‘HARAM’ TO ACCEPT ISRAEL

By : SHAZWAN MUSTAFA KAMAL (TMI)

PAS will not accept any efforts to recognise Israel as a sovereign state as its very existence is 'haram' (illegal), Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang has said.

The PAS president charged that the two-state solution for Israel and Palestine, an initiative accepted by the Arab world, Malaysia as well as the Islamist party’s ally PKR went against Islamic principles.

PAS, along with PKR and DAP make up Malaysia’s opposition coalition.

“It is haram to accept the existence of a haram nation (Israel.) PAS, a party founded on Islamic principles reject the two-state solution, one for Palestine and one for Israel for the Zionist Jews.

“For us, only one country has rights and that is Palestine,” he said in a blog posting which was picked up by Umno daily Utusan Malaysia.

Abdul Hadi’s remarks are directly opposed to PKR defacto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who had during a recent Wall Street Journal interview expressed support for “all efforts to protect the security of the state of Israel.”

Anwar has clarified his remarks by saying he was referring to a “two-state solution”, and that his support was also contingent on Israel respecting the aspirations of Palestinians.

Abdul Hadi (picture) said today that Palestine, being one of the three holy lands for Muslims, did not just belong to the Palestinians, and that all Muslims had a religious duty to ensure the state’s sovereignty and independence.

“The country named Israel did not exist when Allah created this earth. It was created illegally after World War Two... this country is by Islamic law and by international law illegal, as it pillages land from its original people and ousts them from their home,” he said.

“For Muslims, it is a duty to free Palestine and to champion the oppressed,” added the Marang MP.

Anwar came under heavy fire from Umno and its media after his statement was published by the Wall Street Journal.

Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed labelled Anwar a Jewish sympathiser and a leader who disregarded the plight of the Palestinians for making such remarks.

The opposition leader was forced to defend himself by stressing that his remarks in the newspaper meant that he supported a two-state solution, which he said was mentioned by Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman when the latter addressed the United Nations General Assembly in September last year.

But Anifah responded by saying Anwar’s interview “clearly shows full support for all actions taken by Israel to protect its security, unless he is accusing the Wall Street Journal of making a mistake.”

Muslim-majority Malaysia is a staunch supporter of Palestine and has no diplomatic ties with Israel.

Muslim politicians have long vied for support from Malays by denouncing what they say are inhumane acts of aggression by Israel towards its neighbour.

Anwar has previously been attacked as a supporter of the Zionist movement due to his interaction with prominent Jewish figures in the West.

But the opposition leader turned the tables on Umno and Barisan Nasional in 2010 when he claimed public relations firm APCO Worldwide, then contracted by Putrajaya, was responsible for both the 1 Malaysia and 1 Israel campaigns.