Muslim Zionism
Encyclopedia
Muslim supporters of Israel are Muslim
s who support self-determination for the Jewish people, and a homeland for them in Israel. This support should not be confused with support for the policies and actions of the modern Israeli state.
Some Muslim clerics, such as Sheikh Prof. Abdul Hadi Palazzi
, Director of the Cultural Institute of the Italian Islamic Community, and Imam Dr Muhammad Al-Hussaini believe that the return of the Jews
to the Holy Land
, and the establishment of the State of Israel
, are in accordance with teachings of Islam
. Some Muslim supporters of Israel consider themselves 'Muslim Zionists'. Muslims who publicly supported Zionism include Dr. Tawfik Hamid
, Tashbih Sayyed
, a Pakistani-American scholar, journalist, and author, and the Bangladeshi journalist Salah Choudhury
. Additional Muslim people who voiced public support for Israel included figures such as Irshad Manji
, Salim Mansur
, Abdurrahman Wahid
, Abdullah Saad Al-Hadlaq, Zuhdi Jasser
and Khaleel Mohammed
.
In the Muslim world, support of Israel is a minority orientation, and supporters of Israel have at some occasions faced intolerance and violence.
Muhammad Al-Hussaini, traditional commentators from the eighth and ninth century onwards have uniformly interpreted the Qur'an to say explicitly that the Land of Israel has been given by God to the Jewish people as a perpetual covenant. Hussaini bases his argument upon Qur'an 5:21 in which Moses
declares: "O my people, enter the Holy Land which God has prescribed for you, and turn not back in your traces, to turn about losers." He cites the Qur'an commentator Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari
, who says that this statement is "a narrative from God … concerning the saying of Moses … to his community from among the children of Israel and his order to them according to the order of God to him, ordering them to enter the holy land." He argued that this promise to the Jews is ever lasting, and further said: "It was never the case during the early period of Islam … that there was any kind of sacerdotal attachment to Jerusalem as a territorial claim." This interpretation of the promise to the Jews as ever-lasting is not uniformly accepted by all Islamic commentators
According to a translation by the Islamic Law scholar Khaleel Mohammed
, Ibn Kathir
(1301–1373) interpreted Qur'an 5:20-21 using the following terms: "'That which God has written for you' i.e. That which God has promised to you by the words of your father Israel that it is the inheritance of those among you who believe."
Nasser al-Din Shah Qajar met with British Jewish leaders, including Sir Moses Montefiore
, during his journey to Europe. At that time, the Persian king suggested that the Jews buy land and establish a state for the Jewish people.
After World War I, the Sharif of Mecca, Hussein bin Ali and his son, the King Feisal of Hijaz and then of Iraq, proclaimed pro-Zionist views. According to Sheikh Prof. Abdul Hadi Palazzi, the Wahhabi position, in contrast, was extremely anti-Zionist.
On March 23, 1918, Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca
and King of Hejaz wrote in Al Qibla, the daily newspaper of Mecca, the following words in support of the Balfour Declaration of 1917:
On 3 January 1919, Hussein's son, king Faisal I of Iraq
and Dr. Chaim Weizmann
, President of the World Zionist Organization
signed the Faisal–Weizmann Agreement for Arab-Jewish cooperation, in which Faisal conditionally accepted the Balfour Declaration based on the fulfillment of British wartime promises of development of a Jewish homeland in Palestine and on which subject he made the following statement:
As'ad Shukeiri
, a Muslim scholar (‘alim) of the Acre
area, and the father of PLO founder Ahmad Shukeiri
, has rejected the values of the Palestinian Arab national movement and was opposed to the anti-Zionist movement. He met routinely with Zionist officials and had a part in every pro-Zionist Arab organization from the beginning of the British Mandate, publicly rejecting Mohammad Amin al-Husayni
’s use of Islam to attack Zionism.
In the 1920's, the Muslim National Associations
was established in the 1920's by Muslim Arabs who were employed by the Palestine Zionist Executive. The president of the Muslim National Associations and the mayor of Haifa
, Hassan Bey Shukri, has founded the organization with Sheikh Musa Hadeib from the village of Dawaymeh near Hebron
and head of the farmers' party of Mt. Hebron.
In July 1921, Shukri sent a telegram to the British government, declaring support for the Balfour Declaration and Zionist immigration to British Mandate Palestine:
In 1929, Hadeib was murdered in Jerusalem, supposedly for his collaboration with the Zionists.
have also voiced support for Israel and Zionism. Ramin H. Artin of the Kurdish-American Education Society, argues that the creation of Israel has been "a thorn in the eye of fascists who would rather eliminate the Jewish state". He concluded that an Israeli-Kurdish alliance is "natural", and that sincere mutual respect and recognition of each other’s rights can lead to peace and prosperity.
Palazzi noted that although in present days support for Israel among Muslims is a minority orientation, there are some exceptions, such as former President of Indonesia and leader of Nadwat al-Ulema, Shaykh Abdurrahman Wahid
, and the Grand Mufti of the Russian Federation, Shaykh Talgat Tajuddin, the Mufti of European Russia, Shaykh Salman Farid, who wrote a fatwa against the intifadah. According to Palazzi, more examples for Pro-Israeli Muslim clerics are the Muftis of Chechnya, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.
A former self described member of a terror organization and current Islamic thinker and reformer, Sheikh Prof. Abdul Hadi Palazzi, Director of the Cultural Institute of the Italian Islamic Community and self described Muslim Zionist, and Tashbih Sayyed
- A Muslim Pakistani-American scholar, journalist, author, and self-described Muslim Zionist, Prof. Khaleel Mohammed, Islamic Law scholar of the San Diego State University and Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, a Bangladeshi
journalist and publisher, and a self-proclaimed Muslim Zionist.
, said that most Muslims correlate the word Israel in Arabic to the word ‘Azra’il
that sounds like Israel but means “Angel of death”. This created a link in the minds of most Muslim children the need to hate the word Israel. In an article titled "Why I loved Israel based on the Qur'an" he claims that according to the Qur'an, God gave the Israelites the land of Israel as their promised land (Quran 17:104: And We said thereafter to the Children of Israel, "Dwell securely in the land of promise". He explains the Quran went even further to consider the Promised Land as the permanent inheritance for the Israelites (26:59) "Thus it was, but we made the Children of Israel inheritors of such things (the Promised Land)" He continued by saying "No Muslim has the right to interfere with the gathering of the Jews in Israel, as this is the will of God himself".
