Perhaps, but my research indicates that much of the Palestinian hatred is self-hatred transferred on to the Jews and the West in general. As I mentioned, the choice was always between genocide and ethnic cleansing. Hamas still does not accept Israel’s right to exist so today the choice remains the same. The lack of support and enthusiasm from fellow Arabs also remains the same… status quo.
Despair often means you no longer celebrate this life, but if you’re going to commit suicide, take your enemies down with you. I’ve heard that sentiment often throughout life. People don’t wake up one day from a joyful life & say I think I want to be a martyr. Nothing to do with “self esteem”
A split between the sacred and the profane is at the core of all Abrahamic religions. Abraham was considered a hero for being willing to murder his son at God’s behest. This willful self-sacrifice and martyrdom is an ancient pathology. It is time to quit glorifying it.
Being a martyr and Jew hatred is called for in the Koran. It is a fundamentalist religious ideology. When Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005, there was every opportunity for a good secular life. Hamas followed the religious extremism, and turned Gaza into a giant military base to destroy Israel.. It is a fascist ideology based on religion. Where are the moderate Muslims?
Yeah, few do know this story. I knew nothing about it until seeing the weird scene in the Exodus movie. I fell down the ‘Mufti of Oz’ rabbit hole researching this and had to cull out a lot for clarity. Today, we want to paint the Palestinian Arab situation black or white, but I found it very gray indeed.
Some are linked within the article but I could not find any cohesive history of the Gran Mufti and had to piece the story together from all sorts of stories piecing together a cohesive narrative. The research paper linked about the linking of European fascism with the rise of Muslim nationalism is fascinating. With a timeline and basic narrative anyone can follow behind me with more research and fill in the blanks. There is a corresponding story of Egypt and the attempt to establish Pan Arab Nationalism stymied by the tribalism that persists even today.
There is a couple of books that speak to this alliance, the term used is Islamo leftism. Not facism. It seems socialist Marxist also have some serious anti semitic history. As communism is anti religion it disliked any form of religious nationalism, while ironically being communist nationalists.
by
Pierre-Andre Taguieff's 2002 book entitled New Judeophobia. Taguieff describes Islamo-fascism as a type of anti-Zionism popular among the new third-worldist, neo-communist and neo-leftist configuration, better known as the 'anti-globalization movement'.Interviewed in 2016 by Liberation journalists Sonya Faure and Frantz Durupt, Taguieff was uncertain whether he coined it or had heard it used, and points out that the phrases "Islamo-progressives" and, in the 1980s, "Palestino-progressives" were used as self-descriptions by the French left
French philosopher Pascal Bruckner has said that Islamo-leftism was chiefly conceived by British Trotskyites of the Socialist Workers Party (SWP). Understanding the term as the fusion between the atheist Far Left and religious radicalism,[8] Bruckner posited that because those Trotskyites perceive Islam's potential for fomenting societal unrest, they promote tactical, temporary alliances with reactionary Muslim parties. According to Bruckner, leftist adherents of Third-Worldism hope to use Islamism as a battering-ram to bring about the downfall of free-market capitalism and see the sacrifice of individual rights, in particular of women's rights, as an acceptable trade-off in service of the greater goal of destroying capitalism. Bruckner contends that Islamists, for their part, pretend to join the left in its opposition to racism, neocolonialism and globalization as a tactical and temporary means to achieve their true goal of imposing the totalitarian theocracy of Islamist government.
I found you and this article through Malcom Nance’s Substack. Concerned with other things in my life previously, I’m finding understanding my history and the worlds is important in this time. Your information about al-H. is a revelation and the story that underlies so much that’s called “impossible to understand” relations between generally Arabs and Jews. Difficult, slimy, and evil. Also challenging to grasp. All the factions and preferences are more understandable to me as the older (70) descendant of early-ish immigrants that chose NY rather than Israel. Thanks. This particular bio and how he affected things should really be more widely understood. The idea also that his grave is gone is significant to the story. Make your dreadful deep and lasting mark, only to vanish only leaving the deeds unable to be judged in light of the flaws of the man. I’m grateful for your article and the scholarship behind it.
Thanks. Yes, it took a lot of research and untangling of details to get to the gist of Al-H’s story. Linking European fascism and Arab Islamism does bring focus to the dynamics beneath. Yes, it is a story needing attention.
Why isn't anyone talking about the revival of the ancient trade route, the Silk Road? Russia wants in on it. The talk emphsises tourism, but the real interest is in plundering mineral resources. Ukraine and Isreal are obstacles in international piracy.
