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iTunes ChannelWith a Burning Tear: Final Words About Gaza & Unfortunate Comparisons to Nazi Germany
ShareWritten by: Haytham Soliman
It is amazing how human beings have behaved through out history; some make me happy, but other historical facts often make me sad and depressed.
I just finished watching a movie named “Defiance” (watch Youtube trailer), which is about the Jews in 1941 in Germany, and I cried. Yes, I cried, because the movie portrayed how Germans killed men, women, and children indiscriminately. I cried when I saw them being hungry, scared, and on the run 24/7. Yes, I cried as I saw the women losing their husbands, men losing their wives, and children losing their fathers and mothers. I cannot imagine how any human being in his right mind could kill so many people, simply based on people’s race or religion; its absurd.
And yes, I also cannot believe that there are some Muslims out there who think that the Jewish nation deserved what happened to them, despite the fact that Allah has established Justice in the Quran:
وَلاَ تَقْتُلُواْ النَّفْسَ الَّتِي حَرَّمَ اللّهُ إِلاَّ بِالْحَقِّ
and kill not anyone whom Allah has forbidden, except for a just cause [Surah al-An'aam-151]
With all these thoughts numbing my mind, I stopped and started thinking,”What the hell were they thinking when they decided to massacre the people of Gaza* ?” Did they forget what the Germans did to them in the past? Did they forget the agonies that so many of their coreligionists went through in the past? Is Jewish life more sacred to them than human life? Or did they fall into the same trap as the Germans did in 1941, believing that they [the Jews] are the superior race and the “other” race doesn’t deserve to live?
In the movie, there was a “Jewish gang” of people, who refused to die quietly, and fought the Germans in order to save their own lives and the lives of their loved ones. They had no problem carrying arms against the Germans, they had no problems raiding stations and farms for the sake of getting food and medicine, and they had no problems joining hands with the Russians against the Germans. This gang believed in the motto, “everyday of freedom is an act of faith”, because they wanted to rebuild the lives that they have lost. But now, when Palestinians want the very same things that the Jews fought for, the Palestinians get punished collectively and get murdered in the hundreds. Do you see the irony?
I don’t understand! Why aren’t they looking to their history (like the section of the fair-minded among them) and learn from the injustice that their nation faced not long ago, and how cruel it was? Why aren’t they looking at other humans as humans.. not as Palestinians, Arabs or Muslims or Christians?!!! I am shocked at how the people of Israel, a nation that has suffered so much throughout history, can cause so much pain to the Palestinians; with an attitude that assumes the Palestinians are dirt, and unworthy of living.
In closing, I go to bed every night full of sadness. I tear up when I look at pictures of the Gaza dead, pictures that make my body tremble. I tear up when I see faces of children becoming orphans, wives becoming widows, and young-men losing their lives.
And I tear up at the irony that the very same nation of Jews who were killed, raped, and even burned by the Germans, has become Germany of the 1940s itself.
Here are 42 images that highlight the unfortunate comparison, the irony and the human toll:
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* These thoughts were about the Jewish community that SUPPORTED the massacre: the Israeli Zionists, the rabid hawks, the pro-war camp, because we know that there are many Jews who did not, like the brave British MP; so, please do not take this post as an attempt to stereotype all Jews because that too would be wrong and misplaced.
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May Allah Ta’Ala make us all just and compassionate, and may we judge fairly always, even if it goes against our own. May Allah Ta’Ala make us exemplary muslims and human beings. May we learn from our mistakes. May Allah Ta’Ala give hidayah to us all, muslims and non-muslims, and fill our hearts with mercy, and open our eyes and hearts to all those suffering unjustly, and give us the power to make a difference. Aameen.
