Arab-Israeili Conflict: Violence


Figure 1.--This 1970 wire service photo shows Israeli children killed in ambushed by Arab guerrillas. The caption read, "The bodies of two two of the Isreali school children May 22, when their school bus waas ambushed by Arab guerrillas, are carried on a streacher here. The ambush, near Kibbutz Baram, on the Lebanese border, has claimed the lives of 11, 8 of them children, and left 21 injured."

The level of violence in the Middle East has ecalated over time as Palestinians have more and more commited themselves to terrorism targetting civilians. Unlike what some authors would like the public to believe. This did not begin with either Zionism ar the foundation of Israel. There is a long hisory of violence directed at Lews, Christians and othr non-Muslim groups, both during the Ottoman era and the brief Britih Mandated period after World war I. This is true both in the areas controlled by the Ottomans and in Persia and North Africa. Islamic scholars have played a role here in letting Islam be used to justify violence. And there are a number of verses in the Koran which do justify violence, especially violence against non-Muslims, including the use of terror. This has essentially taken terror out of the box. At first terror against Israelis. Then terror tagets were expanded to any Jews. Americans, and other Westerners. But of course once terror is out of the box it is hard to reverse the process. Gradually Muslims became targets. At first the targets were offending leaders like King Abulah and President Sadat, but gradually innocent Muslims civilians, including muslims woeshiping in Mosques began to be targetted in a range of Muslim countries, including Saudi Arabia. These were not Jews and Christians attacking Muslims, but fellow Muslims. The terrorism has become increasing mindless, with the principal goal being higher and higher body counts. Terrible violence has ocucurred in Algeria, Iraq, Lebanon, and other Arab countries as well as Pakistan. State supported terrorism reached the level mof genocide in Sudan. When the violence ultimately reached Saudi Arabia, some Muslims have begun to have second thoughts about the use of violence. Public opinion polls suggest that qn increasing number of Arabs are increasingly critical of trrorism, at least when Muslims are the targets. Any calculation of the the victims of terrorists inevitably leads to the obvious conclusion that most of the people being killed are Muslims and that they are being killed by other Muslims in sectarian acts of violence. Now some Islamic scholars are trying to put terror back in the box. A former British radical writes, "A handful of scholars from the Middle East have tried to put radicalism back in the box by saying that the rules of war devised so long ago by Islamic jurists were always conceived with the existence of an Islamic state in mind, a state which would supposedly regulate jihad in a responsible Islamic fashion. In other words, individual Muslims don't have the authority to go around declaring global war in the name of Islam." [Butt} It remains to be seen if this is even possible.

History of Violence

The level of violence in the Middle East has ecalated over time as Palestinians have more and more commited themselves to terrorism targetting civilians. Unlike what some authors would like the public to believe. This did not begin with either Zionism ar the foundation of Israel. There is a long hisory of violence directed at Jews, Christians and othr non-Muslim groups, both during the Ottoman era and the brief Britih Mandated period after World War I. This is true both in the areas controlled by the Ottomans and in Persia and North Africa. The Great Powers intervened to protect Christian communities in The Ottoman Empire. The greatest act of violence was the Ottoman genocide of the Christian Armenians. Egypt is the most important Arab state and exterted its independence from the Ottoman Empire about the turn oif the 19th century. Of course for centuries, Muslim privateers in the Mediterranean were seizing European ships and enslabing the Christians onboard. There were even coastal slave catching raids. America's first foreign war to to protect American shipping. Some authors attempt to justify terror against Jews by Zionism. In fact there is along history of trror against Christians. Some historians say Egypt’s modern sectarian strife dates back to The French Rovultion. Napoleon seized Egypt (1798). The majority Muslim population began attacking Christians who they thought were supporung the French financially. The situation has become progressuvly worse with the Palistian promotion of violence and terror. Muslims and Christians since the 1970s have clashed hundreds of times, maay unreported by the media. Almost always it is Muslims attacking Christians. Persia/Iran has a long ughly history of asttacks on non-Muslims. What is different about Palestine is that the Jews created a state and for the first time were able to fight back.

