Hello, hello [Music].
Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh - peace be upon you and God’s blessings and mercy. I intentionally start with a greeting, as this content is not propaganda or any agenda an attempt to achieve anything else. This content is about peace, which can be felt by anyone who reads, even though the subject is the turmoil in Palestine.
The tragedy of Palestine has once again resurfaced and is affecting this country and various countries around the world, sparking various frustrations and demonstrations from people of all religions and communities, from Europe, Asia, Africa, to America. I intentionally refer to what is happening there as the “tragedy of Palestine” because that is the root of the problem. And that is the reality there, something simple.
If you ask what is happening there, it is a tragedy that is happening to the Palestinian people, caused by the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land. The current tragedy is the result of Israeli attacks on one of the villages with a long history. The history of this village is under attack, occupied, and taken over by the Israeli army, which continues to expand its territory. It is indeed strange that Israel is the only country that keeps expanding its borders.
If we reflect on the beginning of this event, on April 9, 1948, as told by Edward Said, a prominent figure focused on the Palestinian tragedy, there was a village called “Deir Yassin”, a peaceful village in Palestine. This village was attacked by a Jewish terrorist group known as the Irgun and Stern, who then massacred around 270 Palestinians there. They captured the town, and this terrorist group later became the future Israeli Defense Forces (IDF)."
So, the real issue is that there is someone who owns land, and then the land is colonized and seized by another group.
Let’s discuss many aspects of the Palestinian tragedy because it’s a tragedy that has been ongoing for decades, more than half a century. We can talk about it from various perspectives, including politics, but I want to limit our discussion to a religious perspective because that is often exploited by various parties to complicate the situation.
What I want to underline first and foremost is that the Palestinian tragedy is not a religious conflict or a religious war. Why? Because we must distinguish between Zionists and Jews. Zionism is a political movement that involves some Jewish people, but not all Jewish people agree with Zionism. Zionism is an ethnicity-based movement, essentially worse than apartheid, with the goal of controlling the territory they consider as the Promised Land, based on their religious belief that the land in Palestine is God’s promise to them.
However, Zionism is actually a political movement that exploits ethnicity and religiosity. In 1938, for example, there were very conservative Orthodox Jewish groups that were even against Zionism, and they had a motto “Jews United Against Zionism” This group is known as Neturei Karta. Furthermore, there are many similar groups inside and outside of Israel, as well as many Jewish individuals who are anti-Zionist.
As an example, there was a young American Jewish girl named Rachel Corrie in the early 2000s. She went to Palestine on a humanitarian mission to assist Palestinian residents affected by Israeli actions. In 2003, Rachel stood in front of a bulldozer that was about to demolish a Palestinian home. Despite being a 23-year-old Jewish woman, the Zionist soldiers did not spare her and crushed her to death. The writings and notes she had once made were later collected and published in a book titled ‘Let Me Stand Alone.’ Rachel Corrie was viewed as misguided by supporters of Israel, including in her own country, the United States. Even other Jewish people blamed Rachel Corrie. Her mother, still sued Israel legally, although she ultimately lost in court. Nevertheless, her mother still firmly believed that her daughter’s actions were right.
There are many similar stories on the internet about Jewish individuals who oppose Israel. Therefore, many believe fully that what is happening between Israel and Palestine is not a religious conflict or war. Instead, Israel is trying to create a narrative that this is a religious war to provoke Jewish individuals, like the late Rachel Corrie or those with critical views of Israel, to support Israel and feel animosity toward Palestine. We must remain vigilant against the narrative promoted by Zionists and view what is happening there as a humanitarian tragedy. This is about people who are oppressed and killed, and we must support humanitarian values regardless of their religion because all religions teach us to defend humanity, not to endorse cruel actions for any interest. That’s why we reject what is done by Zionist Israel and even by Jewish people themselves, especially the Orthodox, who reject this occupation. For them, the promised land exists, but their right to enter will be realized after the Jewish Messiah comes in the future, not through their own actions, especially through violent or unconstitutional means.
And in reality, the concept of the promised land, based on information from sacred texts, does not make sense if used as a reason to seize land previously owned by others. This is a distorted logic. If so, anyone could claim that all land belongs to God, and they are free to live wherever they wish as servants of God. They have the right to choose any land, as if there were no laws, certificates, or borders in place. This would lead to a very disorderly situation. Everyone must live according to agreed-upon rules and governance, including the laws of national borders and land ownership certificates, so that everyone can live peacefully in accordance with the applicable laws.
Therefore, we also reject the idea of a Caliphate that attempts to impose recognition of a single global government and rejects existing laws, claiming that all laws must be based on the laws of God. We must not be provoked and propagandized that this conflict is a religious war. All religions have extremist groups, such as Zionism in the Jewish religion, which actually violate the teachings of their own religion by using violence, colonization, and anarchy. Therefore, we, along with Orthodox Jews who oppose Zionism and understand that Palestine is open to Jewish people as long as they live in accordance with the law and in peace there. No one says that Jews cannot live in Palestine, as long as they respect the constitutional laws and regulations. Since ancient times, Palestine has been open to Jewish people. Many Jewish people have lived in Palestine, as long as it is within the framework of the constitution and peace, not through colonization and occupation that displaces others.
