The difficult dilemma

The Zionist movement tactic has been, still is and will always be, to dress the Arab-Zionist conflict in an Islamic-Jewish religious one. Despite it’s a secular movement, it worked hard to employ the religious myth in serving its targets which have never been separable from colonization in all its eras. The movement itself is an egregious and blatant example of the racist colonial occupation. In that context, it was never a coincidence that the British occupation, in its peak, worked hard to create Islamic movements that tend to call for fundamentalism – which is different form Usul ad-Din[1] and Usul al-Fiqh[2] - in order to appear as a rival for the Zionist Jewish existence in Palestine. And so came first the muslim brotherhood movement, and then the Islamic Hizb ut-Tahrir[3], and later came supplement movements like Hamas[4]; the example I mean.

I find myself in a difficult dilemma along with others who have stood firmly in side of the Palestinian cause and believed, honestly and with full awareness, it’s the national liberation struggle topping all priorities of the Arabs’ and the whole world. Not to mention it’s a matter of national security for Egyptian patriots. That’s why we have to work our minds and exert all efforts in order to find a way out of such serious dilemma. I say this after Egyptian security services have gathered evidence based on confessions obtained from the accused in the case of assassinating late Egyptian General Prosecution head, Chancellor Hesham Barakat. The evidences collected show that Hamas movement had a role in training, arming, and overseeing the assassination in addition to drafting other similar future plans. We wished Hamas officials would delay their denial which they said is outright and declare instead that they were about to examine facts and names and to interrogate who may be involved or acting behind the movement’s top leaders like Haniyeh[5], az-Zahhar[6], Abu Marzooq[7], and others, since it’s common, especially in armed movements, that you may find someone acting individually either in a heated moment of anger or may be out of ignorance, or even in a betrayal attempt to implicate the whole group in what may later destroy it. I wished Hamas would take due time to investigate the whole matter and then declare the results and reveal the mistaken in case they existed.

To give you an example of what I want to lay before you regarding having some elements acting individually in an armed movement, I recall a situation I had in 1983 while I was working as a journalist in the Emirati al-Khaleej[8] newspaper and used to have a daily column. One day, I wrote about what I called “Abu Eyad’s smoke bombs”. Salah Khalaf [9]“Abu Eyad[10]” was a top leader in Fateh[11] movement and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)[12]. The man was responsible for the unified security and was involved in assassination operations in addition to other unlimited activities. I had a close personal relationship with him along with Hayel Abdel-Hamid[13] “Abu el-Haul[14]” and Farouq al-Qaddoumi[15] “Abu al-Lutf[16]”, while I maintained a slightly little relation with Khalil al-Wazir[17] “Abu Jihad[18]”. In that article, I leveled a bit harsh criticism at Salah Khalaf for comments he gave at that time. On morning of the publishing day, I had a phone call started by inquiring about my name to make sure it was me. When confirmed, a shower of abusive words and insults opened at my face ending by a clear threat: “I swear you #$%*!@ I will shoot you down although you are not worthy”. When I asked him about his identity, he said: “I’m your master and master of your whole country Egypt, Rasem el-Ghool[19]”. El-Ghool was one of the closest trusted people to Yasser Arafat and who was a master at killing as well. At that time, I was accused by many UAE-resident Egyptians of working for the Palestinians against my country’s interests because all my writings and stances were unlimitedly in side of the Palestinian cause and Palestinian people regardless of any mistakes committed by some of them toward their co-worker Egyptians. I was also a long-time dissident of then-president Sadat; I used to oppose his policies and those of the one who followed him. I felt deeply sorry for myself and decided to call the Palestinian ambassador in Abu Dhabi who immediately apologized and sent Mr. Rageh at-Tall, my friend, to assuage the situation. Later, el-Ghool called and a really nice conversation ran between us; when killer was justifying his murder for the intended-to-be-killed! Then, members of armed resistance movements may sometimes deviate from their assigned job, not to mention when religion constitutes a major role in forming the ideology of such group; giving it the momentum to continue recruiting members, gaining profits, and justifying all its misdeeds.

