| Examples of anti-Semitism in the Arab and Muslim world | ||
Lebanon
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| Lebanon is also another center spreading anti-Semitic propaganda trough the written and electronic media and by books published there. The radical Iranian-oriented terrorist organization, Hezbollah, leads that field and it is supported by senior figures and various groups. A few examples follow: | |||||||||||
Books The Lebanese edition of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion The Protocols of the Elders of Zion and Instructions from the Talmud |
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| An excerpt from the Introduction : | |||||||||||
| “You, the citizen, must read this book and then read it again, analyze it and be aware of [its contents], so that we may know the truth about our enemies and [be able to] recognize his diabolical plots and snake-like methods . Knowing the enemy is one step on our path to victory” (p. 10) (the use of that book for propaganda purposes will be mentioned again in the section dealing with Saudi Arabia). | |||||||||||
Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler |
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| Professor Bernard Lewis, the veteran (86-year-old) scholar of the Islamic world, quotes (in one of his books) from the autobiography of Sami al-Jundi, one of the first leaders of the Syrian ruling Ba'ath party, regarding his experience in the 1930s: “We were racists, admirers of Fascism, eagerly reading Nazi books and books about the source of the Nazi spirit… We were the first to translate Mein Kampf .” The latter book went through many editions in Lebanon, including a revised edition produced under Syrian aegis. | |||||||||||
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The Raids of the Prophet [Muhammad] on the Jews |
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| The Raids are a selective reworking of parts of The Book of Raids [Kitab al-Maghazi] by al-Waqidi, a distinguished classical Muslim writer who dealt, inter alia, with the raids on the Jews in the early days of Islam. The modern author [al-Kibti] exploits his own “historical-scientific” description of the raids to libel the Jews and “the Jewish national character” also using selected verses from the Qur'an. Accordingly, Jews are represented as having the same negative traits from time immemorial: treachery, subversion, deceit . The conflict between Muhammad and the Jews, according to the book's conclusion, is “between truth and lies, between the religion [i.e., Islam] Allah wished to be victorious over the other [religions], and [especially] that which is null and void [i.e., Judaism]" (p. 88). | |||||||||||
| The last pages of the book, following the table of content, are used to advertise two new publications from the Islamic anti-Israel hate industry: Why the Jews Were Cursed by the Qur'an and the Sunnah , by Ahmed al-Haj, and The Jews – a History of Corruption , by Dr. Tawfiq al-Wa'i. | |||||||||||
The television series “The Diaspora” (Al-Shatat) |
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The above are scenes from the 20 th episode of “ Al-Shatat” (the Diaspora, that is, the exile of the Jewish people). “Al-Shatat” was an elaborate, costly Syrian production broadcast by al-Manar, the Hezbollah TV satellite station in Lebanon in late October-November, 2003, during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, when TV viewing peaks . The program presented a viciously anti-Semitic, pseudo-historical survey of the history of Zionism and the Jewish people. The 20 th episode (broadcast on November 19, 2003) was devoted to the classic anti-Semitic blood libel which accuses the Jews of using the blood of Christian children to bake matzos [unleavened bread] for Passover . Having being attacked by the United States for its blatant anti-Semitism, the Lebanese Foreign Minister defended Hezbollah's right to broadcast the show in the name of “freedom of expression.” |
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| However, on January 31, 2004, at the annual convention of the French Jewish umbrella organization (CCIF), French Prime Minister, Raffarin, pledged that the French Parliament would deliberate the enactment of a law to restrain the sort of anti-Semitic program that was broadcast on al-Manar and would impose fines on satellite operators carrying channels with anti-Semitic programs. The chairman of the French broadcasting authority later announced that he would use all his authority to prevent al-Manar's from broadcasting in France. According to Radio Monte Carlo, the French Minister of Justice asked the judiciary system to investigate the scenes shown in “The Diaspora” (“Al-Shatat”). The directors of al-Manar responded by saying that the series was based on “well-known historical facts” (Radio Monte Carlo, February 4, 2004). It should be noted in this context that around the same time the broadcast of this series was interrupted and then stopped altogether by the Australian Broadcasting Commission. | |||||||||||
| Statements made by Lebanese senior figured Hezbollah |
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| In Lebanon today Hezbollah leads the anti-Semitic propaganda "export" market, its "products" going to the Arab and Muslim world in the Middle East, Far East and the West. The propaganda clearly reflects the organization's radical ideology and the continued vision of the late leader of the Muslim Iranian revolution, Ayatollah Ruhallah Khomeini. The cornerstone of that ideology is the continued, relentless battle to be waged against the State of Israel until it is destroyed . As in many other instances, anti-Israeli and anti-Semitic propaganda are indistinguishable . The statements made by leading Hezbollah members, particularly
by the current Secretary-General (i.e., the head) of the organization, Sayyid
Hassan Nasrallah , make no distinction between
anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli propaganda. Islamic anti-Semitic statements
are combined with particularly harsh epithets (“cancerous entity,” “ultimate
evil,” predatory beast”) 1 intended
to reinforce the de-legitimization of Israel and to justify its eventual
destruction attempts to destroy it.
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| Statements f anti-Semitic nature made by Sayyid Hassan Nasrallah made in recent years: | |||||||||||
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| Tutoring
children in hatred and terrorism in Hezbollah schools in south Lebanon
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[Israeli TV] Cannel 10, "courtesy of" Al-Manar broadcasts, November 27, 2003) |
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Hezbollah schools in south Lebanon |
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A call from Walid Jumblat to kill Jews |
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| Hezbollah in Lebanon does not have a monopoly
on anti-Semitism. For example, Walid Jumblat , the chairman
of the Progressive-Socialist Party in Lebanon, a member of the Lebanese
parliament and the leader of the Lebanese Druze community, made statement
extolling suicide bombing terrorism and calling for the murder of Jews:
“ In the time of [Muslim and Arab] surrender, every Jew killed
is an achievement .” At the time he was surveying the 'Aleih region
east of Beirut and was quoted by both the Lebanese News Service's
Internet site (January 18, 2004) and by An-Nahar ,
a popular Lebanese daily newspaper (January 19, 2004). Jumblat is well-known
for his unrestrained verbal attacks against Israel and
the United States 2.
2 Walid Jumblat is also remembered for his attack on Paul Wolfowitz, current American Under Secretary of Defense, during his visit to Baghdad: “We hope that the missiles will be more accurate this time and will rid us of this microbe and ones like him in Washington…” (Radio Beirut and the French news agency [AFP], October 27, 2003). |
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Following are relevant issues raised by Jumblat: |
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