Therefore, for us Indonesians, it is not difficult to find reasons to support Palestine. What is happening there is colonization, and the Preamble of the 1945 Constitution states that we oppose colonization. Colonization should not exist on the face of this Earth. Because what is happening in Palestine is colonization, we support Palestine to be liberated from Israel’s colonization and become an independent and peaceful country.
Jerusalem, which Israel seeks to claim, is part of Palestine and is a holy city for three religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. There are three holy sites for these three religions, such as the Western Wall for Jews, the footsteps of Jesus, and the Al-Aqsa Mosque as a holy site for Muslims. Jerusalem should be managed as a holy city, a city of peace, and a city of tolerance under Palestinian administration. Palestinians have never hindered Jews or Christians from visiting these holy sites.
However, when Donald Trump, the former President of the United States, moved the American Embassy to Israel to Jerusalem and recognized Jerusalem as Israeli territory, it violated many UN peace resolutions, more than 900 resolutions. It’s no wonder that there is now a ceasefire agreement. However, Israel has resumed acts of violence in Palestine because many peace resolutions proposed by the United States and other countries have been violated by Israel itself. Therefore, it is illogical when there is propaganda stating that Israel is defending itself when it attacks Palestine, whereas the logic of self-defense should be possessed by those who are colonized, namely Palestine, not by Israel, which is colonizing.
When they respond to attacks under the pretext of self-defense, they actually commit indiscriminate violence against Palestinian civilians, killing hundreds of thousands, injuring many, and displacing them from Palestinian land. All of this is happening because of Israel’s illegitimate colonization in hundreds of villages and cities. Therefore, the tragedy that is happening there is a humanitarian tragedy, and all religions agree to stand together for humanity, as taught in the hadith narrated by Imam Bukhari. In this hadith, the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, stood to honor the passing of a Jewish corpse in front of him. When a companion told the Prophet that it was the corpse of a Jew, the Prophet asked, “Isn’t he a human being?” This means that as long as someone is a human and not fighting us, regardless of their religion, they have the right to be protected and respected. Therefore, we do not want to be pitted against each other in the name of religion.
Let us all, indeed in the name of religion, stand together between Jews and Muslims to fight against all forms of colonization because colonization and violence go against the values of all religions. Therefore, although we do not want to be provoked and double provoked that the tragedy in Palestine is a religious conflict or a war of religions, it is justified for us to defend Palestine in the name of the Islamic faith, just as Orthodox Jews defend Palestine and are against Israel in the name of their religion because all religions teach peace, and all religions oppose all forms of colonization and expulsion from land that clearly does not belong to them administratively.
For example, in Islam, it is clear in Surah Al-Hajj, verses 39 and 40, Allah emphasizes that He is with those who are expelled from their hometowns . This means that we, the followers of Allah, will stand with those who are expelled from their hometowns, in this case, the people of Palestine.
If in the past in South Africa, African people were expelled in the name of racial apartheid politics, even though they had different religions, we would also stand with them. Similarly, in various other regions, if someone is expelled from their hometown, regardless of their religion, we will defend them in the name of Islam, even if they have a different religion from ours, but we will defend them in the name of Islam because Islam opposes all forms of eviction of someone from their land, not only on a large scale but also on a small scale.
For example, if our neighbor has a valid certificate, and then they are expelled by one person or one company, we will stand with our neighbor, even if they are not Muslim, because we are taught in Surah Al-Hajj, verses 39 and 40 to stand with anyone who is expelled from their hometown, from their home, from their land. And from there, we will pledge in the name of our religion, Islam, not to engage in any form of expulsion of people from their land. This is clearly forbidden and a grave sin. For example, if you, even if you curse Israel, but your neighbor has land. Then you take their land and then you quarrel with them over the ownership of that land, even though it belongs to someone else. Even if you win in the worldly court, you will still be held accountable in the Hereafter. So, if we defend Palestine in the name of our religion, it is permitted and justified because our religion is against colonization, injustice, and war.
Therefore, on behalf of Islam, we support Palestine, I STAND WITH PALESTINE. But we are not defending only Muslim Palestinians; we are fighting for anyone who has a rightful claim to the land of Palestine, whether they are Jewish, Christian, or have no religion, or even deny the existence of God.
While we defend in the name of Islam, Islam stands with the oppressed, regardless of their faith, just as Muslims did in the past, for example, through the Jihad resolution against Dutch colonization and protecting the lives of Indonesians of all faiths, be it Christian or any other religion. We protect those whom Indonesia protects. Because Islam is a mercy to the world, not just to Muslims. Whoever they are, whatever their faith, if they are oppressed, denied their rights, have their humanity violated, and their rights taken away, we will defend them, as there is a humanitarian tragedy happening in Palestine at the hands of Zionism.
Therefore, in the name of Islam, we defend it, as Islam upholds humanitarian values. Whoever kills one life, it is as if they have killed all of humanity. That is why we will oppose anyone who takes a life. So when Israel’s Zionism takes hundreds of lives in Palestine these days, we oppose them as Muslims, because their cruelty is not a representation of their religion. Thank you.
Peace and blessings be upon you.