, a Shi’ite Pakistani-American scholar, journalist, and author, was a prominent supporter and Israel and critic of the Islamist movement. He said that Israel is vital for the stability of the region. Sayyed praised the treatment of Arabs in Israel, and applauded the "strength of the Jewish spirit that refuses to give in to evil forces despite thousand of years of anti-Semitism
". He concluded by saying "I am convinced that it is true that God created this earth but it is also a fact that only an Israel can keep this earth from dying". Tashbih condemned the press that portrays paint the Israelis as villains, and "chooses to ignore all rules of ethical journalism when it comes to Israel"
, a Muslim Canadian author and an advocate of progressive interpretation of Islam, says that the Arab's failure to accept the Jews' historical bond with Palestine is a mistake. Manji accepts that the Jews' historical roots stretch back to the land of Israel, and recognizes their right to a Jewish state. She further argues that the allegation of apartheid in Israel is deeply misleading, noting that there are in Israel several Arab political parties; that Arab-Muslim legislators have veto powers; and that Arab parties have overturned disqualifications. She also observes that Israel has a free Arab press; that road signs bear Arabic translations; and that Arabs live and study alongside Jews. She accuses Arab countries for the Palestinian refugees' plight, saying that they "interfered with every attempt to solve the problem" and that they would rather give "generous support to suicide bombers and their families" rather than help the needy refugees. According to Geneive Abdo, "Muslim Zionist" is a label which Manji "would no doubt accept".
In 2008, Salim Mansur
, a Muslim Canadian Political Scientist, columnist and author, congratulated Israel for its 60th anniversary, and declared that the Jewish state "deserves admiration". He wrote, "Israel is a tiny sliver of land in a vast tempest-ridden sea of the Arab-Muslim world, and yet it is here the ancient world's most enduring story is made fresh again by Jews to live God's covenant with Abraham as told in their sacred literature." In 2010, he wrote: "The story of modern Israel, as many have noted, is a miracle unlike any [...] It is a robust and inclusive democracy, and is at the leading edge of science and technology [...] What hypocrites demand of Israelis and the scrutiny Israel is subjected to by them, they would not dare make of any other nation."
journalist and publisher, and a self-proclaimed Muslim Zionist. His newspaper, The Weekly Blitz, criticizes the jihad culture and advocates inter-faith understanding between Muslims, Christians and Jews. Choudhury was arrested by Bangladeshi police on November 29, 2003 at Dhaka airport since he was scheduled to fly for Israel, a country Bangladeshi citizens are barred from travelling to. After release from 17-months imprisonment, Choudhury wrote in an Israeli newspaper "I also stand before you perhaps as a living contradiction: a Zionist, a defender of Israel, and a devout, practicing Muslim, living in a Moslem country. ". He said "I believe in the justice of the Zionist dream. I also acknowledge this historical reality: that the world has endeavored to crush that dream and, yes, even to destroy the viability of the Jewish people. At the same time, I live in an environment where people believe just as passionately in an opposing view—one that sees Israel as illegitimate; and the Jewish people as evil incarnate.".
In 1996, Palazzi and the Israeli scholar Asher Eder co-founded the Islam-Israel Fellowship to promote cooperation between Israel and Muslim nations.
Palazzi argues against calls for jihad
against Israel and says there is no religious demand for Israel to give up control over Muslim holy places.
(1940–2009), Indonesia's president from 1999 until 2001, was criticized for his pro-Israel views. Wahid moved to establish diplomatic and commercial relations with Israel, and has visited Israel six times. In an 2002 interview to ABC, Wahid said that the Islamic world should start recognizing and acknowledging Israel's right to exist and prosper. He added, "I think Muslims are rational and rationality dictates that.". In an 2004 interview to an Israeli newspaper, he was asked about his friendship with Israel, which was described as "unusual for an Islamic leader". Wahid replied, "I think there is a wrong perception that Islam is in disagreement with Israel. This is caused by Arab propaganda [...] Israel has a reputation as a nation with a high regard for God and religion - there is then no reason we have to be against Israel." According to Wahid, Israel "is a democracy in a sea of misunderstanding".
i writer Abdullah Saad Al-Hadlaq urged his country to normalize relations with Israel. Responding to a question whether he believed that Muslims have a right to rule Jerusalem, Hadlaq said, "On the contrary, verse number 21 of Surat Al-Maeda of the Holy Quran emphasizes the right of 'Bani Israel'". He said that Israel's model of democracy
is unique and surpassed many of what he described as the "tyrannical, totalitarian" Arab regimes. In his 2008 article, "The Right of Self-defense," Al-Hadlaq supported "Israel's right to defend itself" and told the international community "not to criticize Israel if it continues its fight against Persian terror committed by the terrorist Hamas (...) and not to criticize Israel for using force to defend its citizens and its territory".
The group's founder, M. Zuhdi Jasser
, a former Lieutenant Commander in the United States Navy
, said that Muslims need to recognize Israel as a state, to stand against radical Islamist groups by name, not by theory, tactic, or condemning terrorism, but by name—Hamas, Al Qaeda and other groups. Jasser calls political Islamism “the root cause of Islamist terrorism” and a matter on which it is “time to take sides.”
During the 2006 Lebanon War, Jasser defended Israel's actions, and wrote "I have no reason to believe that Israel is not doing anything but just protecting itself from forces that are using homes north of it to bomb northern Israel". Afdhere Jama
, an American-Muslim writer and editor of the Huriyah
magazine, added, "My main difference with the majority of Muslims is the belief that a Jewish homeland is an important progress for all of us, especially one in their ancestral land of Israel". He continued, "Muslims in the United States must decide whether they see groups like Hamas and Hizbullah as legitimate resistance or the cause of Muslim troubles in the region".
Khaleel Mohammed, an associate professor of Religion at San Diego State University (SDSU), attracted attention for a 2004 interview in which he stated that based on the Qur'an, Israel belongs to the Jews
. Mohammed said that the Qur'an never mentions Jerusalem as a holy city, and added, "It's in the Muslim consciousness that the land first belonged to the Jews. It doesn't matter if the Jews were exiled 500 years or 2000 years, the Holy Land, as mentioned in Quran belongs to Moses and his people, the Jews."
When asked what the Qur'an says about the State of Israel, Palazzi replied:
Prof. Khaleel Mohammed, Islamic Law scholar of the San Diego State University, noted that Sura 5 verse 21 of the Qur'an
, and the medieval exegetes of the Qur'an, say that Israel belongs to the Jews
. He translates it thus:
Negev Bedouins, a Muslim minority which includes about 12% of Israeli Arabs, tend to identify more as Israelis than other Arab citizens of Israel. Many Negev Bedouins serve in the Israel Defense Forces
. Each year, between 5%-10% of the Bedouin of draft age volunteer for the Israeli army
, (unlike Druze
, and Jewish Israelis, they are not required by law to do so).
During the Palestinian Arab national movement’s formation, Bedouins often perceived their tribe as their principal focus of identity, and they generally did not view themselves as a component of the emerging Palestinian identity.
Bedouins had long standing ties with nearby Jewish communities. Bedouins of Tuba-Zangariyye
helped defend these communities in the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine. Formal co-operation between Jews and Bedouin began in 1946, when tribal leader Sheik Hussein Mohammed Ali Abu Yussef of the al-Heib tribe sent more than 60 of his men to fight alongside Zionist forces, forming the Pal-Heib unit of the Haganah
. During the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
, the Pal-Heib unit defended Jewish communities in the Upper Galilee
against Syria
. Sheik Abu Yussef was quoted in 1948 as saying, "Is it not written in the Koran that the ties of neighbors are as dear as those of relations? Our friendship with the Jews goes back many years. We felt we could trust them and they learned from us too".