"China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), sometimes referred to as the New Silk Road, is one of the most ambitious infrastructure projects ever conceived. Launched in 2013 by President Xi Jinping, the vast collection of development and investment initiatives was originally devised to link East Asia and Europe through physical infrastructure. In the decade since, the project has expanded to Africa, Oceania, and Latin America, significantly broadening China’s economic and political influence."
A beautiful depiction! A complementary piece on the change in Jewish populations would be good to show the reasons for the support of his position, but this is a rarely-seen view. Nice work!
My research indicates that Al-Husseini was stridently antisemitic before there was a dramatic shift of population. Haters gotta hate and he actively sought out those who worshipped hatred. His venom was not a logical response to a threat but deeply irrational and personal.
How different history might be if he was captured by the English or the Americans and stood trial in Nuremberg with his Nazi cohorts meeting the same fate as they did? How different would the lives of Arab Palestinians be today, if they like Jordan and Egypt learned to peacefully coexist with Israel? How different the entire Middle East would be today without the Mufti’s hateful venom in its veins?
He had reason for his fears. The Ashkenazi Jews started to enter Palestine in large numbers in 1881, following a pogrom in Russia. They were far more aggressive than the Sephardic Jews who had been living alongside the Arabs for hundreds of years. Al-Husseini was elected Grand Mufti in 1921, by which time many offenses had been committed against the Arabic Palestinians. The Hashomer Jewish militant organization was founded in 1909. The Hagnaha followed in 1920. The very next year, the 'May Riots' (also known as Jaffa Riots) started as a fight between the Jewish Communist Party and a Jewish socialist group, Ahdut HaAvoda, when they planned competing May Day parades. Yet, hearing fighting, Jaffa’s Arab population believed they were being attacked and started targeting Jews. After six days of fighting and rioting, 47 Jews and 48 Arabs died. You could say that the violence in Palestine was started by Jews targeting other Jews. All of this was followed by the Grand Mufti. There are many causes to a war, but in my reading of the history of the Jewish occupation of that land, I am often struck by the thought that they have been among the most violent people history has ever seen. And I went mack pre-Roman in my coverage.
"Dozens of British, Arab, and Jewish witnesses all reported that Arab men bearing clubs, knives, swords, and some pistols broke into Jewish buildings and murdered their inhabitants, while women followed to loot. They attacked Jewish pedestrians and destroyed Jewish homes and stores. They beat and killed Jews in their homes, including children, and in some cases split open the victims' skulls." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaffa_riots
Your accusation that "Jews have been among the most violent people history has ever seen" is an insult to such notables like Genghis Khan, Attila the Hun, Ivan the Terrible, Tamerlane, Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong, and al-Husseini's friends, Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler. Oh, let's not forget Talaat Pasha, the Ottoman in charge of the Armenian genocide, another al-Husseini contemporary. None of these folks are Jewish. In fact, the Jews were likely on the receiving end of their atrocities.
As you mentioned, the Ashkenazi Jews were driven from Russia and Eastern Europe through violent pogroms and were not visiting Palestine on holiday. The later waves of immigrants were driven out of Western Europe and other Arab nations by the Holocaust and rising Arab nationalism. They were first driven out by the Romans and then by the fascists. Paybacks can be a bitch...
I like the way you positioned it as an insult to Chengis Khan etc LOL. I was going more from their violence against each other, than their violence to other people, which was still pretty horrific. And the reason the Arabs attacked the Jews was because they had been attacked. Before that, the Arabs were living peacefully with a multitude of different cultures. I have lived among them, and can testify to their tolerance.
They have been living peacefully under the thumb of the Turkish Ottoman Empire for 600 years. Since the collective collapse of the empires after the two World Wars that enforced peace has dissipated. All Abrahamic religions are inherently combative stemming from the dichotomy of good vs. evil at their core. Zoroastrian, Judea, Christian, and Muslim all experience the world as a duality and that eventually leads to conflict.
Good information, but not enough mention of Israeli provocation which goes a long way towards continuing Palestinian hatred.
Perhaps, but my research indicates that much of the Palestinian hatred is self-hatred transferred on to the Jews and the West in general. As I mentioned, the choice was always between genocide and ethnic cleansing. Hamas still does not accept Israel’s right to exist so today the choice remains the same. The lack of support and enthusiasm from fellow Arabs also remains the same… status quo.
I don’t buy the “self hatred” argument.
At this point the hatred & distrust is such that I do not see a happy outcome for either group.
