Rejection of Israel in the Muslim world…. …Observations by a pioneer of dialogue
Published: 27 June 2005 Briefing Number 145	Click to Print

Summary: The President of the Daniel Pearl Foundation, which promotes cross-cultural understanding between the West and the Islamic world, has painted a bleak picture of how Israel is rejected in the Muslim world, not just by Islamic fanatics, but by “progressive-minded” journalists, intellectuals and leaders. The observations of Judea Pearl were published in June 2005 and we highlight them in Beyond Images Briefing 145. Our view is that Pearl pinpoints the root cause of Israel’s conflict with the Muslim world and the Palestinians: the continued rejection of Israel’s legitimacy as a nation-state. As long as its legitimacy is not recognised, all peace agreements which Israel enters into will be short-lived, all negotiations will be flawed, and all steps which Israel takes to meet Palestinian territorial or other requirements are liable to expose Israel to danger, rather than building a basis for secure peace.

The Muslim world does not acknowledge Israel as a legitimate nation-state

Judea Pearl: “In 2005, I still cannot name a single Muslim leader (or a journalist or an intellectual) who has publicly acknowledged the Israel-Palestinian conflict as a dispute between two legitimate national movements…”

These are not the words of a right-wing Israeli from the “we can never make peace with the Arabs” worldview, but of Judea Pearl, father of the late American journalist Daniel Pearl, who was murdered in Pakistan by terrorists in 2002. Judea Pearl leads the foundation named after his son which was set up specifically to promote cross-cultural understanding between the West and the Muslim world.

Through his involvement in international dialogue conferences, Judea Pearl has been exposed to dialogue with Muslims across the political and ideological spectrum. So his comment above carries considerable authority. And its message is a bleak one.

Here are other key observations made by Pearl in his article in the Jerusalem Post (17 June 2005):-

A ‘liberal-minded’ Egyptian scholar says that the Jews should build a version of the Vatican, instead of a Jewish state

Pearl discussed the prevailing mood about Israel at a conference in Doha on US-Islamic relations in early 2005 with an Egyptian scholar “renowned for his liberalism in the Arab context.” The scholar commented:-

“The Jews should build themselves a Vatican, a spiritual centre somewhere near Jerusalem. But there is no place for a Jewish state in Palestine, not even a national-Jewish state. The Jews were driven out 2000 years ago, and that should be final, similar to the explusion of the Moors from Spain 500 years ago….”

Aide to Muhammed Dahlan: Palestinians don’t believe in two states

Pearl had an informal conversation at the same meeting in Doha with an aide to the Palestinians’ Civil Affairs Minister Muhammed Dahlan. The aide said:

“We Palestinians do not believe in a two-state solution, for we can’t agree to the notion of a “Jewish” state. Judaism is a religion and religions should not have states….. Palestine is too small for two states….”

East-West conference in Malaysia – “Israel must be dismantled….”

Pearl also reports that the overwhelming majority of participants at another recent East-West conference, this time in Putrajaya, Malaysia, stated that Israel was “founded on pillars of injustice, and must be dismantled….”

Pearl: what comes first, dialogue, or the foundation for dialogue?

Having highlighted this intellectual rejectionism of Israel, Pearl questions the current approach to dialogue. Dialogue initiatives and bridge-building between the West and the Muslim world are all well and good, but efforts should first be made to hammer out some basic common goals and educational campaigns, rather than glossing over fundamental disagreement.

Our Comments

Pearl’s article provides an insight into the prevailing mindset in the Muslim world. It is a reminder that the core of the conflict between Israel and its neighbours is not Israel’s occupation of territory, but the very legitimacy of Israel as a nation-state.

As long as Israel’s legitimacy is not recognised, all peace agreements which Israel enters into will be short-lived, all negotiations will be flawed, and all steps which Israel takes to meet Palestinian territorial or other requirements are liable to expose Israel to danger, rather than building the basis for secure peace.

Related Beyond Images Briefings

Recognising Israel’s right to exist: actions not words (Briefing 6)

Leading Palestinian cartoonist: Israel should not exist (Briefing 39)

Erekat: the concept of a Jewish state should be “negotiated” (Briefing 90)