Maj Fehd Fallah, a Bedouin from the village of Saad in the Israeli occupied Golan Heights said in an interview: "Yes, I have fought against Muslims in Gaza," he says. "And I would fight again if I had to," he added. "Israeli Muslims who don't serve in the IDF should be ashamed for not serving their country."
Ismail Khaldi
is the first Bedouin
deputy consul of the State of Israel and the highest ranking Muslim
in the Israeli foreign service. Khaldi is a strong advocate of Israel. While acknowledging that the state of Israeli Bedouin minority is not ideal, he said
are non Arab, predominantly Sunni Muslims. The Circassians have had a good relations with the Jewish community in Israel since the beginning of the Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel
. The Circassians community in Israel helped the illegal immigration (Ha'apala
) of Jews into Palestine During the British Mandate and fought on the Israeli side of the War of Independence. In 1948, when the State of Israel was created, Circassians of Palestine did not migrate to neighboring countries, rather made the choice to stay within the borders of the new state and embrace full Israeli citizenship. Like the Druze
population, since 1958 male Circassians perform Israeli mandatory military service upon reaching the age of majority, while females do not. Many Circassians in Israel are employed in the security forces, including in the Border Guard, the Israel Defence Forces, the police and the Israel Prison Service. The percentage of the army recruits among the Circassian community in Israel is particularly high. This loyalty to Israel is often considered as an act of betrayal by the Arab Muslims, who see Circassians as traitors to the Ummah
.
The Druze
are a religious community found who consider themselves an Islamic Unist, reformatory sect. The Druze consider themselves to be Muslim, although they are considered non-Muslim by the general Islamic community. The Druze mostly do not identify with the cause of Arab nationalism
. The bond between the Jewish and Druze is commonly known by the term "a covenant of blood". Druze citizens are prominent in the Israel Defense Forces
and in politics
, and a considerable number of Israeli Druze soldiers have fallen in Israel's wars since the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
. Reda Mansour
, a Druze poet, historian and diplomat, explained: “We are the only non-Jewish minority that is drafted into the military, and we have an even higher percentage in the combat units and as officers than the Jewish members themselves. So we are considered a very nationalistic, patriotic community.” In 2008 more than 94% of Druze youngsters classified themselves as "Druze-Israelis" in the religious and national context. Five Druze lawmakers currently have been elected to serve in the 18th Knesset
, a disproportionately large number considering their population.
Rafik Halabi, an Israeli Druze television correspondent and former Israeli military officer, characterizes himself as an Israeli patriot. Opening his 1982 book "The West Bank Story: An Israel Arab's View of Both Sides of a Tangled Conflict", he wrote, "I am an Israeli patriot, although I am not a Jew".
member of the Knesset
, has lost his son in the War of Attrition
between Israel and Egypt in 1969. In 2007, Nabiah A-Din, the chairman of the forum of the Druze and Circassian authority heads, and head of the Kasra Adia municipality, criticized the "multi-cultural" Israeli constitution proposed by the Israeli Arab organization Adalah
, saying that he finds it unacceptable. "The state of Israel is Jewish state as well as a democratic state that espouses equality and elections. We invalidate and reject everything that the Adalah organization is requesting," he said. According to A-din,the fate of Druze and Circassians in Israel is intertwined with that of the state. "This is a blood pact, and a pact of the living. We are unwilling to support a substantial alteration to the nature of this state, to which we tied our destinies prior to its establishment," he said. there were 7,000 registered members in the Druze Zionist movement. In 2009, the movement held a Druze Zionist youth conference with 1,700 participants.
Jewish-Arab Center
, "Index of Jewish-Arab Relations in Israel – 2004", 84.9% of Israeli Arabs stated that Israel has a right to exist as an independent state, and 70% noted that it has a right to exist as a democratic, Jewish state. A Truman Institute survey from 2005 found that 63% of the Arab citizens accept the principle that Israel is the state of the Jewish people.
In Bangladesh, Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, editor of the Weekly Blitz newspaper and self described "Muslim Zionist", was attacked and beaten in 2006 by a mob of nearly 40 people, leaving him with a fractured ankle. During the assault, the attackers shouted at Choudhury, labeling him an "agent of the Jews."
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s who support self-determination for the Jewish people, and a homeland for them in Israel. This support should not be confused with support for the policies and actions of the modern Israeli state.
Some Muslim clerics, such as Sheikh Prof. Abdul Hadi Palazzi
Abdul Hadi Palazzi
Abdul Hadi Palazzi , legally named Massimo Palazzi, is the secretary general of the Italian Muslim Assembly, and the Khalifah for Europe of the Qadiri Sufi Order....
, Director of the Cultural Institute of the Italian Islamic Community, and Imam Dr Muhammad Al-Hussaini believe that the return of the Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
to the Holy Land
Holy Land
The Holy Land is a term which in Judaism refers to the Kingdom of Israel as defined in the Tanakh. For Jews, the Land's identifiction of being Holy is defined in Judaism by its differentiation from other lands by virtue of the practice of Judaism often possible only in the Land of Israel...
, and the establishment of the State of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, are in accordance with teachings of Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
. Some Muslim supporters of Israel consider themselves 'Muslim Zionists'. Muslims who publicly supported Zionism include Dr. Tawfik Hamid
Tawfik Hamid
Tawfik Hamid is an author from Egypt who opposes Islamic fundamentalism.A self-described former member of the militant al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya Tawfik Hamid advocates a peaceful understanding of Islam that is compatible with universal human rights and intellectual freedom...
, Tashbih Sayyed
Tashbih Sayyed
Tashbih Sayyed was a Shia Pakistani-American scholar, journalist, and author and was the Editor in Chief of Our Times, Pakistan Today, and In Review. Tashbih Sayyed worked from 1967-1980 for the Pakistan Television Corporation. In 1981, he emigrated to the United States...
, a Pakistani-American scholar, journalist, and author, and the Bangladeshi journalist Salah Choudhury
Salah Choudhury
Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury is the editor of the Bangladeshi tabloid The Weekly Blitz the most influential anti-Jihadist newspaper in Bangladesh, and editor-in-chief of vernacular weekly Jamjamat....
. Additional Muslim people who voiced public support for Israel included figures such as Irshad Manji
Irshad Manji
Irshad Manji is a Canadian author, journalist and an advocate of "reform and progressive" interpretation of Islam. Manji is director of the Moral Courage Project at the Robert F...
, Salim Mansur
Salim Mansur
Salim Mansur is an Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Western Ontario in Canada. He is a columnist for the London Free Press and the Toronto Sun, and has contributed to various publications including National Review, the Middle East Forum and Frontpagemag. He often...
