) Abbas says that Israel is attacking the al-Aqsa Mosque. For those who do not know, al-Aqsa is the third most holy sight in Islam. It is built on the location from which the prophet Mohammed is said to have ascended to heaven. That spot also happens to be the location where the Jewish Temple was built and stood for 1000 years prior to its final destruction in the first century. It is also the site upon which Abraham was told by God to sacrifice his son Isaac as described in the book of Genesis. In short, it is the holiest sight of Judaism. The Israelis are not attacking it. Even the suggestion of such conduct is ludicrous. Instead, the al-Aqsa Mosque is under the control of the Islamic religious authorities in Jerusalem. Each week thousands come to worhship there. It is a fact well known to Abbas, but he still makes claims to the contrary.
2) Abbas says that the Israelis are attacking Christian holy sites in Jerusalem. This too is a total lie. There are no complaints from the Vatican or any other Christian church with regard to the treatment of Christians or their holy sites in any part of Israel or Jerusalem in particular. Indeed, Israel is just about the only place in the Middle East where Christians are free to worship without being attacked or restricted in one way or another by Islamic rulers. In Iran, it is a crime punishable by death for a Moslem to convert to Christianity or for a Christian to attempt to proselytize a Moslem. In Egypt, now that the arab spring has come and gone, the Coptic Christian community is under constant attack by the Moslem Brotherhood. Hundreds of Christians have been killed. In Lebanon, the Shia Moslems led by Hezbollah have been driving Christians from certain areas of the country, engaging in ethnic cleansing and not just religious persicution. Only in Israel are Christians safe. It is a fact well known to Abbas, but he still makes claims to the contrary.
3) Abbas says that the Israelis are working to uproot the arab inhabitants of East Jerusalem. So what is it that Israel is doing? The answer is that the Israelis are either building or planning to build some apartment houses in a part of Jerusalem that is currently open land. Think about that. Israel is building apartment buildings in its capital city on open land. Imagine that the US government built some public housing on five vacant lots in Washington, DC. Then imagine that America let US citizens move into those new apartment buildings. Could anyone properly describe that as America driving out the residents of Washington? The question is so silly as to make the person asking the question seem irrational. But that is all that is happening in Israel. It is a fact well known to Abbas, but he still makes claims to the contrary.
4) Abbas says that Israel is working in a hurried way to Judaise East Jerusalem. Let's split this into two parts. First let's talk about timing. Prior to 1948, major areas of East Jerusalem were inhabited by Jews. The Old City of Jerusalem had a "Jewish Quarter" which had been predominantly Jewish for many centuries. To the east of the Old City, the Hebrew University, the pre-eminent Jewish university was located on Mount Scopus, a hill in East Jerusalem. When the British withdrew and the United Nations directed that Palestine be split into a Jewish and an arab state, the armies of five different arab countries defied the UN and invaded. These armies managed to take the Old City of Jerusalem and the eastern half of the metro area; they drove out every Jew who lived in these conquered areas. During the next twenty years, the arabs did all they could to erase every trace of the Jewish presence they had ended. Cemetaries were buried; synogugues were torn down, monuments were destroyed. The Temple Mount, including the so called Wailing Wall, the holiest site for Jews discussed above, was barred to Jews by the arab government. In 1967, Israel took these areas back during the Six Day War. Following that victory, the Israeli government allowed its citizens free access to the areas where they had lived for centuries before 1948. The Jewish population of Jerusalem soared, and so did the arab population. Nothing new has happened lately except that the expanding population has needed more places to live. There is nothing new or hurried about what is happening. It is a fact well known to Abbas, but he still makes claims to the contrary.
Second, this discussion would be incomplete without addressing perhaps the worst section of Abbas' remarks. When Abbas talks about attempts to Judaise this area, he is engaging in the worst and most despicable racist rhetoric. What is it that says that only Moslems ought to live in East Jerusalem? Suppose the American government decided that it would restrict Washington just to whites; the concept is the same. If you object to replacing religion with race, then suppose that the government anounced that henceforth Catholics would not be allowed to live in the District of Columbia. Is there anyone who thinks that such a move would be proper? Is there anyone who thinks that the person suggesting such a move is not a bigot to be shunned? If you do think that America should be used as an example, then consider Northern Ireland. Suppose that the British government decided that Belfast should be restricted to Protestants and that any attempts by local Catholics to live in that city would be stopped. Is there anyone out there who would not expect the world to object? But this is the exact equivalent of what Abbas is saying.
The truth is that Mahmoud Abbas is a dishonest, racist man who is prepared to lie and does so with regularity. He has no interest in peace; all he wants is to stay in power.
This is the man that Obama has now decided to give half a billion dollars with the resumption of aid. All I can say is "Great job, Mr. president."
Obama has three years and nine and a half months left in his term. Let's hope we can survive his successes.
Of course, that was last week, and, as we all know, things change. Now, Abbas is in Doha at an arab summit to discuss Syria as well as the Israeli-Palestinian issues. Here is what Abbas had to say about Jerusalem in his speech:
"The Israeli occupation is working in a systematic and hurried way to Judaise East Jerusalem, change its features and uproot its Palestinian inhabitants, attacking the al-Aqsa Mosque and its Muslim and Christian holy sites,"
Let's look at this statement.
