TORONTO — Many Muslims regard Israel as an illegitimate state because Islam doesn’t recognize the Jewish people’s right to statehood, says Bar-Ilan University political scientist Mordechai Kedar, left.
Kedar, a specialist in Islam and popular culture in the Arab world, said that Islam considers Judaism a religion but not a nationality.
This being the case, most Muslims do not accept Israel’s existence, observed Kedar, who spoke Feb. 6 at the law offices of Minden Gross at the invitation of UJA Federation of Greater Toronto’s real estate cabinet.
“For many of our enemies, Tel Aviv and Haifa are occupied areas,” he said.
Kedar, one of the few Israelis to have been interviewed by the Al Jazeera TV network, described Israel as a unique state, because its regional enemies refuse to recognize its legitimacy.
“Our mere existence is not recognized by some of our neighbours. It is a unique situation.”
Israel’s quest for Muslim recognition is also hampered by the Muslim belief that Islam will eventually supplant Christianity and Judaism and by the perception that historic Palestine is an Islamic endowment that cannot be partitioned, he noted.
Israel’s peace agreements with Egypt and Jordan are regarded by Arabs as temporary, he said, adding that Arabs who recognize Israel embrace its existence in de facto but not in de jure terms.
Suggesting that Israel has no alternative but to be on perpetual guard, Kedar said Israel’s hostile neighbours want to wipe it out, even if it takes centuries.
“The Arabs can wait,” he said. “They have patience.”
Israel’s enemies compare Israel to the ill-fated Crusader states – which lasted no more than about 200 years – while the leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, likens Israel to an extremely vulnerable spider’s web, said Kedar, who is also a research associate at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies.
Calling Iran Israel’s most dangerous foe, he pointed out that Arab Gulf states have also been targeted by the Islamic fundamentalist Iranian regime.
“The world doesn’t fully appreciate the threat posed by Iran,” he said, referring to its budding nuclear program and its regional ambitions.
Kedar said the Arab world at present is split into pro-and anti-Iran camps, and it’s so fragmented that Israel has no need to worry about its future.
As he put it, “Arab horses are pulling Arab wagons in different directions.”
The Arab world lacks a co-ordinated position on a whole range of issues, but in this respect, Iran is focused, he warned.