, Abdurrahman Wahid
Abdurrahman Wahid
Abdurrahman Wahid, born Abdurrahman Addakhil , colloquially known as , was an Indonesian Muslim religious and political leader who served as the President of Indonesia from 1999 to 2001...
, Abdullah Saad Al-Hadlaq, Zuhdi Jasser
Zuhdi Jasser
Zuhdi Jasser, also known as M. Zuhdi Jasser, and Mohamed Zuhdi Jasser, is a medical doctor specializing internal medicine and nuclear cardiology in Phoenix, AZ. Jasser is a former Lieutenant Commander in the United States Navy where he served as staff internist in the Office of the Attending...
and Khaleel Mohammed
Khaleel Mohammed
Khaleel Mohammed is associate professor of Religion at San Diego State University , in San Diego, California, and a core faculty member of SDSU's .- Specialties and research interests :...
.
In the Muslim world, support of Israel is a minority orientation, and supporters of Israel have at some occasions faced intolerance and violence.
Middle Ages
According to British-based ImamImam
An imam is an Islamic leadership position, often the worship leader of a mosque and the Muslim community. Similar to spiritual leaders, the imam is the one who leads Islamic worship services. More often, the community turns to the mosque imam if they have a religious question...
Muhammad Al-Hussaini, traditional commentators from the eighth and ninth century onwards have uniformly interpreted the Qur'an to say explicitly that the Land of Israel has been given by God to the Jewish people as a perpetual covenant. Hussaini bases his argument upon Qur'an 5:21 in which Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
declares: "O my people, enter the Holy Land which God has prescribed for you, and turn not back in your traces, to turn about losers." He cites the Qur'an commentator Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari
Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari
Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari was a prominent and influential Sunni scholar and exegete of the Qur'an from Persia...
, who says that this statement is "a narrative from God … concerning the saying of Moses … to his community from among the children of Israel and his order to them according to the order of God to him, ordering them to enter the holy land." He argued that this promise to the Jews is ever lasting, and further said: "It was never the case during the early period of Islam … that there was any kind of sacerdotal attachment to Jerusalem as a territorial claim." This interpretation of the promise to the Jews as ever-lasting is not uniformly accepted by all Islamic commentators
According to a translation by the Islamic Law scholar Khaleel Mohammed
Khaleel Mohammed
Khaleel Mohammed is associate professor of Religion at San Diego State University , in San Diego, California, and a core faculty member of SDSU's .- Specialties and research interests :...
, Ibn Kathir
Ibn Kathir
Ismail ibn Kathir was a Muslim muhaddith, Faqih, historian, and commentator.-Biography:His full name was Abu Al-Fida, 'Imad Ad-Din, Isma'il bin 'Umar bin Kathir, Al-Qurashi, Al-Busrawi...
(1301–1373) interpreted Qur'an 5:20-21 using the following terms: "'That which God has written for you' i.e. That which God has promised to you by the words of your father Israel that it is the inheritance of those among you who believe."
The 19th Century
In 1873, Shah of PersiaHistory of Iran
The history of Iran has been intertwined with the history of a larger historical region, comprising the area from the Danube River in the west to the Indus River and Jaxartes in the east and from the Caucasus, Caspian Sea, and Aral Sea in the north to the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman and Egypt...
Nasser al-Din Shah Qajar met with British Jewish leaders, including Sir Moses Montefiore
Moses Montefiore
Sir Moses Haim Montefiore, 1st Baronet, Kt was one of the most famous British Jews of the 19th century. Montefiore was a financier, banker, philanthropist and Sheriff of London...
, during his journey to Europe. At that time, the Persian king suggested that the Jews buy land and establish a state for the Jewish people.
Early 20th century
On March 23, 1918, Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca
Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca
Sayyid Hussein bin Ali, GCB was the Sharif of Mecca, and Emir of Mecca from 1908 until 1917, when he proclaimed himself King of Hejaz, which received international recognition. He initiated the Arab Revolt in 1916 against the increasingly nationalistic Ottoman Empire during the course of the...
and King of Hejaz wrote in Al Qibla, the daily newspaper of Mecca, the following words in support of the Balfour Declaration of 1917:
"The resources of the country [Palestine] are still virgin soil and will be developed by the Jewish immigrants (...) we have seen the Jews from foreign countries streaming to Palestine from Russia, Germany, Austria, Spain, and America. The cause of causes could not escape those who had a gift of deeper insight. They knew that the country was for its original sons [abna'ihi-l-asliyin], for all their differences, a sacred and beloved homeland. The return of these exiles [jaliya] to their homeland will prove materially and spiritually an experimental school for their brethren who are with them in the fields, factories, trades and all things connected to the land."
On 3 January 1919, Hussein's son, king Faisal I of Iraq
Faisal I of Iraq
Faisal bin Hussein bin Ali al-Hashemi, was for a short time King of the Arab Kingdom of Syria or Greater Syria in 1920, and was King of the Kingdom of Iraq from 23 August 1921 to 1933...
and Dr. Chaim Weizmann
Chaim Weizmann
Chaim Azriel Weizmann, , was a Zionist leader, President of the Zionist Organization, and the first President of the State of Israel. He was elected on 1 February 1949, and served until his death in 1952....
, President of the World Zionist Organization
World Zionist Organization
The World Zionist Organization , or WZO, was founded as the Zionist Organization , or ZO, in 1897 at the First Zionist Congress, held from August 29 to August 31 in Basel, Switzerland...
signed the Faisal–Weizmann Agreement for Arab-Jewish cooperation, in which Faisal conditionally accepted the Balfour Declaration based on the fulfillment of British wartime promises of development of a Jewish homeland in Palestine and on which subject he made the following statement:
"We Arabs... look with the deepest sympathy on the Zionist movement. Our deputation here in Paris is fully acquainted with the proposals submitted yesterday by the Zionist Organisation to the Peace Conference, and we regard them as moderate and proper. We will do our best, in so far as we are concerned, to help them through; we will wish the Jews a most hearty welcome home... I look forward, and my people with me look forward, to a future in which we will help you and you will help us, so that the countries in which we are mutually interested may once again take their places in the community of the civilised peoples of the world." "
As'ad Shukeiri
As'ad Shukeiri
Sheikh As'ad Shukeiri was a Palestinian religious and political leader in Acre, Palestine and the Ottoman-appointed Grand Mufti of Jerusalem from 1914 to 1918, although British Mandate authorities claimed Kamil al-Husayni was the Grand Mufti...
, a Muslim scholar (‘alim) of the Acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
area, and the father of PLO founder Ahmad Shukeiri
Ahmad Shukeiri
Ahmad al-Shukeiri also transcribed al-Shuqayri, Shuqeiri, Shukeiry, etc.), was the first Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization, serving in 1964–67....