Perhaps, but a desire for martyrdom and using civilians as human shields are not indicative of healthy self esteem either.
Despair often means you no longer celebrate this life, but if you’re going to commit suicide, take your enemies down with you. I’ve heard that sentiment often throughout life. People don’t wake up one day from a joyful life & say I think I want to be a martyr. Nothing to do with “self esteem”
A split between the sacred and the profane is at the core of all Abrahamic religions. Abraham was considered a hero for being willing to murder his son at God’s behest. This willful self-sacrifice and martyrdom is an ancient pathology. It is time to quit glorifying it.
Being a martyr and Jew hatred is called for in the Koran. It is a fundamentalist religious ideology. When Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005, there was every opportunity for a good secular life. Hamas followed the religious extremism, and turned Gaza into a giant military base to destroy Israel.. It is a fascist ideology based on religion. Where are the moderate Muslims?
Yeah, few do know this story. I knew nothing about it until seeing the weird scene in the Exodus movie. I fell down the ‘Mufti of Oz’ rabbit hole researching this and had to cull out a lot for clarity. Today, we want to paint the Palestinian Arab situation black or white, but I found it very gray indeed.
Can you please cite your sources?
Some are linked within the article but I could not find any cohesive history of the Gran Mufti and had to piece the story together from all sorts of stories piecing together a cohesive narrative. The research paper linked about the linking of European fascism with the rise of Muslim nationalism is fascinating. With a timeline and basic narrative anyone can follow behind me with more research and fill in the blanks. There is a corresponding story of Egypt and the attempt to establish Pan Arab Nationalism stymied by the tribalism that persists even today.
There is a couple of books that speak to this alliance, the term used is Islamo leftism. Not facism. It seems socialist Marxist also have some serious anti semitic history. As communism is anti religion it disliked any form of religious nationalism, while ironically being communist nationalists.
by
Pierre-Andre Taguieff's 2002 book entitled New Judeophobia. Taguieff describes Islamo-fascism as a type of anti-Zionism popular among the new third-worldist, neo-communist and neo-leftist configuration, better known as the 'anti-globalization movement'.Interviewed in 2016 by Liberation journalists Sonya Faure and Frantz Durupt, Taguieff was uncertain whether he coined it or had heard it used, and points out that the phrases "Islamo-progressives" and, in the 1980s, "Palestino-progressives" were used as self-descriptions by the French left
French philosopher Pascal Bruckner has said that Islamo-leftism was chiefly conceived by British Trotskyites of the Socialist Workers Party (SWP). Understanding the term as the fusion between the atheist Far Left and religious radicalism,[8] Bruckner posited that because those Trotskyites perceive Islam's potential for fomenting societal unrest, they promote tactical, temporary alliances with reactionary Muslim parties. According to Bruckner, leftist adherents of Third-Worldism hope to use Islamism as a battering-ram to bring about the downfall of free-market capitalism and see the sacrifice of individual rights, in particular of women's rights, as an acceptable trade-off in service of the greater goal of destroying capitalism. Bruckner contends that Islamists, for their part, pretend to join the left in its opposition to racism, neocolonialism and globalization as a tactical and temporary means to achieve their true goal of imposing the totalitarian theocracy of Islamist government.
History shows also in Iran how once they side with the left, soon were murdered. https://jacobin.com/2022/10/chahla-chafiq-iranian-left-khomeini-protests-feminism
I found you and this article through Malcom Nance’s Substack. Concerned with other things in my life previously, I’m finding understanding my history and the worlds is important in this time. Your information about al-H. is a revelation and the story that underlies so much that’s called “impossible to understand” relations between generally Arabs and Jews. Difficult, slimy, and evil. Also challenging to grasp. All the factions and preferences are more understandable to me as the older (70) descendant of early-ish immigrants that chose NY rather than Israel. Thanks. This particular bio and how he affected things should really be more widely understood. The idea also that his grave is gone is significant to the story. Make your dreadful deep and lasting mark, only to vanish only leaving the deeds unable to be judged in light of the flaws of the man. I’m grateful for your article and the scholarship behind it.
Thanks. Yes, it took a lot of research and untangling of details to get to the gist of Al-H’s story. Linking European fascism and Arab Islamism does bring focus to the dynamics beneath. Yes, it is a story needing attention.
Thank you and thank you for the subscription. 🙏
Why isn't anyone talking about the revival of the ancient trade route, the Silk Road? Russia wants in on it. The talk emphsises tourism, but the real interest is in plundering mineral resources. Ukraine and Isreal are obstacles in international piracy.
China's been there and done that...