1) Abbas says that Israel is attacking the al-Aqsa Mosque. For those who do not know, al-Aqsa is the third most holy sight in Islam. It is built on the location from which the prophet Mohammed is said to have ascended to heaven. That spot also happens to be the location where the Jewish Temple was built and stood for 1000 years prior to its final destruction in the first century. It is also the site upon which Abraham was told by God to sacrifice his son Isaac as described in the book of Genesis. In short, it is the holiest sight of Judaism. The Israelis are not attacking it. Even the suggestion of such conduct is ludicrous. Instead, the al-Aqsa Mosque is under the control of the Islamic religious authorities in Jerusalem. Each week thousands come to worhship there. It is a fact well known to Abbas, but he still makes claims to the contrary.
2) Abbas says that the Israelis are attacking Christian holy sites in Jerusalem. This too is a total lie. There are no complaints from the Vatican or any other Christian church with regard to the treatment of Christians or their holy sites in any part of Israel or Jerusalem in particular. Indeed, Israel is just about the only place in the Middle East where Christians are free to worship without being attacked or restricted in one way or another by Islamic rulers. In Iran, it is a crime punishable by death for a Moslem to convert to Christianity or for a Christian to attempt to proselytize a Moslem. In Egypt, now that the arab spring has come and gone, the Coptic Christian community is under constant attack by the Moslem Brotherhood. Hundreds of Christians have been killed. In Lebanon, the Shia Moslems led by Hezbollah have been driving Christians from certain areas of the country, engaging in ethnic cleansing and not just religious persicution. Only in Israel are Christians safe. It is a fact well known to Abbas, but he still makes claims to the contrary.
3) Abbas says that the Israelis are working to uproot the arab inhabitants of East Jerusalem. So what is it that Israel is doing? The answer is that the Israelis are either building or planning to build some apartment houses in a part of Jerusalem that is currently open land. Think about that. Israel is building apartment buildings in its capital city on open land. Imagine that the US government built some public housing on five vacant lots in Washington, DC. Then imagine that America let US citizens move into those new apartment buildings. Could anyone properly describe that as America driving out the residents of Washington? The question is so silly as to make the person asking the question seem irrational. But that is all that is happening in Israel. It is a fact well known to Abbas, but he still makes claims to the contrary.
4) Abbas says that Israel is working in a hurried way to Judaise East Jerusalem. Let's split this into two parts. First let's talk about timing. Prior to 1948, major areas of East Jerusalem were inhabited by Jews. The Old City of Jerusalem had a "Jewish Quarter" which had been predominantly Jewish for many centuries. To the east of the Old City, the Hebrew University, the pre-eminent Jewish university was located on Mount Scopus, a hill in East Jerusalem. When the British withdrew and the United Nations directed that Palestine be split into a Jewish and an arab state, the armies of five different arab countries defied the UN and invaded. These armies managed to take the Old City of Jerusalem and the eastern half of the metro area; they drove out every Jew who lived in these conquered areas. During the next twenty years, the arabs did all they could to erase every trace of the Jewish presence they had ended. Cemetaries were buried; synogugues were torn down, monuments were destroyed. The Temple Mount, including the so called Wailing Wall, the holiest site for Jews discussed above, was barred to Jews by the arab government. In 1967, Israel took these areas back during the Six Day War. Following that victory, the Israeli government allowed its citizens free access to the areas where they had lived for centuries before 1948. The Jewish population of Jerusalem soared, and so did the arab population. Nothing new has happened lately except that the expanding population has needed more places to live. There is nothing new or hurried about what is happening. It is a fact well known to Abbas, but he still makes claims to the contrary.
Second, this discussion would be incomplete without addressing perhaps the worst section of Abbas' remarks. When Abbas talks about attempts to Judaise this area, he is engaging in the worst and most despicable racist rhetoric. What is it that says that only Moslems ought to live in East Jerusalem? Suppose the American government decided that it would restrict Washington just to whites; the concept is the same. If you object to replacing religion with race, then suppose that the government anounced that henceforth Catholics would not be allowed to live in the District of Columbia. Is there anyone who thinks that such a move would be proper? Is there anyone who thinks that the person suggesting such a move is not a bigot to be shunned? If you do think that America should be used as an example, then consider Northern Ireland. Suppose that the British government decided that Belfast should be restricted to Protestants and that any attempts by local Catholics to live in that city would be stopped. Is there anyone out there who would not expect the world to object? But this is the exact equivalent of what Abbas is saying.
The truth is that Mahmoud Abbas is a dishonest, racist man who is prepared to lie and does so with regularity. He has no interest in peace; all he wants is to stay in power.
This is the man that Obama has now decided to give half a billion dollars with the resumption of aid. All I can say is "Great job, Mr. president."
Obama has three years and nine and a half months left in his term. Let's hope we can survive his successes.
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