, has rejected the values of the Palestinian Arab national movement and was opposed to the anti-Zionist movement. He met routinely with Zionist officials and had a part in every pro-Zionist Arab organization from the beginning of the British Mandate, publicly rejecting Mohammad Amin al-Husayni
Mohammad Amin al-Husayni
Haj Mohammed Effendi Amin el-Husseini was a Palestinian Arab nationalist and Muslim leader in the British Mandate of Palestine. From as early as 1920, in order to secure the independence of Palestine as an Arab state he actively opposed Zionism, and was implicated as a leader of a violent riot...
’s use of Islam to attack Zionism.
In the 1920's, the Muslim National Associations
Muslim National Associations
The Muslim National Associations was an organization established in the 1920s by Arabs who were employed by the Palestine Zionist Executive and organised by Chaim Margalioth Kalvarisky...
was established in the 1920's by Muslim Arabs who were employed by the Palestine Zionist Executive. The president of the Muslim National Associations and the mayor of Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
, Hassan Bey Shukri, has founded the organization with Sheikh Musa Hadeib from the village of Dawaymeh near Hebron
Hebron
Hebron , is located in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judean Mountains, it lies 930 meters above sea level. It is the largest city in the West Bank and home to around 165,000 Palestinians, and over 500 Jewish settlers concentrated in and around the old quarter...
and head of the farmers' party of Mt. Hebron.
In July 1921, Shukri sent a telegram to the British government, declaring support for the Balfour Declaration and Zionist immigration to British Mandate Palestine:
We strongly protest against the attitude of the said delegation concerning the Zionist question. We do not consider the Jewish people as an enemy whose wish is to crush us. On the contrary. We consider the Jews as a brotherly people sharing our joys and troubles and helping us in the construction of our common country.
In 1929, Hadeib was murdered in Jerusalem, supposedly for his collaboration with the Zionists.
Modern times
A number of non-Arab Muslims including Kurds and BerbersBerber people
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke the Berber language or varieties of it, which together form a branch...
have also voiced support for Israel and Zionism. Ramin H. Artin of the Kurdish-American Education Society, argues that the creation of Israel has been "a thorn in the eye of fascists who would rather eliminate the Jewish state". He concluded that an Israeli-Kurdish alliance is "natural", and that sincere mutual respect and recognition of each other’s rights can lead to peace and prosperity.
Palazzi noted that although in present days support for Israel among Muslims is a minority orientation, there are some exceptions, such as former President of Indonesia and leader of Nadwat al-Ulema, Shaykh Abdurrahman Wahid
Abdurrahman Wahid
Abdurrahman Wahid, born Abdurrahman Addakhil , colloquially known as , was an Indonesian Muslim religious and political leader who served as the President of Indonesia from 1999 to 2001...
, and the Grand Mufti of the Russian Federation, Shaykh Talgat Tajuddin, the Mufti of European Russia, Shaykh Salman Farid, who wrote a fatwa against the intifadah. According to Palazzi, more examples for Pro-Israeli Muslim clerics are the Muftis of Chechnya, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.
Notable Muslim supporters of Israel
Notable Muslim supporters of Israel include Dr. Tawfik HamidTawfik Hamid
Tawfik Hamid is an author from Egypt who opposes Islamic fundamentalism.A self-described former member of the militant al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya Tawfik Hamid advocates a peaceful understanding of Islam that is compatible with universal human rights and intellectual freedom...
A former self described member of a terror organization and current Islamic thinker and reformer, Sheikh Prof. Abdul Hadi Palazzi, Director of the Cultural Institute of the Italian Islamic Community and self described Muslim Zionist, and Tashbih Sayyed
Tashbih Sayyed
Tashbih Sayyed was a Shia Pakistani-American scholar, journalist, and author and was the Editor in Chief of Our Times, Pakistan Today, and In Review. Tashbih Sayyed worked from 1967-1980 for the Pakistan Television Corporation. In 1981, he emigrated to the United States...
- A Muslim Pakistani-American scholar, journalist, author, and self-described Muslim Zionist, Prof. Khaleel Mohammed, Islamic Law scholar of the San Diego State University and Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, a Bangladeshi
Bengali people
The Bengali people are an ethnic community native to the historic region of Bengal in South Asia. They speak Bengali , which is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from the Magadhi Prakrit and Sanskrit languages. In their native language, they are referred to as বাঙালী...
journalist and publisher, and a self-proclaimed Muslim Zionist.
In Egypt
Dr. Tawfik Hamid, an Egyptian scholar and self-described former member of the militant al-Gama'a al-IslamiyyaAl-Gama'a al-Islamiyya
Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya is an Egyptian Islamist movement, and is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, European Union and Egyptian governments...
, said that most Muslims correlate the word Israel in Arabic to the word ‘Azra’il
Azrael
Azrael is the name of the Archangel of Death in some extrabiblical traditions. He is also the angel of death in Islamic theology and Sikhism. It is an English form of the Arabic name ʿIzrāʾīl or Azra'eil , the name traditionally attributed to the angel of death in some sects of Islam and Sikhism,...
that sounds like Israel but means “Angel of death”. This created a link in the minds of most Muslim children the need to hate the word Israel. In an article titled "Why I loved Israel based on the Qur'an" he claims that according to the Qur'an, God gave the Israelites the land of Israel as their promised land (Quran 17:104: And We said thereafter to the Children of Israel, "Dwell securely in the land of promise". He explains the Quran went even further to consider the Promised Land as the permanent inheritance for the Israelites (26:59) "Thus it was, but we made the Children of Israel inheritors of such things (the Promised Land)" He continued by saying "No Muslim has the right to interfere with the gathering of the Jews in Israel, as this is the will of God himself".
In Pakistan
Dr. Tashbih SayyedTashbih Sayyed
Tashbih Sayyed was a Shia Pakistani-American scholar, journalist, and author and was the Editor in Chief of Our Times, Pakistan Today, and In Review. Tashbih Sayyed worked from 1967-1980 for the Pakistan Television Corporation. In 1981, he emigrated to the United States...
, a Shi’ite Pakistani-American scholar, journalist, and author, was a prominent supporter and Israel and critic of the Islamist movement. He said that Israel is vital for the stability of the region. Sayyed praised the treatment of Arabs in Israel, and applauded the "strength of the Jewish spirit that refuses to give in to evil forces despite thousand of years of anti-Semitism
Anti-Semitism
Antisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
". He concluded by saying "I am convinced that it is true that God created this earth but it is also a fact that only an Israel can keep this earth from dying". Tashbih condemned the press that portrays paint the Israelis as villains, and "chooses to ignore all rules of ethical journalism when it comes to Israel"
In Canada
Irshad ManjiIrshad Manji
Irshad Manji is a Canadian author, journalist and an advocate of "reform and progressive" interpretation of Islam. Manji is director of the Moral Courage Project at the Robert F...
