Tag: palestine

Theology

Thinking Palestine Through Islam: The Mirage of Secular Dissent as Epistemic Resistance Against Israel

The central tenet of Islamic belief – the proclamation of lā ilāha illallāh, or “there is no God but Allah” – forms the underlying consciousness that breathes meaning into the existence of every Muslim. This proclamation, or kalimah, is made up of two seemingly opposing statements – a negation followed by an affirmation. Ostensibly, this might seem contradictory, even irreconcilable. The reality, however, is far from it — a closer look revealing the logically consistent structure underpinning this attestation of faith. The affirmation of illallāh, literally, “but Allah,” comes after a negation, lā ilāha, meaning “there is no God,” or no “fossilized system” — with its own truth claims to a pluriversal metaphysical order, which, at its roots, questions the divine ontologically-grounded hierarchy of differentiation, or, in other words, doubts and disputes the absolute divinity of Allah. Continue reading Thinking Palestine Through Islam: The Mirage of Secular Dissent as Epistemic Resistance Against Israel

Juveria Asif and Shafa'at WaniLeave a comment
Shorts

The Palestinian Conflict is an Islamic One

A version of this article was originally published here and has been republished with the author’s permission. Language is molded by perception and ideas, forming our worldview. It is not only how we communicate with others, but also how we construct our beliefs (something the media and the movie industry know all too well.) We have seen its importance reflected throughout history, for example, in … Continue reading The Palestinian Conflict is an Islamic One

Khalifa Al-Thani1 Comment
Shorts

The Palestinians are Offside: Observations on German Football

In April 2022, Borussia Dortmund, a German club, that in recent times has distinguished itself on the football world for the development of players such as Erling Haaland, Jude Bellingham and Jadon Sancho, hosted a charity match against Ukrainian club, Dynamo Kyiv, to raise funds for Ukrainian civilians affected by the Russian invasion. Both teams and officials raised a banner with the slogan “Stop War.” While their efforts were noble, raising over 400,000 Euros for the cause, it is ironic, to say the least, that four days after this display of goodwill, Dortmund announced its trip to Israel for a friendly match against an Israeli club postseason. Although the trip was quickly called off, or rather, postponed to an indefinite date for “security reasons,” it is hard to ignore the hypocrisy of values the club allegedly holds.  Continue reading The Palestinians are Offside: Observations on German Football

Mona Zaneefer1 Comment
Society & Culture

Genocide in Palestine and Western Support

Raphael Lemkin (1900–59), a Polish-Jewish jurist, coined the term “genocide” and popularized it in a global context. International law clearly defines genocide in Article 2 of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, 1948.

The stages of genocide do not necessarily have to occur step-by-step. If some of these elements systematically exist, it would be enough to consider it a genocide. Upon analyzing Israeli aggression in Gaza, it becomes clear that Israel is deliberately using the recent attack by Hamas as a scapegoat to indiscriminately kill innocent Palestinians including thousands of children. Many of the stages of genocide such as discrimination (cutting off electricity, water, and internet.), dehumanization (labeling Palestinians as human animals and children of darkness), preparation (ground invasion), persecution (bombardments and rocket firing), extermination (ethnic cleansing and genocide), and denial (lies, propaganda, and disinformation) are underway and a cause for grave concern. Continue reading Genocide in Palestine and Western Support

Muhammad Shahed HasanLeave a comment
Society & Culture

The Islamic Case for Unapologetic Propaganda

During the Global War on Terror, post-9/11, it was not a priority for Muslim adult generations that experienced it (now comprised of older millennials, all of Generation X and the Boomers) to fight back against the extreme hate they were receiving with organized, well-funded propaganda campaigns through the various media platforms available. Why would it be? There weren’t any Muslims in the newspapers and magazines. Social media was not heavily used (Facebook was created in 2004, Twitter in 2006), so the only way to combat the extreme Islamophobia (a term I use begrudgingly) boiling up at the time was through the mainstream news channels. Even then, it was done with extreme apologia rooted in the framework that Muslims were flawed in their beliefs. Continue reading The Islamic Case for Unapologetic Propaganda

Abdullah Yousef1 Comment
Theology

The Metaphysics of Palestine

Taha begins his lecture by declaring that political analysts, historians, anthropologists, and sociologists—even if they are pro-Palestine—have engaged in secular violence to Palestine by erasing the ghayb in their analysis of Palestinian history. The world of the unseen—or the ghayb in Quranic idiom—is a critical feature of discussing the land, and by assigning Palestine into secular time, outside of her ghaybi, cosmic, dimension is to conscript Palestine into a Western philosophical framing.

