Have they not journeyed through the earth and gained hearts by which to reason and ears by which to hear. Indeed, blinded not are the eyes, but blinded are the hearts within breasts. (The Qur’an 22:46)

Shakespeare’s soothsayer should have warned us to "beware the Ides of May." Yes, March was cruel and gruesome, especially for the Palestinians of Ramallah, Bethlehem, Jenin and Nablus. But the onset of May brought to a horrific climax a long history of Western betrayal, treachery and deceit. Thursday, May 2 was a dark, dismal, morally repugnant day for the West, for the leaders of the so-called civilized West. For on that day, Western leaders, the "smilers" with daggers behind their cloaks, had raised their hidden daggers and thrust, long and hard, at a dispossessed, besieged and brutalized population of Palestinians struggling tooth and nail for their very existence as a nation. In the midst of all the carnage and destruction in the West Bank cities of occupied Palestine. In the midst of all the gross violations of human rights and humanitarian law by the oppressive Israeli Defense Forces (IDF); their unlawful and disproportionate use of lethal force, their extrajudicial executions, their collective punishment, their arbitrary arrest and detention, their use of civilians as human shields, their hostage-taking, their wanton demolition of buildings with civilians still inside. In the midst of all the institutionalized torture and degradation by ruthless Israeli soldiers, generals and commanders alike. In the midst of all the degrading strip searches of Palestinian women forced to undress completely and collectively in front of their relatives and children (the Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem’s report, "Sexual Harassment in the Name of the Law"). In the midst of all the serious Israeli war crimes, well-documented and independently verified by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch (HRW), United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), United Nations Human Rights Commission, the Red Cross, the Red Crescent, B’Tselelm, the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), Jewish peace groups like Gush Shalom, international relief and rescue organizations, and independent reporting by The Daily Telegraph, The Times, The Independent, The Sunday Telegraph, The Guardian and even Israeli newspapers like Yediot Aharanot.

In the course of the operation (the recent Israeli offensive in Bethlehem), when the troops forced entry into the home of a Palestinian activist, Lt. Col. G. was accused of abusing one of the man’s sons. Soldiers, who were there and reported their commander’s behavior, said Lt. Col. G. put a gun to the head of the son, and threatened to shoot him unless he revealed the whereabouts of his father. He also ordered the youth to strip, and held some burning toilet paper close to the boy’s testicles. G. also ordered a bottle to be brought for the youth to sit on. When asked to explain his actions, G replied that he was "only following the orders of the Shin Bet internal security coordinator."

In the midst of all the flagrant horror, humiliation and violence, this was the dubious and arrogant response from Western leaders on May 2 (Thursday):

1. A 94 to 2 Senate vote and a 352 to 21 House vote in favor of unqualified, unconditional support for Israel, additional US. aid "to help Israel defend itself," condemnation of so-called Palestinian terror, and a call to all Arab states, namely Egypt and Saudi Arabia, "to declare their unqualified opposition to all forms of terrorism, particularly suicide bombings."

Overall 194 Republicans, 157 Democrats and one independent voted for this undemocratic, lop-sided, and biased resolution. Majority Whip Tom DeLay, the sponsor of the House resolution, told the House, "There is no moral equivalence between a democratic government defending its citizens and a calculated strategy of death waged by terrorist organizations."

Linking Palestinian resistance to Al-Qaeda, Sen. Joseph Lieberman, chief sponsor of the Senate resolution said, "Those suicide bombers striking innocent Israelis are cut from the same cloth of evil as the terrorists who turned airplanes into weapons and struck the United States on Sept.11." When questioned about the outright hostile nature of this resolution, White House Press secretary, Ari Fleischer said, "The Congress has a right to speak out."

2. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan announced his decision to abandon the planned investigation into the bloodshed and destruction in the Jenin refugee camp and to disband the fact-finding team because of objections from Israel. Diplomats said Israeli military officials flatly refused any inquiry that would subject Israeli troops and commanders to questioning. "If you’re going to die on a particular hill, don’t die on Jenin," one senior American official said. "Die on something that is important to moving forward." (Reported by Todd Purdum, The New York Times, May 4)

3. US Secretary of State Colin Powell announced a Middle East peace conference to be sponsored by the so-called Western Quartet, the US, the UN, the EU and Russia. Dictating the terms and conditions of this conference is none other than the convicted terrorist Sharon who announced that the major objective of this gathering was to restructure and "reform" the Palestinian Authority. No mention is made of reforming the ultraradical and trigger-happy Knesset, or dismantling illegal Israeli settlements, or investigating Israeli war crimes, or ending the brutal 35-year occupation, or even negotiating a final settlement to the Arab-Israeli conflict. Excluded from the conference are major Arab players, Arafat, Syria and Lebanon.

