MK Sarsur: We must act together to liberate Jerusalem

[cali]

At 'Jerusalem First' conference in Ramallah, MK Ibrahim Sarsur calls on Muslims and Arabs to focus on 'liberating' Jerusalem. MK Mohammad Barakeh attacks Israel for trying to 'empty Jerusalem of its Palestinian inhabitants.' PA's top Jerusalem official: Jews have no religious or political connection to Jerusalem


At a conference entitled "Jerusalem First," held in Ramallah on Sunday, the chairman of the United Arab List-Ta'al, Knesset Member Ibrahim Sarsur, called on all Arabs and Muslims to focus their energies on the future of Jerusalem. "If we act in concert, we can become a torrent on the road to liberation," he declared.


In his comments, Sarsur emphasized the religious importance of Jerusalem for Muslims and said that Israeli plans for the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and all around the city, must be resisted. "Just as the Muslims liberated Jerusalem from the Crusaders, so we must believe that today, too, the liberation of Jerusalem is not an impossible mission," he said, adding that "security, peace and stability will be achieved only when the city is liberated."

<snip>

The Palestinian Authority's "governor of Jerusalem," another conference participant, said that "despite all our fears, we are managing to survive in Jerusalem. In 1967 there were 70,000 Palestinians in Jerusalem and now we are 300,000. If the Palestinian Authority government appropriates the necessary funding, and relying on demographics, Israel cannot defeat us in Jerusalem." He also asserted that "no historian or archeaologist - even Israeli ones - have ever succeeded in proving that there is a historically based religious or political link between the Jews and Jerusalem."

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3377909,00.html

[no_hypocrisy]

1. Oh great. The Crusades Part II. This should go over big . . . .

[cali]

2. I'm not sure what you mean

by Crusades part deux, but what I found interesting was that the speakers weren't, evidently, simply referring to East Jerusalem, but to the entire city. I also thought the comments about no historical Jewish ties to Jerusalem were reflective of a certain mindset. One wonders what the speaker in question thinks the Western Wall is.

[no_hypocrisy]

3. I meant Crusades metaphorically as the original Crusades was

a quest to reclaim Jerusalem in the name of Christ and remove the "infidels" (read, Mohammedists) who had taken over the Holy City. Men, rich and poor, left their lands in Europe and traveled to do battle in the name of God. I can see a similar pattern in this call for action in 2007.