We are in a real dilemma regarding what has happened, is and will continue to happen, to the Egyptian and Arab conscience in the streets in general. When voices calling for normalization with the Zionist enemy and circles of interests connected to the Hebrew state and global capitalism find their golden chance to launch their vicious attack against any Egyptian, Arab, or even international humanitarian commitments toward the Palestinian cause as regarded a unique case of national liberation and a matter of bloody racist colonial occupation set against a whole nation. Hamas officials, along with all those who employ their religious ideologies as a means to serve their own benefits of staying in power and curtailing others’ will to liberate, are directly responsible for inciting some Egyptian and Palestinian young men to act against the Egyptian state including its land, people and political regime. They are responsible as well of digging tunnels aiming at vandalizing our economy and security with the aim of reaching to the heart of Egypt and then hit it, pushing tens and may be hundreds of Sinai and non-Sinai people to connect their livelihoods to those tunnels and what comes out of them.

Away from the legitimate question inquiring about the cost of such cemented reinforced-with-steel tunnels that may amount to hundreds of millions of dollars per tunnel and if it was more useful to allocate such money in solving problems of Gazan people, I find myself in a devastated state facing a very difficult equation to solve; that is some Palestinians are deeply involved in destroying Egypt’s national security either on the economic, security, or moral level, and with unprecedented diligence. Meantime, we find other officials in an organization, supposed to be resisting the Zionist occupation and working for the liberation of Palestine, turning a blind eye on the systematic deviation in their movement’s political and popular establishing ideology while the Palestinian people is suffering hunger, lack of shelter, and unemployment. And finally the fact that Palestine is Egypt’s direct and main gate of its national security; the fact that every Egyptian should be fully aware of and never let go of it.

It’s a real dilemma that is getting more and more difficult when adding to it the other party calling for normal ties with the Zionist state and fiercely standing against Arab nationalism and liberation. I hope we can find a way out of such dilemma. I wish Hamas would look for those who went astray among its members and to reconsider its policy that underestimates Egypt security in favor of the terrorist muslim brotherhood.

Translated into English by: Dalia Elnaggar

This article was published in Al Ahram on March 3, 2016.

To see the original Arabic version, go to:

http://www.ahram.org.eg/News/131841/4/484384/%D9%82%D8%B6%D8%A7%D9%8A%D8%A7-%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A1/%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D9%80%D9%80%D9%80%D8%A3%D8%B2%D9%82-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AD%D9%80%D9%80%D9%80%D9%80%D8%A7%D8%AF.aspx

#Al_Ahram#Ahmed_Elgammal#Palestine#Egypt#dilemma#muslim_brotherhood#terrorism#Gaza#PLO#Palestine_Liberation_movement#Hamas#Sinai#Sinai_tunnels#security#zionism#Hesham_Barakat_assassination#British_colonization#zionism_tactic

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[1] Usul ad-Din: (Arabic: أصول الدين) is an Arabic Islamic term that literally translates as 'foundation of the faith', it talks about the five pillars of Islam and faith.

[2] Usul al-Fiqh: (Arabic: أصول الفقه) is an Arabic Islamic term meaning Principles of islamic jurisprudence. It is the study and critical analysis of the origins, sources, and principles upon which Islamic jurisprudence is based. (Source: Wikipedia)

[3] Hizb ut-Tahrir: (Arabic: حزب التحرير‎) or Party of Liberation is a international, pan-Islamic political organization, which describes its "ideology as Islam", and its aim as the re-establishment of "the Islamic Khilafah (Caliphate)" or Islamic state. The new caliphate would be ruled by Islamic Shariah law, unify the Muslim community (Ummah), return the caliphate to its "rightful place as the first state in the world", and carry "the Da'wah [spread] of Islam" to the world. The organization was founded in 1953 as a Sunni Muslim organization in Jerusalem. (Source: Wikipedia)

