A Passage to Palestine
By Dr Asif Javed
Williamsport, PA
It was with some apprehension that we landed at Tel Aviv Airport a few months ago. Someone had warned us beforehand that any young man with a Muslim name, regardless of nationality, will face delay at the immigration. And so we were asked to wait while our son, Ali, a US-born citizen, had his passport taken in for additional security clearance. After an agonizing wait of two hours, the passport was returned, and we were on our way to join a group of Pakistani American physicians in a hotel in Jerusalem.
The feeling that hits one on arrival in Palestine is that he is in the holy land, the land of the prophets. This land is special, very special. It was here that Hazrat Issa PBUH lived and preached. Hazrat Amr ibn-As captured it during Hazrat Umar’s khilafat and he had to visit it in person to receive the keys to the city of Jerusalem. And it was from Jerusalem that the Holy Prophet PBUH ascended to heaven during Meraj. Whether it was a physical journey or spiritual is beside the point.
While this land has witnessed the glorious victory of Saladin in the Battle of Hattin over the crusaders, it has also seen the treachery of Sharif Hussain of Mecca who, in collaboration with Lawrence of Arabia, stabbed Turks in the back during the First World War. A shameful display of that despicable act is a tall monument The Great Arab Revolt erected in the port city of Aqaba in Jordan by the descendants of Sharif Hussain. They now proudly occupy the throne of Jordan. As a side note, recently leaked documents from a Swiss source that reveal huge bank deposits by a late ISI chief of Zia era, also show considerable sums that exist in the name of the current ruler of Jordan.
A misconception among some Muslims is that they consider the Dome of Rock to be the Al-Aqsa Mosque. It is not. These are two separate structures that lie in close proximity of one another. The Dome of Rock, an octagonal building with a prominent golden dome, is from where the Holy Prophet ascended to Heaven. The Al Aqsa Mosque is a few hundred yards away. Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar's grave lies within the compound of the Al Aqsa Mosque.
Our group had the opportunity to visit several cities in Palestine. Beside Jerusalem, we were taken to Bethlehem, Hebron, Jericho and Ramala. Hebron, as some readers may recall, was the site of the infamous massacre in 1994 when a terrorist from Brooklyn, New York opened fire on defenseless Palestinians during prayer, killing twenty-nine and critically injuring scores. There are check-posts all over the place.
The armed Israeli policemen, some very young and nervous looking, are everywhere. One gets the impression that a small provocation, real or imagined, can easily lead to a blood bath. The infamous wall that divides Palestinian areas from Jewish settlements is a stark reminder of what Jimmy Carter courageously described as the apartheid state that Israel is. Back in the 1987, Ronald Reagan had scored political points in West Berlin by asking Gorbachev to “tear down this wall”.
In the face of all the oppression, injustice and poverty, the Palestinians in general, and the youth in particular, have shown admirable courage and resilience over the years. Their backs are to the wall. They have been abandoned by their Arab neighbors. An impotent OIC has done virtually nothing for them. And yet, their faith in the Almighty keeps them going. They remind one of Iqbal's verse:
Utha saqia parda is raaz say
Lara dey mamolay ko shahbaz say
On a historical note, Palestinians have made some mistakes. Late Sardar Shaukat Hayat had spent time in the Middle East while serving in the British Indian Army during the Second World War. He had observed the influx of Jews in Palestine and was alarmed to see that Jews were buying lands all over the place and the Palestinians were only too happy to oblige them. He pointed this out to some who dismissed his concerns. Time was to prove him right.
As our group was taken to the port city of Jaffa on the Mediterranean, this writer's mind went back to the middle of the 16th Century when the Mediterranean Sea was considered by some to be an "Ottoman Lake" and the fleet of indomitable Khairudin Barbarosa was in total control of it. How times have changed! What has brought us down to the present state? The Qur’an does state that Allah replaces an incompetent corrupt nation with another, a more deserving one. Another verse of Iqbal has summed this up:
- Mein tujh ko batata hoon taqdeere umam kiya hey
- Shamsheer-o-sana awwal taooso robarb akhar
It came as a surprise and was depressing to learn of the incompetent and corrupt Palestinian leadership in the West Bank. Mahmood Abbas, the handpicked successor of Yasar Arafat, has been there for ages and shows no signs of going away. West Bank’s Palestinian Authority has not held elections for years for fear of losing out to Hamas. Our Palestinian guide pointed out with sadness that a large sum - one million dollars as I vaguely recall - is being sent to Arafat’s widow, on a regular basis. She lives in France, presumably lavishly. Now in his eighties, and rumored to be somewhat demented, Abbas is widely despised by his own people as a puppet of Israel and USA. He has become to Yasar Arafat, what Mr Zardari has been to Benazir Bhutto: An unworthy successor who has virtually destroyed his esteemed predecessor's legacy. Such is life!
Life for an average Palestinian is tough: There is humiliation at the checkpoints; they need a special permit for travel; the recent death of a child who had been waiting for clearance for transfer to a hospital outside Gaza has not made much news in the West; there is high unemployment. To make it worse, several wealthy Middle Eastern kingdoms have established diplomatic relations with Israel while others like Saudi Arabia, have made secret contacts. And guess, who has raised his voice against Israel on several occasions? It is Tayyab Erdogan of Turkey, leader of a non-Arab country, disowned by Arabs a hundred years ago.
The tour was coming to an end. As we were about to depart from Palestine, Khalil, our Palestinian guide, bid us farewell at the border crossing and then made a passionate plea. We had observed the plight of Palestine firsthand, he reminded us. “We hope that you will remember this and do all that you can to spread the word around”. Khalil’s words shook us to the core. This article has been written to pass on his words. Will our generation see a just resolution of Palestine? Only time will tell. They don't deserve to be forsaken.
As these lines were being written, Shireen, an eminent Palestinian journalist working for Al Jazeera, has been shot dead reportedly by the Israeli Army. All indications are of a cold-blooded murder. She is not the first. Almost certainly, she will not be the last innocent victim of such brutality. That she was a US citizen, a journalist, and a Christian, has made little difference to the public in the USA who tend to pay more attention to reality shows.
Back in 1999, during a US presidential debate, the moderator had asked both candidates about their position regarding Palestine. "We are with Israel," Al Gore said without any hesitation. George Bush did only a little better: "I will do whatever is in the best interest of the USA". Neither candidate aspiring to be 'the leader of the free world' had the foresight to state the obvious: He will do whatever is right and proper for the greater good of humanity and peace in the world. Both were mediocre politicians. Neither was a statesman like Nelson Mendela or Charles de Gaulle.
Little has changed in Palestine over the years. It continues to burn and bleed. To those who are expecting things to improve without a fair settlement in Palestine, here are Habib Jalib’s immortal lines:
- Zulm rahe aur aman bhee ho
- Kya mumkin hey tum hee kaho
(The writer is a physician in Williamsport, PA and may be reached at asifjaved@comcast.net)