What can justify such blatant support for the terrorist state of Israel by leaders of the Western world? What can possibly justify their turning a blind eye to such mounting evidence of Israeli violence and abuse? What words can express our pain at this collective injustice and naked complacency on the part of Western leaders? Charmaine Seitz, a Jewish journalist based in Jerusalem, expresses it well: "In Jenin, the first question I was asked was, ‘Where were you when this was happening to us?’ I had an excuse — journalists were not allowed in to Jenin until one week later. But now that the evidence is visible, when even The Washington Post and New York Times state clearly that the Israeli Army has carried out acts that can be characterized as criminal, I want to ask the rest of the world: Where are you?"

Our traditional Islamic response in times of collective terror and ganging up of evil forces can be found in the Qur’an:

Those to whom the people said: The people are gathering against you so fear them. But this increased their faith and they said God is all sufficient unto us, and our best guardian. And so they returned with God’s blessings and bounty — no harm had befallen them. (The Qur’an: 3:173)

This familiar passage from the Qur’an has soothed, comforted and given strength to many people faced with a multitude of evil conspirators and a consortium of well-equipped enemies. We believe that we are the true keepers of the faith of Abraham, that divine justice will eventually prevail, and that our Zionist enemies will once again be smitten by God for their iniquity and oppression. But still the extent of Western duplicity and collaboration overwhelms us. Why are democratic Western leaders coordinating their war on terror with a notorious terrorist, renowned for his butchery and for his massacre of hundreds of innocent civilians in Sabra and Shatila? Technically speaking, these leaders are aiding and abetting a criminal. Not that they care. But just out of curiosity — in a Western democracy, how many years does one get for acting as an accomplice?

The first pretext we are given is that Israel has a right to defend itself from Palestinian suicide bombers. According to US Congress, the brutal and wanton bombing of Palestinian cities is a legitimate "pre-emptive measure" by the Israeli government. Thousands of years ago, another supporter of pre-emptive measures, Herod the tyrant, the King of the Jews, ordered all the two-year old boys of Bethlehem murdered so as to kill the newborn Jesus, the prophesied King of the Jews, and hence ensure his grip on power. (Mathew 2: 1-18)

I wonder if this is legitimate in the eyes of US congressman? Has anyone ever wondered why this Herodian self-defense strategy, known in church history as "The slaughter of the Holy Innocents" is never observed except by very few churches. Has anyone ever asked why this scripture is seldom read during the Christmas season, or rarely read at all? Could it possibly have anything to do with the fact that Herod the tyrant (37 BC. to 4 BC.), who initiated the building of the Third temple in Jerusalem, was a Jewish national leader, married to a Jewish princess?

Here’s another pre-emptive parable from Israel. In the 12th century, Abimelech, one of the sons of Jerubbaal, a judge or national leader of Israel, went out after his father’s death and said to the people of Shechem: "Which is better for you, that all seventy of the sons of Jerubbaal rule over you, or that one rule over you?" You see Abimelech believed in democracy. Eventually, Abimelech "slew his brothers, the sons of Jerubbaal, seventy men, upon one stone." (The Hebrew Bible: Book of Judges). Way to go Israel?

It’s hard to believe that these pre-emptive Israeli tactics have become the ultimate high in Washington theses days. At a recent "We Love Ashcroft" gala, this was the rage: "Patience, a few more domestic terrorist acts and we will soon be able to operate as do the Israeli security forces, unfettered by Miranda, the ACLU and other bleeding heart liberals." Fine!

Let’s begin with domestic terrorism. Last month, a 21-year-old college art student Luke J. Helder of Pine Island, Minn. was arrested and accused of planting a series of pipe bombs in rural mail-boxes across the US Midwest in a campaign of "domestic terror." As an Ashcroftian measure of self-defense, why not destroy the rural town of Pine Island? Or bulldoze Luke’s family home in Minneapolis? Or better still, why not bomb the University of Wisconsin-Stout for filling his head with anti-government propaganda and inciting him to terror in the first place? Why not detain and torture all his terrorist buddies in the punk band called Apathy where he sang? In the final analysis, a bomb is a bomb, be it tied around the waist, placed in a mail-box, or dropped from F16s and B52s. Technical considerations as to whether the bomber blew himself up in the process or escaped to safety are minor details that have no bearing on the act itself.

