PA Daily: Hatred of Israel: Yardstick for Arab Patriotism
May 22, 2001
Hatred of Israel is an ideal in the Palestinian Authority official press. Following are quotes from an article which appeared in the official Palestinian daily, Al-Hayat Al-Jadida.
“…It is proper that the call to hate Israel continue to be a medal worn on the chest of every Arab, and I repeat my position that it should be regarded as a measurement of patriotism and as a certificate of greatness and nobility. We are not oblivious to the grand reputation the singer Shaaban Abdul Rahim earned himself, and the [record] sales of his single hit declaring his hatred of Israel. These words of his brought about, from the depths of Egypt, the eruption of a volcano of hatred, abhorrence and bitterness that had been continuously accumulating for half a century…
“I was not pleased to learn of the [Egyptian] reaction relayed to the Israeli authorities, who protested over the fact that a pharmacy owner hung a sign over the door of his pharmacy: “No Dogs Or Jews.” He had removed the sign when he encountered the negative reactions to such a sign, but he hung it again with the outbreak of the intifada…
“The position of hate is natural, and it is an expression that must be understood…” (by Fahmi Huwaidi, The official Palestinian Authority daily newspaper, Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, May 16, 2001)
Used with Permission from Bridges for Peace.