We can not limit Zionist violence to temporality but must trace it to spatiality and geography: by forbidding Palestinians from praying in Masjid al-Aqsā’, or Masjid al-Baḥr, in Jaffa, or even accessing their historical Awqāf, legal endowments, Zionism hopes to shear off the millennium-long metaphysical relationship of Palestinian desire to kneel before God in their ancestrally-constructed Masājid—and the angels who populate those very spaces of spiritual yearning for God. Taha brilliantly sums the acuteness of this: “Palestinian relationship to time is only decreased with the loss of their relationship with geography.” Continue reading The Metaphysics of Palestine

Mulla Saaleh BaseerLeave a comment
Politics

Did India Previously Support Palestine? What Happened?

In the same manner [Hindu] Indian Americans post-9/11 sought to gain power and respectability by allying themselves with what opposed Muslims, the narrative that portrays Hindus as victims of Muslim terrorism is furthered by drawing parallels with the distress of Jewish communities over terrorism in Israel. For India, Israel – and Zionism – is the manifestation of domestic fantasies, a vehicle through which people of the world can hold Islam and its seemingly endless list of crimes at bay with.

In perfect accordance to the BJP supporter playbook, despite previous attempts at centrist engagement with both Israel and Palestine, India now uses the Palestinian struggle to build on the anti-Muslim climate in the dregs of British colonial rule: Palestine’s struggles are due to perceived wrongdoing, the people are reaping what they sow like the Muslims in India, etc. What is humorously macabre is that Zionists insult and reject Indian support. Not only do Hindutva supporters tolerate this degradation, they continue drooling for their approval. Continue reading Did India Previously Support Palestine? What Happened?

Farhana KhanLeave a comment
Politics

International Law Aids and Abets Israeli Crimes

The go-to tool for determining which party is in the wrong is international law: turning off the water supply is a war crime (never mind that for years Palestinians were forced to be dependent on Israeli goodwill to have their water tanks filled), killing civilians is a war crime (never mind human rights’ subservience to global politics means little scrutiny over how and when Israel deems a Palestinian to be sufficiently harmless), etc. While the international community browbeats Palestinians into reacting the correct way, Israel continues to act in deplorable ways, bolstered by the legitimacy some aspects of international law, already derived from a colonial order, grants them. Demands that Israel “comply more” with international law as they raze Gaza  — the same law they use to their benefit — will not rattle principle into the morally bankrupt.

Noura Erakat, a prominent Palestinian-American legal scholar and human rights attorney, challenges the nature of international law as a paradigmatic moral guide in her book, “Justice for Some: Law and the Question of Palestine.” Born into a family deeply rooted in the struggle for Palestine, Erakat brings an incisive and reflective perspective that builds on her legal acumen. She argues that international law has facilitated Israel’s settler-colonial ambition. She describes how the interpretation of the law is often subject to manipulation and “legal work,” or the strategic efforts undertaken by legal actors to shape outcomes according to their preferences. Continue reading International Law Aids and Abets Israeli Crimes

Fouzia SultanaLeave a comment
Shorts

Palestinian Activism in the West and LGBTQ Alliance

Like clockwork, this June a slew of “pride” themed ad campaigns and social media posts filled online spaces. While participation in celebrating sodomy and cross-dressing is nothing new to non-Muslims and fringes of self-proclaimed Muslims who ascribe to progressive interpretations of Islam, what has emerged more recently is a celebration and endorsement of LGBTQ+ ideology and lifestyle by some of the most prominent Palestinian activists, advocacy groups and nonprofit organizations. This includes the Palestinian BDS National Committee, IMEU, and USCPR. Continue reading Palestinian Activism in the West and LGBTQ Alliance

Nada H.Leave a comment
Shorts

Al Aqsa is The Heart of Every Muslim

As social media displays horrific visuals showing catastrophe in Gaza, the public is beginning to understand the extent of Israel’s barbaric aggression. This has led to the large number of human lives lost, and stripping of basic rights in the Old City of Jerusalem. Unfortunately, there remains a bleak sight in the future for Palestinians who notice no sign of it ending to this date. Continue reading Al Aqsa is The Heart of Every Muslim

Traversing Tradition1 Comment