An Arab perspective on the world

Hi all,

I'm a Palestinian-Australian living in the West Bank at the moment. Having lived in the most volatile part of the world as well as what is by most estimates one of the safest countries in the world my interest in social issues and politics has reached a point where I can no longer keep my views to myself. Just an example of some of my views:

Religion: Grew up in an Arab Christian family but am now agnostic-atheist. Whilst it is true Arab culture reached its peak during the golden age of the Islamic Caliphate it is undeniable that the world around us has progressed whilst we have remained stagnant due to strong and pedantic religious convictions.

The Middle-East: However I don't accept the argument that religion is the main barrier to peace in the Middle-East. The modern quagmire we find ourselves in can be traced back to the colonial break-up of the region by Britain and France with no regard for ethnic or tribal affiliations. Add to this the hypocritical U.S. support for Gulf States whilst claiming to be fighting Islamic extremists and you have yourself the modern Middle-East.

Israel/Palestine: A two-state solution is impossible. The 500,000 settlers are not going anywhere and the 1.6 million Arab-Israelis aren't coming to a Palestinian State. One state with equal rights for all is the solution. The PFLP in my username refers to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, in which I am a member. The USA still views us as a terrorist organisation. So if there was an award for the most peaceful terrorist organisation on the planet I think we would get it.

Looking forward to some interesting discussion

 

Are you thinking that the Gulf States are responsible for the situation in Palestine?

 

they sure haven't helped

 

When were Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the Emirates, Qatar and Bahrain involved in Israeli actions?

 

I am so excited to have you on this forum. It will be wonderful to have a totally fresh perspective on the Middle East, I look forward in hearing your opinions.

 

The Gulf States have spent billions training and funding Jihadists to fight Assad in Syria and are currently bombarding Yemen, the poorest country in the Middle-East. Saudi Arabia's enemies are also Israel's enemies and they have both been caught out supporting Al-Qaeda (al-Nusra) in Syria. Yet all they do about Palestine is convene predictable conferences.

 

One state with equal rights for all is the solution.
This is an idea growing in popularity as the failure of efforts at the two-state solution becomes more frustrating. In historic terms, it is a return back past the UN plan for two states to the earlier model of the Balfour Declaration, which envisioned such a single, secular state as a homeland for European Zioniststs.

The problem with the one-state solution is that such a nation would be a crushing defeat for Israel. Jews would be a minority in such a state and, given the history of the 20th century, it seems unlikely that peaceful political and economic resolution would be coming any time soon.

A one-state solutionn in which non-Jews have only limited rights is already on the table with Likud. Self-governing Palestinian enclaves within Eretz Israel might be possible if the economic benefits for Palestinians were attractive enough; whether the rest of the Muslim world, including the Arab League, would accept such a resolution is questionable.

The two-state solution is more feasible than it looks. The biggest problem is indeed the half-million "settlers." Lots of them are going to have to move; others may accept joint Palestinian-Israeli citizenship with some sort of independent security force. For more than two thousand years, peace in the region has been achieved only by the superimposition of overwhelming outside force. Local inter-ethnic squabbles are not resolved by the warring parties. The Greeks, Romans, Persians and Turks are not available any more. The UN is the only babysitter capable of making the kids behave.

 

Welcome to the forum.... Marhaba / Ahlan (مرحبا - أهلا&#1611

It's nice to see someone of your background here.

I have had many good, and some not so good conversations about many of these topics in here but I'm very interested in reading your thoughts on all of these matters regarding the Middle East.

I myself am of Moroccan decent (on my mothers side) but I was born & raised here. Even though I have traveled extensively throughout the Middle East you obviously would have a better insight on these matters than myself.

Looking forward to seeing your post's, and please.....don't let the rabble rousers scare you away.

 

Welcome.

Not only are you arab, not only are you an agnostic atheist, not only do you live in the WB, but your are a marxist/leninist as well!

Should make for some very interesting discussions and perspectives.

Looking forward to it.

Cheers.

 

To solve the Muslim problem, you should look at how America pacified the Native Americans who had been battling each other's tribes since they arrived from from Asia (or maybe Europe as well) thousands of years ago. Now the Comanche no longer battle the Apache, and the Crow no longer fight the Souix.

There were more friendly natives, but the hostile tribes were put on reservations and pacified. Christian missionaries really helped civilize them.

So I'd suggest the same strategy for your hostile Muslims. The more civilized Kurds should have their own nation state from Iraq and Turkey. The more ignorant savages, the Shia and Sunni need be placed on their own tribal lands---their own reservations---and taught to keep their hands to themselves. Really, handing out Bibles instead of Korans would be best.

 

Humorous. Evangelical Christians failed to convert Arab Catholics to Protestantism; you think they'll be able to convert Muslims to the failed religion of Christianity?

Anyway, your post reeks of standard Western Orientalism. Never mind all the secular factors that are the cause of conflict in the ME- nope, it's all due to Islam.

 

and yet islam regards Jesus as the Messiah.

 

Er, thanks for the completely irrelevant comment, I guess....

 

Welcome! Your opening post seems fairly reasonable. I look forward to reading others. Others may not be so reasonable, but don't let them get to you. There is good discussion to be had here.

 

Are you serious? I can't believe I just read that. Are you going to read them Exodus Ch:2.V:11-12? Or maybe for light comic relief II Kings Ch:2.23-24? Or if you really want to get their interest Ezekiel Ch:23.V:19-20

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Anyhow, welcome PFLPalestinian. It well be very interesting to get your perspective.

 

Oh, I think by now we all know...

... what the Arab (Muslim) perspective is...

... convert or get beheaded.

 

Right; after all, Mohammed stole Christ's teachings fair and square and then sandwiched his war mongering ideas in between them.

 

It is amazing that there are so many heads still left attached to non muslims

 

Glad you enjoyed it so.

By the way, what are your ideas for getting the Shia and Sunni to quit killing and hating each other and everyone else?

 

No one is going to convert anyone with Old Testament Hebrew History. So passages from the New Testament dealing with hope, forgiveness and salvation would be more appropriate.

Now what unwashed atheists such as yourself fail to understand is that modern Christians, certainly the better evangelical Christians do not read such passages about God telling the Hebrews to slay all the people in Jericho or the Midianites and then think they need to likewise slay all non-believers today.

So in the last 100+ years, where is there any evidence of evangelical Christian church leaders killing mass groups of non-Christians in the name of Jesus?

Anyone? Anyone?

If you open your eyes just a little, you will see that about 80% of the current world's conflicts are from the actions of Muslims.

Muslims, unlike Christians view the violent history from the Koran as a directive to copy the evil of the warlord Mohammad and his thugs.

http://www.jihadwatch.org/2013/09/nicolai-sennels-psychology-why-islam-creates-monsters

 

Surely a modern Christian is an oxymoron?

Welcome PLFPalestine.

 

Welcome to the forum!

I also agree with a one state solution, a Jewish state with a minority percentage of Arab Israelis.