[4] Hamas: (Arabic: حماس) is a Palestinian Sunni-Islamic fundamentalist organization. It has a social service wing, Dawah, and a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, and, since 2007, has been the governing authority of the Gaza Strip. Hamas was founded in 1987, soon after the First Intifada broke out, as an offshoot of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, which in its Gaza branch had been non-confrontational towards Israel, refrained from resistance, and was hostile to the PLO. (Source: Wikipedia)

[5] Ismail Haniyeh: (Arabic: إسماعيل هنية) (29 January 1963 - ) is a senior political leader of Hamas and formerly one of two disputed Prime Ministers of the Palestinian National Authority. Haniyeh became prime minister after Hamas won the Palestinian legislative elections of 2006. President Mahmoud Abbas dismissed Haniyeh from office on 14 June 2007 at the height of the Fateh–Hamas conflict, but Haniyeh did not acknowledge the decree and continued to exercise prime ministerial authority in the Gaza Strip. (Source: Wikipedia)

[6] Mahmoud az-Zahhar: (Arabic: محمود الزهار‎) (1945 - ) is a Palestinian politician. He is a co-founder of Hamas and a member of the Hamas leadership in the Gaza Strip. Since the formation of the Hamas government in the Palestinian National Authority in March 2006, az-Zahhar has served as foreign minister in the government of prime minister Ismail Haniyeh. (Source: Wikipedia)

[7] Mousa Abu Marzook: (Arabic: موسى أبو مرزوق‎) (9 January 1951 - ) is a Palestinian senior member of Hamas. (Source: Wikipedia)

[8] Al-Khaleej newspaper: (Arabic: جريدة الخليج) is a daily newspaper published in the UAE. The paper was founded in 1970.

[9] Salah Khalaf: (Arabic: صلاح خلف), also known as Abu Eyad (أبو إياد) (1933 – 14 January 1991) was deputy chief and head of intelligence for the Palestine Liberation Organization, and the second most senior official of Fateh after Yasser Arafat. (Source: Wikipedia)

[10] Abu Eyad: (Arabic: أبو إياد) nickname of Salah Khalaf.

[11] Fateḥ: (Arabic: فتح‎, Fatḥ), formerly the Palestinian National Liberation Movement, is a secular Palestinian political party and the largest faction of the confederated multi-party Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). Fateh is generally considered to have had a strong involvement in revolutionary struggle in the past and has maintained a number of militant groups. Fateh had been closely identified with the leadership of its founder Yasser Arafat, until his death in 2004. Since Arafat's departure, factionalism within the ideologically diverse movement has become more apparent. (Source: Wikipedia)

[12] The Palestine Liberation Organization: (PLO) (Arabic: منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية‎) is an organization founded in 1964 with the purpose of the "liberation of Palestine" through armed struggle. It is recognized as the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people" by over 100 states with which it holds diplomatic relations, and has enjoyed observer status at the United Nations since 1974. (Source: Wikipedia)

[13] Hayel Abdel-Hamid: (Arabic: هايل عبد الحميد) (1930 – January, 14 1991) also known as Abu el-Haul (Arabic: أبو الهول) born in Safad, Palestine and was one of Fateh establishing figures in Germany and Austria. He participated in establishing Fateh movement in Cairo in 1964. He held different positions in Fateh until he was assassinated along with his companion Salah Khalaf in Tunisia in 1991. (Source: Wikipedia)

[14] Abu el-Haul: (Arabic: أبو الهول) nickname of Hayel Abdel-Hamid.

[15] Farouq al-Qaddoumi: (Arabic: فاروق القدومي‎; born 1931), also known as Abu al-Lutf (Arabic: أبو اللطف), is Secretary-general of Fateh's central committee and PLO's political department in Tunisia. (Source: Wikipedia)

[16] Abu al-Lutf: (Arabic: أبو اللطف) nickname of Farouq al-Qaddoumi.