, a Muslim Canadian author and an advocate of progressive interpretation of Islam, says that the Arab's failure to accept the Jews' historical bond with Palestine is a mistake. Manji accepts that the Jews' historical roots stretch back to the land of Israel, and recognizes their right to a Jewish state. She further argues that the allegation of apartheid in Israel is deeply misleading, noting that there are in Israel several Arab political parties; that Arab-Muslim legislators have veto powers; and that Arab parties have overturned disqualifications. She also observes that Israel has a free Arab press; that road signs bear Arabic translations; and that Arabs live and study alongside Jews. She accuses Arab countries for the Palestinian refugees' plight, saying that they "interfered with every attempt to solve the problem" and that they would rather give "generous support to suicide bombers and their families" rather than help the needy refugees. According to Geneive Abdo, "Muslim Zionist" is a label which Manji "would no doubt accept".
In 2008, Salim Mansur
Salim Mansur
Salim Mansur is an Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Western Ontario in Canada. He is a columnist for the London Free Press and the Toronto Sun, and has contributed to various publications including National Review, the Middle East Forum and Frontpagemag. He often...
, a Muslim Canadian Political Scientist, columnist and author, congratulated Israel for its 60th anniversary, and declared that the Jewish state "deserves admiration". He wrote, "Israel is a tiny sliver of land in a vast tempest-ridden sea of the Arab-Muslim world, and yet it is here the ancient world's most enduring story is made fresh again by Jews to live God's covenant with Abraham as told in their sacred literature." In 2010, he wrote: "The story of modern Israel, as many have noted, is a miracle unlike any [...] It is a robust and inclusive democracy, and is at the leading edge of science and technology [...] What hypocrites demand of Israelis and the scrutiny Israel is subjected to by them, they would not dare make of any other nation."
In Bangladesh
Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, a BangladeshiBengali people
The Bengali people are an ethnic community native to the historic region of Bengal in South Asia. They speak Bengali , which is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from the Magadhi Prakrit and Sanskrit languages. In their native language, they are referred to as বাঙালী...
journalist and publisher, and a self-proclaimed Muslim Zionist. His newspaper, The Weekly Blitz, criticizes the jihad culture and advocates inter-faith understanding between Muslims, Christians and Jews. Choudhury was arrested by Bangladeshi police on November 29, 2003 at Dhaka airport since he was scheduled to fly for Israel, a country Bangladeshi citizens are barred from travelling to. After release from 17-months imprisonment, Choudhury wrote in an Israeli newspaper "I also stand before you perhaps as a living contradiction: a Zionist, a defender of Israel, and a devout, practicing Muslim, living in a Moslem country. ". He said "I believe in the justice of the Zionist dream. I also acknowledge this historical reality: that the world has endeavored to crush that dream and, yes, even to destroy the viability of the Jewish people. At the same time, I live in an environment where people believe just as passionately in an opposing view—one that sees Israel as illegitimate; and the Jewish people as evil incarnate.".
In Italy
In Italy, Sheikh Prof. Abdul Hadi Palazzi, director of the Cultural Institute of the Italian Islamic Community, represents a unique "Muslim Zionist", pro-Israel and pro-American position which according to Morten T. Højsgaard, Margit Warburg, although the organization is small in proportions, is a "thorn in the side of both moderate and radical Islamic fundamentalists in Italy".In 1996, Palazzi and the Israeli scholar Asher Eder co-founded the Islam-Israel Fellowship to promote cooperation between Israel and Muslim nations.
Palazzi argues against calls for jihad
Jihad
Jihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...
against Israel and says there is no religious demand for Israel to give up control over Muslim holy places.
In Indonesia
Abdurrahman WahidAbdurrahman Wahid
Abdurrahman Wahid, born Abdurrahman Addakhil , colloquially known as , was an Indonesian Muslim religious and political leader who served as the President of Indonesia from 1999 to 2001...
(1940–2009), Indonesia's president from 1999 until 2001, was criticized for his pro-Israel views. Wahid moved to establish diplomatic and commercial relations with Israel, and has visited Israel six times. In an 2002 interview to ABC, Wahid said that the Islamic world should start recognizing and acknowledging Israel's right to exist and prosper. He added, "I think Muslims are rational and rationality dictates that.". In an 2004 interview to an Israeli newspaper, he was asked about his friendship with Israel, which was described as "unusual for an Islamic leader". Wahid replied, "I think there is a wrong perception that Islam is in disagreement with Israel. This is caused by Arab propaganda [...] Israel has a reputation as a nation with a high regard for God and religion - there is then no reason we have to be against Israel." According to Wahid, Israel "is a democracy in a sea of misunderstanding".
In Kuwait
KuwaitKuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
i writer Abdullah Saad Al-Hadlaq urged his country to normalize relations with Israel. Responding to a question whether he believed that Muslims have a right to rule Jerusalem, Hadlaq said, "On the contrary, verse number 21 of Surat Al-Maeda of the Holy Quran emphasizes the right of 'Bani Israel'". He said that Israel's model of democracy
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
is unique and surpassed many of what he described as the "tyrannical, totalitarian" Arab regimes. In his 2008 article, "The Right of Self-defense," Al-Hadlaq supported "Israel's right to defend itself" and told the international community "not to criticize Israel if it continues its fight against Persian terror committed by the terrorist Hamas (...) and not to criticize Israel for using force to defend its citizens and its territory".
In the United States
The American-Islamic Forum for Democracy (AIFD) was formed in March 2003. The group advocates a liberal Islam, compatible with democracy and American values. The AIFD publicly supports Israel, stating "it is necessary to make a foundational position statement regarding the state of Israel. We stand in support of the existing unqualified recognition of the state of Israel behind internationally recognized borders".The group's founder, M. Zuhdi Jasser
Zuhdi Jasser
Zuhdi Jasser, also known as M. Zuhdi Jasser, and Mohamed Zuhdi Jasser, is a medical doctor specializing internal medicine and nuclear cardiology in Phoenix, AZ. Jasser is a former Lieutenant Commander in the United States Navy where he served as staff internist in the Office of the Attending...
, a former Lieutenant Commander in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
, said that Muslims need to recognize Israel as a state, to stand against radical Islamist groups by name, not by theory, tactic, or condemning terrorism, but by name—Hamas, Al Qaeda and other groups. Jasser calls political Islamism “the root cause of Islamist terrorism” and a matter on which it is “time to take sides.”
During the 2006 Lebanon War, Jasser defended Israel's actions, and wrote "I have no reason to believe that Israel is not doing anything but just protecting itself from forces that are using homes north of it to bomb northern Israel". Afdhere Jama
Afdhere Jama
Afdhere Jama is an American writer and filmmaker of Somali origin.Jama was born and raised in Somalia. He moved to America when he was a teenager...
, an American-Muslim writer and editor of the Huriyah
Huriyah (magazine)
Huriyah is a magazine by and for LGBT Muslims. Since its birth in January 2002, the publication that uses the slogan "Queer Muslim Magazine" has attracted over 200 correspondents in over 70 countries...
magazine, added, "My main difference with the majority of Muslims is the belief that a Jewish homeland is an important progress for all of us, especially one in their ancestral land of Israel". He continued, "Muslims in the United States must decide whether they see groups like Hamas and Hizbullah as legitimate resistance or the cause of Muslim troubles in the region".
