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May 10, 2002/Iyar 28, 5762, Vol. 54, No. 34
Report details Muslim anti-Semitism
SHARON SAMBER
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
WASHINGTON - "Bone-chilling" and "hair-raising" usually are terms reserved for horror movies, not research reports.
But those words are being used to describe a new report on Muslim anti-Semitism published by the American Jewish Committee.
AJC officials hope the hate literature rampant in the Arab world will no longer be glossed over, but will become an issue that is acknowledged and confronted.
"We must not let such warnings go unheeded," said David Harris, the AJC's executive director.
For much of the past year, American Jewish groups have been warning of the virulent strain of Muslim anti-Semitism, particularly since the Sept. 11 terror attacks, which many in the Arab and Muslim world have tried to blame on Israel.
Many observers say the spike in anti-Semitism around the world is the worst in decades.
But the AJC report says special attention must be paid to Muslim anti-Semitism, because of its ferocity and its capacity to complicate already difficult peace efforts in the Middle East.
In "Muslim Anti-Semitism: A Clear and Present Danger," Professor Robert Wistrich of the Hebrew University writes that the anti-Semitism in the Arab world's press and governments "has taken root in the body politic of Islam to an unprecedented degree."
Already present for a number of years, Arab anti-Semitism has become more widespread, intensive and radicalized, Wistrich said at a press conference in Washington on May 7.
In his view, Arab anti-Semitism is the "single biggest impediment to peace in the Middle East," and attempts to ignore it will boomerang, Wistrich warned.
It is a mistake to consider the current wave of anti-Semitism a by-product of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Wistrich said.
Components of classical European anti-Semitism - slogans, images, stereotypes and conspiracy theories against Jews - now have been incorporated into Arab anti-Semitism.
The contents of the Muslim anti-Semitism often defy logic. Even as many Arab governments or media deny the Holocaust, they compare Israel to Nazi Germany because of its treatment of Palestinians, trying to "Nazify" Zionism, Wistrich said.
The Middle East Media Research Institute, which translates Arab media reports, has been tracking Arab anti-Semitism and incitement.
While much of the rhetoric is not new, the Internet allows the message of hate to be spread more quickly, according to Steve Stalinsky, MEMRI's executive director.
Arab officials have heaped praise on suicide bombers, and a Palestinian official brought up the charge that Jews killed Jesus.
Such accusations, blood libels and other charges are made against Jews and Israelis not just in Iraq, Iran and other terrorist-supporting countries. Even "moderate" Arab countries like Egypt are spreading the message of hate, according to Wistrich.
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