For decades, the situation in Palestine has been promoted as an "Arab"
issue, or a "Palestinian" issue, and Muslims have, by and large, gone
along with this charade. Such a belief gas proven fatal as the Zionists have
succeeded in further dividing the opposition to their occupation of Palestine,
with the inevitable weaknesses that implies. And yet, paradoxically, with the
latest "peace treaties", between themselves and Jordan, and with the
Palestinians of Yasser Arafat's Palestine National Authority (sic), the Zionists
have brought into the open what should have been obvious all along. Palestine is
an Islamic Issue, and Muslims all over the world have a duty to care about what
is going on. Failure to do so, to dismiss it as yet another nationalistic or regional
flash point best left alone, is tantamount to surrendering the land of Al-Isra
wal Mi'raj to Zionist control. Why? Consider the evidence. Who are now promoted
as the demons of the case, the "enemies of peace" as they have been
dubbed by the world's politicians and media? The Muslims. Under whose rule did
peace actually exist in the Holy land, with Muslims, Christians and Jews alike
sharing the land in harmony? The Muslims'. Who are persecuted mercilessly by
those self-same "peace-loving" regimes? The Muslims! How much more
evidence do we need before we wake up to what is really happening? We have heard
how King Hussein of Jordan has been "guaranteed his right" to be the
guardian of Al-Aqsa, usurping Arafat's tenuous and preposterous claim to that
honour. And yet what sort of guardian allows his ward to be occupied and
desecrated by hostile forces? Politics is a dirty business, especially in the
international arena. It is one of the worst-kept secrets that King Hussein has
been a regular visitor to Israel over the years for talks with the Israeli
government. He has also met Israeli leaders in London and other world capitals
on many occasions. It would be interesting to know, therefore, exactly what
deals have been agreed behind closed doors leading to the treaty between Israel
and Jordan. When it is remembered that neither Arafat nor Mubarak were inveted
to the signing ceremony two points emerge for consideration. One, any remain-
ing notion of Arab unity is exposed as a myth, since the three musketeers-
Hussein, Arafat and Mubarak now follow the motto "all for none and one for
one" Second, the Israelis are mastering the art of divide and conquer, and
it is not too difficult to see who is doing both the dividing and the ruling.
Ever since the late King Faisal of Saudi Arabia declared "Jihad"
against the Zionists, saying that Muslims should only travel to Al-Aqsa with the
intention of liberating it, the third holiest place of Islam has been virtually
abandoned by the Muslims. Occasional visits by Muslims from South Africa (who
have never needed visas to visit "Israel", the apartheid and now post
apartheid regime being almost indistinguishable from the Zionists), and some
from Europe and the USA, hardly demonstrate much enthusiasm for the Prophet's
advice (upon whom be blessing and peace): "Muslims should only undergo the
hardships of a journey to visit three mosques - the Haram Sharif in Makkah,
Madinah and Masjid Al-Aqsa." This has played right into the hands of the
Zionists whose aim is to destroy Al-Aqsa and build their temple in its place.
Anyone who doubts this should study the recent history of attacks on the site,
and the excavations carried out by the Israelis in the name of
"archaeology" but which are in reality intended to destabilize ancient
buildings. So the fewer Muslims there the better as far as they are concerned.
While Muslims from outside Palestine stay away voluntarily, the Muslims of
Palestine are prevented by force from attending to their daily prayers at the
mosque. How can the worldwide Ummah accept this? How can we sit back and watch
while western lackeys like Hussein and his kind bargain away the first Qiblah?
How can we prepare to face Allah and His Messenger (upon whom be blessings and
peace) on the Day of Judgement, Knowing that we did nothing to protect the site
of his miraculous night journey and ascension? We have already seen the
annexation of Muslim land and mosques; places of work - ship have been turned
into night clubs, bars and police stations. Not content with partitioning the
land, the Zionists have done the same to Masjid Ibrahimi in Al-Khalil; most of
the mosque is now a synagogue. Even the media has played its role, with Masjid
Ibrahimi referred to as the "Tomb of the Patriarchs", leading people
to believe that a mosque was never there in the first place. Can we stay quiet
much longer? Remember, if Al-Aqsa was not important, surely Allah could have
taken the Prophet to the heavens straight from Makkah; there was no immediate
need to make the trip to Jerusalem first, unless it was inten- ded to be a place
of vital importance for Muslims. And it is. Palestine is the land of the
prophets (peace be upon them all), the land where many of the Prophet's
companions (may Allah be pleased with them) lived and died. The soil is soaked
with Muslim blood in defense of human rights. Can we really accept that
occupation of that land is an "Arab issue" or a "Palestinian
issue"? Even if every single Arab in the area was a non-Muslim, we have a
duty to protect Al-Aqsa and the surrounding land. The place has been crucial to
the Ummah in the past, and it has a crucial role to play in the future; even a
cursory reading of the Ahadith shows this quite clearly. Imam Mahdi (peace be
upon him), the second coming of Prophet Jesus (peace be upon him) and the final
reckoning with Dajjal, Gog and Magog, are all going to take place in and around
Al-Aqsa. It is that important. For Muslims to ignore these facts is a criminal
dereliction of our duty and we do so at our peril. Everywhere in the world,
Muslims are under attack: Bosnia, Kashmir, Algeria, Afghanistan, Somalia... the
list is long and the calls upon our resources of time, effort and money are
many. But Palestine cannot simply be ignored. It is the most important of all
these places and cannot be abandoned in the name of a false "peace".
Peace without Justice is no peace at all. Apart from anything else, Masjid Al-Aqsa
is a verse of the Holy Qur'an. Are we really saying, "O Allah! We don't
want this verse, let the Zionists have it"? May Allah forgive us! We cannot
rest until Al-Aqsa is free, and we must let our leaders know this. As long as
oppression continues in the Holy Land, whether it be from the Zionists or their
puppets, Muslims must stand firm, holding fast to thed Qur'an and Sunnah. If we
do not, then Allah alone knows what awaits us.