British imams: Zionists instigate unrest to distract from Israel
Several Muslim preachers across Britain have used their Friday sermons to blame the riots and unrest in Britain on “Zionists.” The Telegraph’The investigation revealed on Saturday.
During the week-long violent clashes between far-right and Muslim protesters, several imams allegedly attributed the difficulties to a “Zionist agenda.”
Imam Ashraf Dabous of the Lewisham Islamic Centre in south London said in a sermon in August that the Zionists were manipulating the riots.“Based on the information published on the Internet, it is now common knowledge that these are Zionists and supporters of the State of Israel,” he said of the rioters.
“And given the ground lost in recent months, something had to be done to regain ground for the Zionist agenda. And what better way to do that than to portray Muslims as savages, murderers, barbarians and so on and so forth – which is in fact a projection of the Zionist state itself.”An imam in Blackburn told listeners that the leaders of the “violence” were “Zionist people.” The Telegraph added. Sheikh Ali Abbas Malik called far-right extremist Tommy Robinson a “Zionist” in a speech at the Al-Husayn Mosque in Leicester. Robinson founded the English Defence League – an anti-immigration group. He left the UK after being arrested on terrorism charges in July.
“Then there are Zionists like Tommy Robinson, who are paid and supported by the fathers of all genocides, the Zionist regime, to spread these ideas among them.”
Sheikh Mostahfiz Gani said on August 9 that there was “a connection between Tommy Robinson and the IDF.”
Haitham al-Haddad of the Greenwich Islamic Centre said the rioters had a “Zionist” agenda and were trying to “divert attention from condemning the actions of the Zionist state of Israel”.
All mosques or Islamic religious centres mentioned are registered as charities and are therefore subject to the Charity Commission.
Dangerous anti-Semitism
Dr Paul Stott, head of security and extremism at think tank Policy Exchange, said it was common across the political spectrum to blame all social ills on “Zionists”. Both far-right and far-left politicians said the same thing.
“This is an argument that does not give much room for maneuver to those who were involved in the riots and committed crimes,” he said, according to The Telegraph.
“Instead, the blame is shifted and the image of Israel as a puppet master is created. Israel and the Jews are portrayed as all-powerful and manipulative. On the one hand, the attempt to blame Israel is quite desperate, on the other hand, it reeks of anti-Semitism.”
The Campaign Against Anti-Semitism said: “This pattern of blaming the riots on ‘Zionists’ is as alarming as it is widespread.” According to our representative survey, an overwhelming 80 percent of British Jews consider themselves Zionists, and only six percent do not. You know what those preachers mean when they say ‘Zionists.’
“We call on the Charity Commission to investigate all charities spreading this kind of extremist and divisive rhetoric and we lodge complaints when cases are brought to our attention. They cannot go unchallenged.”A spokesman for the Charity Commission said: “We are aware of potential concerns raised by a number of charities in relation to the allegations made about recent public unrest. We are reviewing the information to determine whether the Commission can play a role here.”