[17] Khalil al-Wazir: (Arabic: خليل الوزير) also known as Abu Jihad (Arabic: أبو جهاد) ( October 10, 1935 – April 16, 1988) was a Palestinian leader and co-founder of the secular nationalist party Fateh. As a top aide of Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Chairman Yasser Arafat, al-Wazir had considerable influence in Fateh's military activities, eventually becoming the commander of Fateh's armed wing al-Assifa. (Source: Wikipedia)

[18] Abu Jihad: (Arabic: أبو جهاد) nickname of Khalil al-Wazir.

[19] Rasem el-Ghool: (Arabic: راسم الغول) a top leader in Fateh movement who held several position in the movement including the post of a military attaché in the Palestinian embassy in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Politics and thought atrocities

 

Om Kulthum

In last week’s article, I thought I was clever when I dropped a word that drove the whole meaning out of context. I thought those who know me well and follow my writings would recognize the trick and not believe I might attack or underrate legends like Om Kulthum[1], Mohammed Abdel Wahab[2], or Abdel Halim Hafez[3] in favor of praising the late Al-ostaz Heikal. However, many got the point and realized what I was aiming at through the context of the article. I was pointing at those mediocre or even ignorant people who attack national and humanitarian figures like the ones I mentioned before.

Now that I unraveled the misunderstanding, I would like to talk today about people incapable of discussing certain phenomena, whether political, ideological, or behavioral, those incapable of analyzing circumstances, causes, and contexts that may make a phenomenon continue to exist, and even continue to affect although they believe it’s a negative one and full of shortcomings and flaws. Instead of discussing and analyzing aspects of the phenomenon and seeking references according to scientific research disciplines settled in social and humanitarian sciences in general, and history, sociology, social Psychology, and political theories and systems in particular, they tend to launch heavy raids of attack full of mistakes; what some ordinary people like me call “Radh[4] and farsh melaya[5]”.

I may excuse some who replace the former by the latter for they are ignorant and know nothing about research disciplines, although they may be regarded – according to others and of course to themselves – as intellectuals just because they are known to be regular visitors of some late night clubs’ gatherings or sitting to a distinguished capitalist’s banquet who likes culture and loves to add those “culture” figures to his collection. They, in turn, want to repay him for his generosity and, in doing so, they go into attacking what he may dislike or have a negative opinion about. However, those who have good knowledge of scientific methods of research and respect their word have no excuse at all.

We are witnessing a congestion of politics and thought in Egypt these days just like that of the traffic… when every driver seeks to pose the front of his car in the beginning paying no attention to traffic lights and probably hitting the traffic man and pedestrians as well… when pedestrians walk in all directions without any control… when sexual harassers, pick-pockets, and atrocities of all kinds thrive in such chaos, starting with the atrocity of violating traffic lights and disdaining the traffic man, to the atrocity of throwing cigarettes’ ends, empty cans, banana and mandarin peels, and plastic bags out of the car windows… etc.

Going a bit farer, we would arrive at atrocities of politics and thought. Such atrocities come to reality when critical argument based on analysis and understanding introductions, contexts and results is replaced by absence of references, hollow attacks, and fatal fallacies. In such way, we become incapable of providing an alternative point of view or even become coward in disclosing those opinions and stances.

We can fiercely attack and mock muslim brotherhood, salafists, and all their religion-dressed likes. It’s the same when attacking revolutionary socialists, Marxists, liberals, Nasserists[6], those who have no ideology at all, pragmatics, and others.

We have already witnessed some recurring waves of attacks criticizing the July, 23 1952 revolution, Abdel-Nasser and the Nasserism[7] in the past. It’s strange those who were involved in such attacking raids didn’t make moral out of their accumulated experience when some ruling regimes in the European, American west, Hebrew state, and in the region started to talk about the coup and colonels’ and military rule at the beginning of the 50’s. Another circles of influence, talking in the name of Islam, followed the same style and started attacking apostates and heretics; those who call for Socialism and nationalization, and who killed Imams calling for spreading Islam in 1954 and 1965. Afterwards came other waves when well-known names like Saleh Gawdat[8], Moussa Sabri[9], Anis Mansour[10], and others surfaced. Those figures used to praise Nasser and the revolution at first and later turned against it… Waves were many with all of them focusing on the same things like repeating what was already said and confirming what was already confirmed.