The Koran

Islamic scholars have played a role here in letting Islam be used to justify violence. And there are a number of verses in the Koran which do justify violence, especially violence against non-Muslims, including the use of terror. Islam is often desribed as a religion of peace. And there are references toward peace in the Koran. but there are also many references to war and violence. The number of such references is disturbing. Even more disturbing are references to violence as a positive good and references justifying violence against unbelivers. We notice the repeated usage of passages like "kill/slay them wherever you find them". (Some scholars suggest "fight" is a better translation.) However the passages is translated, the justificatioin for violence against those of other faiths and hypocrites who abandon Islam is clearly enshired uin the Koran. These passages are unlike any in the religious books of the worlds other great religions. Several of these passages would seem to give a Muslim justification for suiside bombers targetting Jews, Christians, and even Muslims of differing views. The Koran also authorizes violence against women. In reading these passages it should be remembered that Islamic scholars teach that the Koran is the literal, perfect word of God and can not be questined. We have quoted the various pertinent passages from the Koran and attempted to assess their meaning. Some are elusive. Others seem rather straight forward. We do not pretend to be Islamic scholars and welcome any insights that readers might have.

Taking Terror Out of the Box

Islamic religious sanction for violence has essentially taken terror out of the box. Fedyeen terrorists who suceeded in killing Jewsx achieved hero status among Palistinins and the wider Aran community. Here they have aporobation of both natiomlot and religious leaders. At first terror was directed toward Jews during the British Mandate and than against the Israelis. Led by the Grand Mufti there were several periods of Arab attacks on Jews. These were attacks on the Jewish community, attacks that were nothing more than the the periodic attacks on Jews, any Jews that had occured in the Arab Lands for centuries. Muslims that were non-violent were willing to tolerate vilence aimed at Jews, even women and children. This was not inter-communal violence, it was Muslim attacks on Jews. And because of the Zionist infrastructur, the Jews began organizinf self -defense grouos--the origin of the Haganah. The Arans were also frustrated by the British which intervened to limit the attacks. After the creation od Israel, the terror tagets were expanded to any Jews. Americans, and other Westerners. But of course once terror is out of the box it is hard to reverse the process. Gradually Muslims also became targets. Once terror became acceptable, men with guns not only began hitting Jewish civilians, but other Muslim civilans who did not holdthe same beliefs. At first the targets were offending leaders like King Abulah and President Sadat, but gradually innocent Muslims civilians, including muslims woeshiping in Mosques and shopers in masrkeys began to be targetted in a range of Muslim countries, including Saudi Arabia. These were not Jews and Christians attacking Muslims, but fellow Muslims. Commonly any outrage like 9-11 was blamed on Jews, but in the Middle east today the level of violence and killing is forcing more Mislims to come to terms with the monsters they have created.

Mindless Terror

The terrorism has become increasing mindless, with the principal goal being higher and higher body counts. Terrible violence has ocucurred in Algeria, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and other Arab countries as well as Afhanistan and Pakistan. State supported terrorism reached the level of genocide in Sudan. Mindless attacks on civilans have now become commonplace. And in Pakistan the attacks have gone from shooting a little girl in the head on her schoolbus to attacking on whole schools. It should be noticed that the first attack on schools were Palintinian terorists attacking Jewish schools. Now the attacks are on Muslim schools, but it is not KJews and Christians attacking those schools, but Islamicist groups.

Second Thoughts

When the violence ultimately reached Saudi Arabia, some Muslims have begun to have second thoughts about the use of violence. Public opinion polls suggest that qn increasing number of Arabs are increasingly critical of trrorism, at least when Muslims are the targets. Any calculation of the the victims of terrorists inevitably leads to the obvious conclusion that most of the people being killed are Muslims and that they are being killed by other Muslims in sectarian acts of violence. ISIS attacks on Muslims have reached levels thst many Muslims did not believe possible. Now some Islamic scholars are trying to put terror back in the box. A former British radical writes, "A handful of scholars from the Middle East have tried to put radicalism back in the box by saying that the rules of war devised so long ago by Islamic jurists were always conceived with the existence of an Islamic state in mind, a state which would supposedly regulate jihad in a responsible Islamic fashion. In other words, individual Muslims don't have the authority to go around declaring global war in the name of Islam." [Butt} It remains to be seen if this is possible.

Sources

Butt, Hassan. "My plea to fellow Muslims: you must renounce terror," The Observer (July 1, 2007).






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Created: 5:51 AM 10/13/2010
Last updated: 3:52 AM 10/6/2015