"China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), sometimes referred to as the New Silk Road, is one of the most ambitious infrastructure projects ever conceived. Launched in 2013 by President Xi Jinping, the vast collection of development and investment initiatives was originally devised to link East Asia and Europe through physical infrastructure. In the decade since, the project has expanded to Africa, Oceania, and Latin America, significantly broadening China’s economic and political influence."
https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/chinas-massive-belt-and-road-initiative
Thanks for the history lesson. That was a lot of information I had no idea about.
A beautiful depiction! A complementary piece on the change in Jewish populations would be good to show the reasons for the support of his position, but this is a rarely-seen view. Nice work!
My research indicates that Al-Husseini was stridently antisemitic before there was a dramatic shift of population. Haters gotta hate and he actively sought out those who worshipped hatred. His venom was not a logical response to a threat but deeply irrational and personal.
How different history might be if he was captured by the English or the Americans and stood trial in Nuremberg with his Nazi cohorts meeting the same fate as they did? How different would the lives of Arab Palestinians be today, if they like Jordan and Egypt learned to peacefully coexist with Israel? How different the entire Middle East would be today without the Mufti’s hateful venom in its veins?
He had reason for his fears. The Ashkenazi Jews started to enter Palestine in large numbers in 1881, following a pogrom in Russia. They were far more aggressive than the Sephardic Jews who had been living alongside the Arabs for hundreds of years. Al-Husseini was elected Grand Mufti in 1921, by which time many offenses had been committed against the Arabic Palestinians. The Hashomer Jewish militant organization was founded in 1909. The Hagnaha followed in 1920. The very next year, the 'May Riots' (also known as Jaffa Riots) started as a fight between the Jewish Communist Party and a Jewish socialist group, Ahdut HaAvoda, when they planned competing May Day parades. Yet, hearing fighting, Jaffa’s Arab population believed they were being attacked and started targeting Jews. After six days of fighting and rioting, 47 Jews and 48 Arabs died. You could say that the violence in Palestine was started by Jews targeting other Jews. All of this was followed by the Grand Mufti. There are many causes to a war, but in my reading of the history of the Jewish occupation of that land, I am often struck by the thought that they have been among the most violent people history has ever seen. And I went mack pre-Roman in my coverage.
"Dozens of British, Arab, and Jewish witnesses all reported that Arab men bearing clubs, knives, swords, and some pistols broke into Jewish buildings and murdered their inhabitants, while women followed to loot. They attacked Jewish pedestrians and destroyed Jewish homes and stores. They beat and killed Jews in their homes, including children, and in some cases split open the victims' skulls." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaffa_riots
Your accusation that "Jews have been among the most violent people history has ever seen" is an insult to such notables like Genghis Khan, Attila the Hun, Ivan the Terrible, Tamerlane, Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong, and al-Husseini's friends, Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler. Oh, let's not forget Talaat Pasha, the Ottoman in charge of the Armenian genocide, another al-Husseini contemporary. None of these folks are Jewish. In fact, the Jews were likely on the receiving end of their atrocities.
As you mentioned, the Ashkenazi Jews were driven from Russia and Eastern Europe through violent pogroms and were not visiting Palestine on holiday. The later waves of immigrants were driven out of Western Europe and other Arab nations by the Holocaust and rising Arab nationalism. They were first driven out by the Romans and then by the fascists. Paybacks can be a bitch...
https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=Notable+brutal+conquers&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
I like the way you positioned it as an insult to Chengis Khan etc LOL. I was going more from their violence against each other, than their violence to other people, which was still pretty horrific. And the reason the Arabs attacked the Jews was because they had been attacked. Before that, the Arabs were living peacefully with a multitude of different cultures. I have lived among them, and can testify to their tolerance.
They have been living peacefully under the thumb of the Turkish Ottoman Empire for 600 years. Since the collective collapse of the empires after the two World Wars that enforced peace has dissipated. All Abrahamic religions are inherently combative stemming from the dichotomy of good vs. evil at their core. Zoroastrian, Judea, Christian, and Muslim all experience the world as a duality and that eventually leads to conflict.
Much of the violence today is Muslim on Muslim stemming from increasing nationalism. "All told, there are nine to ten million refugees in the Muslim world, and at least 14 million internally displaced. This means that one in 140 people living in the Muslim world is a refugee and one in 100 is internally displaced." https://www.brookings.edu/articles/displacement-in-the-muslim-world/#:~:text=%5B3%5D%20All%20told%2C%20there,in%20100%20is%20internally%20displaced.