Khaleel Mohammed, an associate professor of Religion at San Diego State University (SDSU), attracted attention for a 2004 interview in which he stated that based on the Qur'an, Israel belongs to the Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
. Mohammed said that the Qur'an never mentions Jerusalem as a holy city, and added, "It's in the Muslim consciousness that the land first belonged to the Jews. It doesn't matter if the Jews were exiled 500 years or 2000 years, the Holy Land, as mentioned in Quran belongs to Moses and his people, the Jews."
In the Qur'an
Imam Abdul Hadi Palazzi, leader of Italian Muslim Assembly and a co-founder and a co-chairman of the Islam-Israel Fellowship, quotes the Qur'an to support Judaism's special connection to the Temple Mount. According to Palazzi, "The most authoritative Islamic sources affirm the Temples,". He adds that Jerusalem is sacred to Muslims because of its prior holiness to Jews and its standing as home to the biblical prophets and kings David and Solomon, all of whom he says are sacred figures also in Islam. He claims that the Qur'an "expressly recognizes that Jerusalem plays the same role for Jews that Mecca has for Muslims".When asked what the Qur'an says about the State of Israel, Palazzi replied:
"The Qur'an cannot deal with the State of Israel as we know it today, since that State came into existing in 1948 only, i.e. many centuries after the Qur'an itself was revealed. However, the Qur'an specify that the Land of Israel is the homeland of the Jewish people, that God Himself gave that Land to them as heritage and ordered them to live therein. It also announces that - before the end of the time - the Jewish people will come from many different countries to retake possession of that heritage of theirs. Whoever denies this actually denies the Qur'an itself. If he is not a scholar, and in good faith believes what other people say about this issue, he is an ignorant Muslim. If, on the contrary, he is informed about what the Qur'an and openly opposes it, he ceases to be a Muslim.
Prof. Khaleel Mohammed, Islamic Law scholar of the San Diego State University, noted that Sura 5 verse 21 of the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
, and the medieval exegetes of the Qur'an, say that Israel belongs to the Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
. He translates it thus:
- "[Moses said]: O my people! Enter the Holy Land which God has written for you, and do not turn tail, otherwise you will be losers." Mohammed here understands "written" to mean this is the final word from God on the subject. In reaction, he was inundated with hate mail.
Muslim Bedouins Identifying with Israel
During the Israeli War of Independence of 1948, many Bedouin and the entire Druze community switched sides to join the Zionist forces in opposing the invasion by the regular Arab armies.Negev Bedouins, a Muslim minority which includes about 12% of Israeli Arabs, tend to identify more as Israelis than other Arab citizens of Israel. Many Negev Bedouins serve in the Israel Defense Forces
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
. Each year, between 5%-10% of the Bedouin of draft age volunteer for the Israeli army
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
, (unlike Druze
Druze
The Druze are an esoteric, monotheistic religious community, found primarily in Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan, which emerged during the 11th century from Ismailism. The Druze have an eclectic set of beliefs that incorporate several elements from Abrahamic religions, Gnosticism, Neoplatonism...
, and Jewish Israelis, they are not required by law to do so).
During the Palestinian Arab national movement’s formation, Bedouins often perceived their tribe as their principal focus of identity, and they generally did not view themselves as a component of the emerging Palestinian identity.
Bedouins had long standing ties with nearby Jewish communities. Bedouins of Tuba-Zangariyye
Tuba-Zangariyye
Tuba-Zangariyye or Tuba az-Zanghariyya is a Bedouin town in the North District of Israel that achieved local council status in 1988. It was formed by the merger of two villages, Tuba and az-Zangariyye. Populated by the Bedouin tribe of El Heib, Tuba is situated near Kfar Hanassi, overlooking the...
helped defend these communities in the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine. Formal co-operation between Jews and Bedouin began in 1946, when tribal leader Sheik Hussein Mohammed Ali Abu Yussef of the al-Heib tribe sent more than 60 of his men to fight alongside Zionist forces, forming the Pal-Heib unit of the Haganah
Haganah
Haganah was a Jewish paramilitary organization in what was then the British Mandate of Palestine from 1920 to 1948, which later became the core of the Israel Defense Forces.- Origins :...
. During the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
1948 Arab-Israeli War
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...
, the Pal-Heib unit defended Jewish communities in the Upper Galilee
Upper Galilee
The Upper Galilee is a geographical-political term in use since the end of the Second Temple period, originally referring to a mountainous area overlapping the present northern Israel and southern Lebanon, its borders being the Litani river in the north, the Mediterranean Sea in the west, the Beit...
against Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
. Sheik Abu Yussef was quoted in 1948 as saying, "Is it not written in the Koran that the ties of neighbors are as dear as those of relations? Our friendship with the Jews goes back many years. We felt we could trust them and they learned from us too".
Maj Fehd Fallah, a Bedouin from the village of Saad in the Israeli occupied Golan Heights said in an interview: "Yes, I have fought against Muslims in Gaza," he says. "And I would fight again if I had to," he added. "Israeli Muslims who don't serve in the IDF should be ashamed for not serving their country."
Ismail Khaldi
Ismail Khaldi
Ismail Khaldi is the first Bedouin vice consul of Israel and the first high ranking Muslim diplomat in the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs.-Biography:...
is the first Bedouin
Bedouin
The Bedouin are a part of a predominantly desert-dwelling Arab ethnic group traditionally divided into tribes or clans, known in Arabic as ..-Etymology:...
deputy consul of the State of Israel and the highest ranking Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
in the Israeli foreign service. Khaldi is a strong advocate of Israel. While acknowledging that the state of Israeli Bedouin minority is not ideal, he said
I am a proud Israeli - along with many other non-Jewish Israelis such as Druze, Bahai, Bedouin, Christians and Muslims, who live in one of the most culturally diversified societies and the only true democracy in the Middle East. Like America, Israeli society is far from perfect, but let us deals honestly. By any yardstick you choose -- educational opportunity, economic development, women and gay's rights, freedom of speech and assembly, legislative representation -- Israel's minorities fare far better than any other country in the Middle East.
Druze and Circassian Muslims
Background
The Circassians in IsraelCircassians in Israel
The Circassians in Israel refers to the Adyghe community who live in Israel.The Circassians in Israel are moderate Sunni Muslims, they tend to put an emphasis on the separation between their religion and their nationality...
are non Arab, predominantly Sunni Muslims. The Circassians have had a good relations with the Jewish community in Israel since the beginning of the Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel
Yishuv
The Yishuv or Ha-Yishuv is the term referring to the body of Jewish residents in Palestine before the establishment of the State of Israel...
