Listen to the related interview on Israel National Radio
Dr. Sayyed is editor-in-chief of two California-based weekly newspapers,
Pakistan
Today and Moslem World Today; in addition he is the President
of the Council for Tolerance and an adjunct fellow at the Hudson Institute.
Dr. Sayyed's analyses as a respected historian and a current affairs expert
have been instrumental in shaping policy in the Middle East today.
Sayyed is keenly aware that his controversial views are in sharp contrast
with the majority of the Moslem world. "I had a chance to be liberated from
the collective clerical hold that keeps the Moslem world in the darkest
corner of the intellectual mind. My faith rests in the premise that as long
as there is anti-Semitism in this world, the world will never be able to see
peace," Sayyed explained in an
interview with Israel National Radio's Tovia Singer.
"People don’t recognize that whatever trouble the world is confronted with
today is because of anti-Semitism. People hide anti-Semitism under different
guises or title. Some call it anti-Zionism, some call it anti-Americanism,
some say we are leftists, liberals, Moslems...but the crux of the matter is
that they are anti-Semites. Anti-Semitism is a disease, an affliction that
has troubled the mind of this world for the last 2,500 years," Sayyed
stated.
Sayyed believes that supporting Israel and ridding the Islamic world of its
anti-Semitic ideologies is the only way to save Islam from being overrun by
the forces of evil. "As a Moslem, I am concerned for the welfare of my
community for the future of my children. I do not want Moslems to continue
living in the bottomless epic of darkness and evil. I found the symbol that
I can hold onto in order to liberate the Moslem community from the hold of
evil is that of Israel. Israel, after coming into existence in 1948, has
been something that refuses to submit to evil and darkness," said Sayyed.
Sayyed says that he was predisposed to anti-Semitism as a result of his
earliest educational experiences in the framework of religious Moslem
institutions. "I was born an anti-Semite. Like most children from
traditional communities, I was taken to a religious school at the age of
four or five years old. The first word I learned from a cleric, like the
ABC's, in my mother tongue was Allah, The Moslem God. The cleric defined
that Allah stands for justice; he does not stand for disobedience to divine
power. The people Allah is most angry with are the Jews; they betrayed him,
they betrayed his prophet, they are evil people," Dr. Sayyed explained.
According to Dr. Sayyed he was able to overcome his initial anti-Semitic
ideology because of his search for truth, fueled by a love of reading and
exposure to a more enlightened philosophy. "I was not faced with an
anti-Semite in my family; my father was a very enlightened person. He kept
telling me do not believe anything unless you hear the other side. I am not
a physically tall or strong person and was not welcomed into groups that
were good at games; I remained in the confines of my house. Instead of being
bitter about these circumstances I fell in love with books. I have found
Jews to be people who love books, love reading and researching," said Sayyed,
adding, "I used to wonder who these people are? What's wrong with them? Why
do people hate them? That gave me a passion, a desire that I have to find
reasons. I got confused: on the one hand, I had my Moslem sociology. On the
other hand, I had the ideas from these books challenging all the standing
theories that I had been depending on."
Sayyed was critical of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's policy, including the
recent disengagement and the potential creation of a Palestinian State. "As
Prime Minister today, Sharon is under so much pressure that he is destroying
the very dream that will keep Israel in tact," said Sayyed.
Sayyed described his first visit to Israel as a pilgrimage, and voiced his
unconditional support for the Jewish state. "The State of Israel is an
incarnation of the original truth. I hope to keep visiting this holy land.
If Israel is not secured, then the world will not be secure," he stated in
conclusion.
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