I urge those, who tend to astonish us with what is already known, to exert some effort and thinking into researching the circumstances that made a political social phenomenon like the July, 23 revolution and Nasserism still exists and sometimes is on the rise, affecting the present and future of the society, not to mention that this effect is not limited to Egypt alone but extends to far territories like in some Latin American and African countries who hold the same admiration to Nasser and Nasserism. This kind of research is the only way to analyze the phenomenon and stand against its deficiencies if it has any or to highlight what it may possess of positive aspects in order to avoid the same fate.

I wrote many articles in Al-Ahram and Almasry alyoum newspapers discussing the phenomenon of muslim brotherhood and salafists. In doing so, I sought references and sources starting from Ibn Hanbal[11]’s Fiqh and Fatwas, Ibn Taymiyyah[12] and Ibn Abdel-Wahhab[13] ideology, through Hassan el-Banna[14] letters and to Sayyid Qutb[15] and al-Albani[16] books. I believe I presented a point of view that was committed to due research disciplines and rules of analysis. I’m about to do the same thing regarding discussing the phenomenon of those calling to unlimited cooperation with the Hebrew state and the Zionist movement pouring their wrath on any one opposing them and naming him ignorant, reactionary, and slave for dictatorship ideas and practices… to the end of the note. I may start detecting and analyzing by referring to those who used to name themselves “real beneficiaries” at the beginning of the twentieth century, represented by al-Omma[17] party at that time, who called for cooperation with the British occupation. Such historic dimension could be a good entry to understand the circumstances that may result in such ideologies.

I urge those who endeavor to enlighten the public opinion with the atrocities of some ideologies like Nasserism to stop repeating and reproducing the same discourse developed by the waves mentioned before in the article.

As to those who have never paid a price for any stance they ever had, either from their freedom, livelihood, or work, and who tend to satisfy their masters… they are totally excused.

Translated into English by: Dalia Elnaggar

This article was published on Almasry alyoum newspaper on March 8, 2016.

To see the original Arabic version, go to:

http://www.almasryalyoum.com/news/details/906543

#almasry_alyoum#Ahmed_elgammal#politics#Nasserism#Gamal_abdel_Nasser#zionism#British_occupation#Socialism

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[1] Om Kulthum: (Egyptian Arabic: أم كلثوم) on an uncertain date (December 31, 1898 or May 4, 1904) and who died February 3, 1975, was an internationally famous Egyptian singer, songwriter, and film actress active from the 1920s to the 1970s. She is given the honorific title, Kawkab al-Sharq كوكب الشرق ("Star of the East") in Arabic. Known for her extraordinary vocal ability and style, Om Kulthum was one of the greatest and most influential Arab singers of the 20th century. (Source: Wikipedia)

[2] Mohammed Abdel Wahab: (Arabic: محمد عبد الوهاب) (March 13, 1902 – May 4, 1991) was a prominent 20th-century Arab Egyptian singer and composer. (Source: Wikipedia)

[3] Abdel Halim Ali Shabana: (Arabic: عبدالحليم علي شبانة), commonly known as Abdel Halim Hafez (Arabic: عبد الحليم حافظ‎) (June 21, 1929 – March 30, 1977), is among the most popular Egyptian and Arab singers. In addition to singing, Halim was also an actor, conductor, business man, music teacher and movie producer. He is considered to be one of the Great Four of Arabic music (along with Om Kulthum, Mohammed Abdel Wahab, and Farid Al Attrach). He is known as el-Andaleeb el-Asmar (The Dark-Skinned Nightingale, Arabic: العندليب الأسمر‎). He is also known as an icon in modern Arabic music. To this day, his music is still enjoyed throughout the Arab world. (Source: Wikipedia)

[4] Radh: (Arabic: ردح) a slang word in Egyptian Arabic meaning to insult or to defame.