. The Circassians community in Israel helped the illegal immigration (Ha'apala
Ha'apala
Aliyah Bet |bet]] being the second letter of the Hebrew alphabet) was the code name given to illegal immigration by Jews to the British Mandate for Palestine in violation of British White Paper of 1939 restrictions, in the years 1934-1948. In modern day Israel it has also been called by the Hebrew...
) of Jews into Palestine During the British Mandate and fought on the Israeli side of the War of Independence. In 1948, when the State of Israel was created, Circassians of Palestine did not migrate to neighboring countries, rather made the choice to stay within the borders of the new state and embrace full Israeli citizenship. Like the Druze
Druze
The Druze are an esoteric, monotheistic religious community, found primarily in Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan, which emerged during the 11th century from Ismailism. The Druze have an eclectic set of beliefs that incorporate several elements from Abrahamic religions, Gnosticism, Neoplatonism...
population, since 1958 male Circassians perform Israeli mandatory military service upon reaching the age of majority, while females do not. Many Circassians in Israel are employed in the security forces, including in the Border Guard, the Israel Defence Forces, the police and the Israel Prison Service. The percentage of the army recruits among the Circassian community in Israel is particularly high. This loyalty to Israel is often considered as an act of betrayal by the Arab Muslims, who see Circassians as traitors to the Ummah
Ummah
Ummah is an Arabic word meaning "community" or "nation." It is commonly used to mean either the collective nation of states, or the whole Arab world...
.
The Druze
Druze
The Druze are an esoteric, monotheistic religious community, found primarily in Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan, which emerged during the 11th century from Ismailism. The Druze have an eclectic set of beliefs that incorporate several elements from Abrahamic religions, Gnosticism, Neoplatonism...
are a religious community found who consider themselves an Islamic Unist, reformatory sect. The Druze consider themselves to be Muslim, although they are considered non-Muslim by the general Islamic community. The Druze mostly do not identify with the cause of Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism is a nationalist ideology celebrating the glories of Arab civilization, the language and literature of the Arabs, calling for rejuvenation and political union in the Arab world...
. The bond between the Jewish and Druze is commonly known by the term "a covenant of blood". Druze citizens are prominent in the Israel Defense Forces
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
and in politics
Politics of Israel
The Israeli system of government is based on parliamentary democracy. The Prime Minister of Israel is the head of government and leader of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in the Knesset. The Judiciary is independent of the executive...
, and a considerable number of Israeli Druze soldiers have fallen in Israel's wars since the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
1948 Arab-Israeli War
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...
. Reda Mansour
Reda Mansour
Reda Mansour is a Druze Israeli poet, historian and Diplomat. He has published three books of Hebrew poetry and received the University of Haifa Miller Award as well as the State President Scholarship for young writers....
, a Druze poet, historian and diplomat, explained: “We are the only non-Jewish minority that is drafted into the military, and we have an even higher percentage in the combat units and as officers than the Jewish members themselves. So we are considered a very nationalistic, patriotic community.” In 2008 more than 94% of Druze youngsters classified themselves as "Druze-Israelis" in the religious and national context. Five Druze lawmakers currently have been elected to serve in the 18th Knesset
Israeli legislative election, 2009
Elections for the 18th Knesset were held in Israel on 10 February 2009. These elections became necessary due to the resignation of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert as leader of the Kadima party, and the failure of his successor, Tzipi Livni, to form a coalition government...
, a disproportionately large number considering their population.
Rafik Halabi, an Israeli Druze television correspondent and former Israeli military officer, characterizes himself as an Israeli patriot. Opening his 1982 book "The West Bank Story: An Israel Arab's View of Both Sides of a Tangled Conflict", he wrote, "I am an Israeli patriot, although I am not a Jew".
The Zionist Druze Circle
In 1973, Amel Nasser A-Din founded the Zionist Druze Circle, a group whose aim was to encourage the Druze to support the state of Israel fully and unreservedly. A-Din, a LikudLikud
Likud is the major center-right political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin in an alliance with several right-wing and liberal parties. Likud's victory in the 1977 elections was a major turning point in the country's political history, marking the first time the left had...
member of the Knesset
Knesset
The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...
, has lost his son in the War of Attrition
War of Attrition
The international community and both countries attempted to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict. The Jarring Mission of the United Nations was supposed to ensure that the terms of UN Security Council Resolution 242 would be observed, but by late 1970 it was clear that this mission had been...
between Israel and Egypt in 1969. In 2007, Nabiah A-Din, the chairman of the forum of the Druze and Circassian authority heads, and head of the Kasra Adia municipality, criticized the "multi-cultural" Israeli constitution proposed by the Israeli Arab organization Adalah
Adalah
Adalah means justice and denotes The Justice of God. It is among the five Shia Principles of the Religion.The Shias believe that there is intrinsic good or evil in things, and that God commands them to do the good things and shun the evil...
, saying that he finds it unacceptable. "The state of Israel is Jewish state as well as a democratic state that espouses equality and elections. We invalidate and reject everything that the Adalah organization is requesting," he said. According to A-din,the fate of Druze and Circassians in Israel is intertwined with that of the state. "This is a blood pact, and a pact of the living. We are unwilling to support a substantial alteration to the nature of this state, to which we tied our destinies prior to its establishment," he said. there were 7,000 registered members in the Druze Zionist movement. In 2009, the movement held a Druze Zionist youth conference with 1,700 participants.
Acceptance of Israel among Israeli Arabs
In a 2004 survey conducted by Professor Sammy Smooha of the University of HaifaUniversity of Haifa
The University of Haifa is a university in Haifa, Israel.The University of Haifa was founded in 1963 by Haifa mayor Abba Hushi, to operate under the academic auspices of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem....
Jewish-Arab Center
Jewish-Arab Center
The Jewish Arab Center is a multidisciplinary Research institute in the University of Haifa in Israel, active since 1972 . The head of the center since 2010 is Prof...
, "Index of Jewish-Arab Relations in Israel – 2004", 84.9% of Israeli Arabs stated that Israel has a right to exist as an independent state, and 70% noted that it has a right to exist as a democratic, Jewish state. A Truman Institute survey from 2005 found that 63% of the Arab citizens accept the principle that Israel is the state of the Jewish people.
Intolerance towards Muslim supporters of Israel
In the Muslim world, support of Israel is sometimes met with intolerance. In 2004, Sarah Nasser, a Muslim college student in Canada known for her pro-Israel views, received death threats after expressing support for the Jewish state's right to exist. "Being a supporter of the existence of Israel does not conflict with Islam, it complements Islam," she said. "The Koran does not have any verses that do not allow for the Jews to return to the Land of Israel (...) "I love Jews as I love true Muslims," she said. "Therefore, I believe Jews should have a right to live legitimately in their homeland."In Bangladesh, Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, editor of the Weekly Blitz newspaper and self described "Muslim Zionist", was attacked and beaten in 2006 by a mob of nearly 40 people, leaving him with a fractured ankle. During the assault, the attackers shouted at Choudhury, labeling him an "agent of the Jews."