In a recent more serious case of "domestic terrorism," police found traces of TNT and RDX, a military-quality explosive, in a truck rented by two Israelis near a US naval base in the state of Washington. On Tuesday, May 14, Fox News reported that both Israelis were detained for speeding and immigration violations after it was revealed they were in the United States illegally. Even after tests confirmed the presence of these powerful explosives, the driver and passenger insisted that they were only delivering furniture. Imagine, if you can, who would have been blamed if the Israelis had succeeded in carrying out their evil plot. Who else but Arafat and the Palestinians, or maybe Al-Qaeda or some other non-Western Islamic entity. Why? Because they are "jealous" of American freedom and the American way of life, of course. Isn’t that the official line these days? Imagine, if you can, the ecstasy at the We Love Ashcroft gala. Finally, their terrorist dream come true. With such strong pro-Israeli sentiment running wild in Washington, I doubt our two Israeli friends will ever get a conviction or even a speeding ticket, nor will there be any pre-emptive moves on Israel whatsoever. Keep in mind that there were several cases of Israeli terrorism in America throughout the previous years. Nothing was ever done about it; Congress was never outraged nor did the Senate pass any resolutions condemning Israeli terror.

For example, The Jewish Defense League (JDL), founded by the radical Rabbi Meir Kahane, a staunch supporter of suicide bombings and of sacrificing other Jews as a means of guaranteeing Israel’s future, is officially recognized by US officials as a domestic terrorist organization for its documented violence against political adversaries. Instead of being condemned and shunned, supporters of Kahane and his Israel-based movement Kach proudly marched in the Salute to Israel parade in New York carrying signs which read "Kahane was right."

In addition, it is well-known to American senators that Israel’s internal security agency has uncovered a powerful and well-armed Jewish network operating out of Israel which has been responsible for a series of terrorist attacks, the most recent being an attempt to bomb a Palestinian girl’s school using army-issued explosives. As the New York Times reported (May 19, 2002), so far, six people have been taken into custody, including two of the best-known religious leaders Noam Federman, and Menashe Levenger. Although charges against Federman have been filed 45 times, he has only 8 convictions.

The question is: Why isn’t America exercising its right to self-defense when it comes to Israel? Why are Israeli threats to American security constantly and consistently regarded as friendly- fire? Just last week President Bush told West Point graduates at the US Military Academy that terrorist threats must be met aggressively and proactively and with great force. "If we wait for threats to materialize, we will have waited too long," he passionately exclaimed. Abimelech would have loved this militant sermon, especially since Bush’s pre-emptive killer tactics apply only to suspicious countries and individuals of Arab or Muslim descent and never to the children of Israel. Can’t you just picture the democratic Abimelech in his sinister medieval glee: "Yes! Let’s kill them all upon one stone!"

The second pretext we are constantly bombarded with is the slogan that Israel is the "only democracy in the Middle East." Bush’s version of this standard cliché is the most dramatic to date. "I’m never going to tell my friend the prime minister what to do or how to handle his business," he politely told visiting Ariel Sharon in May. "That’s his choice to make. He’s a democratically elected official."

Shocking! Bush’s statement should be used as a classical example of the ad populum fallacy our instructor warned us against in Freshman Writing. It follows from this faulty reasoning that those who are elected will be saved even if they are mass murderers while the rest of mankind is damned, regardless of the excellence of their deeds.

Since when did being a democratically elected leader justify despicable acts? Hitler was a very popular leader, and had he run for elections, he would surely have won by an overwhelming majority. The same goes for Mussolini. Nixon was a democratically elected leader. Why was he impeached? Like it or not, Arafat is also the elected leader of his people. Or does this Western criterion of democracy apply only to white Caucasian or Ashkenazi men? According to an authenticated Islamic tradition, a powerful "Western" country will one day elect the Anti-Christ or Imposter (al-miseeh aldajaal) for a leader:

And the Messiah (Jesus) places his hand upon the shoulder of the Imam and says: Pray with your followers. And after the faithful had completed their morning prayers, the Messiah, peace be upon him, says: Open the door (of the Al-Aqsa Mosque). And Behold! Behind the door is the Anti-Christ (Al-dajaal) and with him 70, 000 Jews, all armed with swords and weapons. And when the Anti-Christ (Al-dajaal) looks upon the Messiah he melts like salt melts in water and hastens to escape. (Al-Qurtubi (1251AD) The Reminder: Of The Dead and End Times. Revised edition 2001)

The moral of all this is that any democratic nation can choose a tyrant for a leader and Israel is no exception. In fact, the Israelis in particular have had several examples of bloody despots for kings and national heroes, the most famous being Herod the tyrant, followed by Sharon. True democracy requires that all nations be judged by the same standards and that no man, however admired, is exempt from judgment by the law of morality and righteousness.

— Afnan Hussein Fatani is professor of stylistics at King Abdul Aziz University and currently a visiting professor at Dar Al-Hekma College, Jeddah.