[5] Farsh melaya: (Arabic: فرش ملاية) an Egyptian idiom, literally means “to lay the sheet down on the ground”, but actually means to insult and defame someone; just like Radh. Women living in modest neighborhoods in Egypt used to wrap their bodies in black sheets when they come out of home, when a woman disagree with another and wants to insult her, she used to unfold and lay her sheet down on the ground and sit over it in order to feel comfortable and take her time in insulting her rival with the worst vulgar words she knew; and hence came the idiom.

[6] Nasserists: (Arabic: الناصريين) those who believe in and adopt Nasserism as an ideology.

[7] Nasserism: (Arabic: الناصرية أو التيار الناصري‎) is a socialist Arab nationalist political ideology based on the thinking of Gamal Abdel Nasser, one of the two principal leaders of the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, and Egypt's second President. Spanning the domestic and international spheres, it combines elements of Arab socialism, republicanism, nationalism, anti-imperialism, Developing world solidarity, and international non-alignment. In the 1950s and 1960s, Nasserism was amongst the most potent political ideologies in the Arab world. (Wikipedia)

[8] Saleh Gawdat: (Arabic: صالح جودت) (1912 – 1976) was a prominent contemporary Egyptian poet.

[9] Moussa Sabri: (Arabic: موسى صبري) (1925 – 1992) was a prominent Egyptian journalist.

[10] Anis Mansour: (Arabic: أنيس منصور) (1924 – 2011) was a prominent Egyptian journalist.

[11] Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal: (Arabic:أحمد بن حنبل ‎) was a Muslim scholar and theologian. He is considered the founder of the Hanbali school of Islamic jurisprudence. Ibn Hanbal is known for his restricted opinions and religious jurisdictions in Islam.

[12] Aḥmad ibn Taymiyyah (Arabic: ابن تيمية) known as Ibn Taymiyyah (22 January 1263 - 26 September 1328) was an Islamic scholar, theologian and logician. He lived during the troubled times of the Mongol invasions, much of the time in Damascus. He was a member of the school founded by Ahmad ibn Hanbal and is considered by his followers, along with Ibn Qudamah, as one of the two most significant proponents of Hanbalism. Ibn Taymiyyah sought the return of Sunni Islam to what he viewed as earlier interpretations of the Qur'an and the Sunnah.(source: Wikipedia)

[13] Muhammad ibn ʿAbdel-Wahhab: (Arabic: محمد بن عبد الوهاب‎; 1703 – 22 June 1792) was a Sunni Muslim preacher and scholar from Nejd in central Arabia who claimed to "purify" Islam by returning it to what, he believed, were the original principles of that religion as the salaf, that is first three generations of Muslims, understood it. (Source: Wikipedia)

[14] Hassan al-Banna: (Arabic: حسن البنا) (14 October 1906 – 12 February 1949) founder of the Muslim Brotherhood.

[15] Sayyid Qutb: (Arabic: سيد قطب) (9 October 1906 – 29 August 1966) was a leading member of the Egyptian muslim brotherhood. Qutb is considered to be responsible for the extremist ideology adopted by the muslim brotherhood.

[16] Al-Albani: (Arabic: محمد نصر الدين الألباني) (1914 – October 2, 1999) was an Albanian Islamic scholar who specialized in the fields of hadith and fiqh. He is recognized as one of the leading figures in Salafism. (Source: Wikipedia)

[17] Al-Omma party: (Arabic: حزب الأمة) a political liberal party founded in 1907. The party was first headed by Mahmud Pasha Soliman with Ahmed Lotfi el-Sayed as its political architect. The party had a slogan saying: “real beneficiaries are sons of big Egyptian families” and another one saying: “Egypt is only for Egyptians”.