A few days ago a friend in Ramallah called to wish me a happy Eid. As she talked about the daily horrors of life under military occupation, she told me about a group of Europeans who had come to Palestine to help with the olive harvest and to generally show their support. She explained that quite a number of Europeans had come to offer their services in various ways. I asked if any Muslims or Arabs had come and she said none that she knew of. We wondered why Muslims — even from states which have relations with Israel — haven’t volunteered to go and give personal help rather than simply sending money. Why don’t they risk more than the contents of their wallets? There are many ways to resist and if we can’t help militarily, we can give succor by other means.
We Arabs as a nation have suffered greatly in the last two centuries at the hands of colonialists and it continues today. The worst example is Israel and its continuing brutality against the Palestinians; the world at large either approves the Israeli savagery or simply pretends not to notice. All that we have endured, however, should never push us from, or cause us to misuse, the tenets of Islam. Islam is a universal religion and it belongs to all humanity. Neither culture nor race should dictate the conduct of Muslims toward others — and surely never anger nor a desire for revenge.
If we have been wronged, this does not release us to ignore the laws and teachings of Islam which direct us to treat other religions with justice and kindness. If many present-day Israelis have allowed themselves to become a perverted form of Judaism and if they have become a replica of those who brutalized them for centuries in the West, we should take heed and not fall into this same trap. Is it not said that an abused child often becomes an abusive parent?
We as a nation have been abused and mistreated by the West for many years. Indeed, the Israeli occupation has outstripped every other occupation by its sheer brutality and bestiality. None of this, however, gives us the right either to mistreat or harm Christians or Jews. If the laws of Islam are sacred, then they apply to all circumstances. There is not, nor ever has been, one set of laws for Muslims to use in a time of sorrow and another to use in a time of joy. If some in the West attack Islam and if the Israelis deny the Palestinians their natural human rights, there are many more who defend Islam and Muslims.
Haven’t we seen many demonstrations in Western capitals protesting war in Iraq and supporting the Palestinians in their struggle for freedom and a state? Where were the demonstrations in the Islamic capitals? Jews in the West — and in Israel — are among the most vocal critics of Ariel Sharon and his fellow butchers. Such Jews as Noam Chomsky and Uri Avnery are tireless in their pursuit of justice for the Palestinians.
Before we dump all Jews and Christians into one basket labeled “Haters of Islam,” we should at least try to follow the example of those who appear on the doorsteps of the Palestinians. They are there to help the Palestinians by staying in houses scheduled for demolition by the Israeli Army. In doing that, they are risking life and limb for strangers who are not even of their own race or religion.
In conclusion, when Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, freed Makkah from the pagan Quraish, he treated them kindly even though he and his followers had suffered and died at their hands. He told them they were free to do as they wished and to go where they wanted. If the prophet, pbuh, could forgive those who were his most vicious enemies, shouldn’t we Muslims follow his example and uphold the laws of Islam? Should we not treat all the People of the Book with justice and respect, as we have been ordered to do, while still defending our rights?
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(Reem Mohammed Al-Faisal is a Saudi photographer. She is based in Jeddah.)
Arab News Features 16 December 2002
