| | | Khaybar Khaybar ya yahud
'Khaybar, Khaybar, Oh Jews! The army of Muhammad will return!') is an Arabic-language rallying slogan referencing the Battle of Khaybar of 628 CE, which began after Muhammad marched with a large Muslim army and besieged Khaybar, an oasis in present-day Saudi Arabia that was home to a notable Jewish community.
The slogan is chanted primarily at public anti- Israel demonstrations, though it has been invoked during Islamist terrorist attacks as well.
The chant has been categorized as antisemitic by the American news broadcaster PBS and the Israeli newspaper The Times of Israel, and by the British advocacy group Muslims Against Antisemitism and the American advocacy group Anti-Defamation League.
Background
The slogan was coined in the late 1980s during the First Intifada by Ahmed Yassin, founder of the militant Palestinian Islamist organization Hamas.
Prevalence
Anti-Israel protests
The slogan has since been embraced more widely by Islamists, Islamic extremists and anti-Israel militants.It has been chanted at Islamic extremist and pro-Palestinian demonstrations, including in Jerusalem, Sweden, England, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands,and Australia. The chant is employed more frequently during periods of violence between Israel and the Palestinians, like during the 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis and the 2023 Israel–Hamas war.
In Europe, those chanting it have faced criminal charges, including incitement to hatred.
Shaima Dallali stepped down as president of the National Union of Students in 2022 after controversy surrounding allegations of antisemitism, including her previous use of the phrase "Khaybar Khaybar O Jews … Muhammad’s army will return Gaza."
Terrorist attacks
Indonesian terrorist Amrozi, involved in the 2002 Bali bombings, shouted the slogan before being sentenced to death in 2003 in a Bali courtroom. |
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