Must be written by Lebanese Maronite, right?
This article is pretty amazing, given the author' s ethnic
background.
Myths of the Middle East
© 2000 WorldNetDaily.com
I've been quiet since Israel erupted in fighting spurred by disputes over
the Temple Mount. Until now, I haven't even bothered to say, "See, I told
you
so." But I can't resist any longer. I feel compelled to remind you of the
column I wrote just a couple weeks before the latest uprising. Yeah, folks,
I
predicted it. That's OK. Hold your applause. After all, I wish I had been
wrong. More than 80 people have been killed since the current fighting in
and
around Jerusalem began. And for what?
If you believe what you read in most news sources, Palestinians want a
homeland and Muslims want control over sites they consider holy. Simple,
right? Well, as an Arab-American journalist who has spent some time in the
Middle East dodging more than my share of rocks and mortar shells, I've got
to tell you that these are just phony excuses for the rioting,
trouble-making
and land-grabbing. Isn't it interesting that prior to the 1967 Arab-Israeli
war, there was no serious movement for a Palestinian homeland?
"Well, Farah," you might say, "that was before the Israelis seized the West
Bank and Old Jerusalem." That's true. In the Six-Day War, Israel captured
Judea, Samaria and East Jerusalem. But they didn't capture these territories
from Yasser Arafat. They captured them from Jordan's King Hussein. I can't
help but wonder why all these Palestinians suddenly discovered their
national
identity after Israel won the war.
The truth is that Palestine is no more real than Never-Never Land. The
first
time the name was used was in 70 A.D. when the Romans committed genocide
against the Jews, smashed the Temple and declared the land of Israel would
be
no more. From then on, the Romans promised, it would be known as Palestine.
The name was derived from the Philistines, a Goliathian people conquered by
the Jews centuries earlier. It was a way for the Romans to add insult to
injury. They also tried to change the name of Jerusalem to Aelia Capitolina,
but that had even less staying power. Palestine has never existed -- before
or since -- as an autonomous entity. It was ruled alternately by Rome, by
Islamic and Christia crusaders, by the
Ottoman Empire and, briefly, by the British after World War I. The British
agreed to
restore at least part of the land to the Jewish people as their homeland.
There is no language known as Palestinian. There is no distinct Palestinian
culture. There has never been a land known as Palestine governed by
Palestinians. Palestinians are Arabs, indistinguishable from Jordanians
(another recent invention), Syrians, Lebanese, Iraqis, etc. Keep in mind
that
the Arabs control 99.9 percent of the Middle East lands. Israel represents
one-tenth of 1 percent of the landmass. But
that's too much for the Arabs. They want it all. And that is ultimately
what
the fighting in Israel is about today. Greed. Pride. Envy. Covetousness. No
matter how many land concessions the Israelis make, it will never be enough.
What about Islam's holy sites? There are none in Jerusalem. Shocked? You
should be. I don't expect you will ever hear this brutal truth from anyone
else in the international media. It's just not politically correct. I know
what you're going to say: "Farah, the Al Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the
Rock
in Jerusalem represent Islam's third most holy sites." Not true. In fact,
the Koran says nothing about Jerusalem. It mentions Mecca hundreds of times.
It mentions Medina countless times. It never mentions Jerusalem. With good
reason. There is no historical evidence to suggest Mohammad ever visited
Jerusalem.
So how did Jerusalem become the third holiest site of Islam? Muslims today
cite a vague passage in the Koran, the seventeenth Sura, entitled "The Night
Journey." It
relates that in a dream or a vision Mohammed was carried by night "from the
sacred temple to the temple that is most remote, whose precinct we have
blessed, that we might show him our signs. ..." In the seventh century, some
Muslims identified the two temples mentioned in this verse as being in Mecca
and Jerusalem. And that's as close as Islam's connection with Jerusalem gets
-- myth, fantasy, wishful thinking. Meanwhile, Jews can trace their roots in
Jerusalem back to the days of Abraham.
The latest round of violence in Israel erupted when Likud Party leader
Ariel
Sharon tried to visit the Temple Mount, the foundation of the Temple built
by Solomon. it is the holiest site for Jews. Sharon and his entourage were
met with
stones and threats. I know what it's like. I've been there. Can you imagine
what it is like for Jews to be threatened, stoned and physically kept out of
the holiest site in Judaism?
So what's the solution to the Middle East mayhem? Well, frankly, I don't
think there is a man-made solution to the violence. But, if there is one, it
needs to begin with truth. Pretending will only lead to more chaos. Treating
a 5,000-year-old birthright backed by overwhelming historical and
archaeological evidence equally with illegitimate claims, wishes and wants
gives diplomacy and peacekeeping a bad name.
A daily radio broadcast adaptation of Joseph Farah's commentaries can be
heard on TalkNetDaily.
Barbara Fagan-Williams
New Product Acquisitions
Tel: (210) 949-8214
Fax: (210) 949-8487
Email: bwilliams@ilexonc.com |
