| Ali Khân |
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| Poet, Writer, Journalist |
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It is a Crusade
by Ali Khan
It is a Crusade. An on-going, de facto Crusade. The continuing saga which started several centuries ago with the
birth of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Only the medium has changed from
"conventional" wars to extensive "propaganda wars" on our home TV screens
by a small clan of Zionists whose leaders crave to get 'their' Biblical
land of Israel from Egypt to Iraq.[i] Frankly, we would all be better off without the flawed
"wisdom" of George W. Bush, "fun-da-mental-ism" of Osama Bin Laden,
lunacy and hypocrisy of lobbyists like Thomas L. Friedman, corruption of Yasser Arafat, brutality of Ar-iel Shar-on or even the
failed "peace" plan of the Arab League's King
Abdullah. The truth is written out there on the Walls and stones
of Jerusalem's mosques and churches. It is in all the three religious
books, Torah, Bible and the Quran, for you to see, read, think and
conclude. The fact of the matter is that the Holy Land is
equally holy for Jews, Christians and Muslims. To end this crusade, we must look beyond America, a
pre-dominantly Christian country, Israel, a Zionist terrorist regime and
the Arab leaders who represent only a small fraction of Muslims world. Let us get serious and look at the facts. There are three major participants in this crusade: Jews, Christians and Muslims. According to Britannica Book of the
Year 1997: And now let us see who is representing who Muslims are represented by the Arab League, led by a
clique of unrepresentative monarchs and unelected dictators who rule over
a combined 288.2 million Arabs, or only one quarter % of the world’s
Muslims. Now the question is - Are these the only folks who
should have a final say in the fate of the native people of the Holy Land? With a monopoly on military power, why would Israel be
serious about resolving the Holy Land conflict when nine
American presidents have subsidized its illegal annexation of native soil
for the creation of exclusive Jewish settlements? The United States can
never be an honest mediator of a just Middle Eastern Peace since it has
its own financial, strategic interests in the region plus it has more than 60
million fundamentalist evangelist Christians who support Israel's
exclusive rights over the holy land. And the Arab League can never be
serious because all the non-elected Kings and leaders want is to save
their own "thrones". If the above parties continue to represent their
exclusive agendas as the only legitimate representation of their people,
the Holy Land issue is going to blow up into a full-scale 'clash of
civilization' crusade. That is just fine by the Netenyahu Likudniks and
war criminals like Ariel Sharon. But what about the rest of us? So, let me be the first to suggest an international
interfaith convention in Geneva to discuss the Holy Land issue openly and
mutually with the condition that the non-participant of the convention
will face the consequences decided in the convention by the participants
of the convention. In that convention, all the Jews, Christians and Muslim
countries should be represented regardless of their status,
location, and economy. Neither the Jews, the Christians or the Muslims must
not be allowed to have exclusive rights over the Holy Land just because
they are more powerful or they have the support of the United States and
Europe or somebody else. Each Jew, Christian and Muslim should have equal right
to reside and worship in the Holy Land. That is the real teachings of all
these religions. So, be it.
It is time to end this tri-party crusade and give
peace and justice an even chance. Otherwise, I repeat, this whole issue is going to
eventually blow up with dire consequences for the whole world. Because, remember. It is a Crusade. An on-going, de facto Crusade. Notes:
[i]
Israel's Grand Design: Leaders Crave Area from Egypt
to Iraq - by John Mitchell Henshaw - Media Monitors Network (MMN) -
http://www.mediamonitors.net/johnhenshaw1.html
[ii]
It is important to
note here when the Palestine problem was created by Britain
in 1917, more than 90 percent of the population of Palestine were
Arabs and no more than 56,000 Jews in Palestine. More than half of
the Jews living in Palestine at that time were recent immigrants,
who had come to Palestine in the preceding decades in order to
escape persecution in Europe. Less than 5 percent of the population
of Palestine were native Palestinian Jews. The Arabs of Palestine at
that time owned 97.5 percent of the land, while Jews (native
Palestinians and recent immigrants together) owned only 2.5 percent
of the land. During the 30 years of British occupation and rule, the
Zionists were able to purchase only 3.5 percent of the land of
Palestine, in spite of the encouragement of the British Government.
Much of this land was transferred to Zionist bodies by the British
Government directly, and was not sold by Arab owners. Therefore,
when British passed the Palestine problem to the United Nations in
1947, Zionists owned no more than 6 percent of the total land area
of Palestine. Notwithstanding these facts, the General Assembly of
the United Nations recommended that a “Jewish State” be established
in Palestine and the Assembly granted that proposed “State” about 54
percent of the total area of the country. Israel immediately
occupied (and still occupies) 80.48 percent of the total land area
of Palestine. This territorial expansion took place, for the most
part, before May 15, 1948 i.e., before the formal end of the British
forces from Palestine, before the entry of Arab armies to protect
Palestinian Arabs, and before the Arab- Israeli war. Also read:
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