This is a silly comparison. The Jews weren’t killing Germans when the Germans decided to kill off their Jewish population. While the Palestinians have a campaign to kill Jews, so the Jews react and kill them in return. There is a big difference between self defense and wanton murder.
bismillah. akhi, Haytham, look at the title of your article “final words about Gaza.” the starkest comparison to the movie — those events took place more than 60 years ago.
our ummah — at least Muslims as a whole in America – periodically writes off Gaza, Kashmir, Somalia, Grozny, Mindanao, and more, and more… at any given time it is more likely that the ummah in America is utterly unaware of the suffering of large bodies of Muslims somewhere in the world. by contrast, the zionists never let up the pressure on the world about their “shoah.”
may Allah forgive us — where were the constant articles about Gaza during the long days of the blockade? we have an article about Somalia on the front page… does it show that we feel the pain of Somalis disenfranchised by US-encouraged Ethiopian thugs? i know this is a multi-purpose blog, mashaAllah. it reflects a diverse and ever-more self-aware American Muslim community, alhamdolillah. but if we are ready to shrug off the mantle of standing up for Gaza, then we never deserved that mantle in the first place.
remember that Allah does nothing without reason. this particular set of atrocities by the Zionists against the people of Gaza, and this particular instance of Defiance by the Gazans of that oppression — it ramped up relentlessly from week to week. it shocked the whole world out of a slumber that was already shameful at the outset.
when it comes to the zionists, their behavior shows the world that they can never be trusted to be just to our brothers and sisters in Palestine. the zionists have made their intentions so plain, so cruelly and callously that holocaust survivors compare them to Nazis. until Palestine is safe from zionist aggression, we should never be less than vigilant.
Good point Abu abdAllah,
So the final words have been said about Gaza. Muslims must now wait for another genocide to again wake up and go to sleep. The unfortunate thing is that even we Muslims have started thinking that Muslim blood is cheap and Muslims killed here and there does not seem to effect us anymore. We just want to say the final word and move on with our lives.
But the jews always make sure that everyone remembers the horrors that occured to them. Every year hundreds of films and documentaries are made about the nazis and a few end up getting the oscars. And I congratulate the jews for their love and rememberance for their fellow jews.
@Horace.
A killing ratio of 100:1 is not self defense. It’s a massacre.
Though the heart bleeds and the eyes shed tears, I cannot help but feel that this has been a complete defeat for the Zionist agenda. Barak and Livni will probably still lose the election, tunnels have already reopened for business, and the plight of the Palestinians has become a mainstream issue (iMuslim’s report on the university occupations in the UK is an example of that). More and more people have woken up to the inhuman treatment of the Palestinians and the realization that not supporting their struggle for freedom is to be on the wrong side of history.
As other commentators have suggested, this could be Israel’s Sharpeville.
The death of so many innocents – especially children – will not be in vain, neither in this world or the akhirah.
We too, are defiant.
Beside the comparative zionism vs nazism, THIS IS HORRIBLE.
Do people on this blog think its “justified” to post pictures of our Muslim brothers, sisters and BABIES dead bodies? Where is the Daleel to disrespect the martyr body? This is not a video, these are real pictures, do you want your dead body displayed like this to get you point across? even if its in truth?
Admin, take these off NOW!
No, “abu akhlaq”/”abu amad” (yes, the IPs keep a track of changing handles
). It is important to show the world the crimes of Israel, and to highlight what Israel is desperately trying to hide and bury. Instead of asking for “our daleel”, I would rather ask you to please bring your daleel that this is forbidden. I have not heard from anyone that this is wrong, though I don’t claim to know every opinion either. So, if a scholar did draw a ruling on this specific issue, then please let us know inshalah.
I am really sorry that it offended you.. that wasnt the intention. The intention was to show the comparison.
As for displaying the body of the dead Muslim shuhadaa’ I wanted to ask you.. how is that disrespecting the dead? I really dont know?
O.. also while you are at it.. how come sending them in mass emails is okay.. and putting them on the blog is not fine? and and.. why is it okay to put it in a video but not show it on a blog????? I dont understand your logic!!!
Sir,
I read your article with much interest, and was moved by your recognition of the Jews suffering at the hand of the Nazis. However, I cannot agree with you when you say that the Jewish nation today is what Germany was in WW II. Its complete nonsense. The Israelis dont murder helpless civilian Palestinians but fight a well trained military force. As for the pics you posted, they dont really mean anything. Its a patchwork of pics of different sources, different dates, taken in different contexts. And the Israeli soldiers you display do not compare with the German soldiers in the slightest sense. Take just one example : the very first pictures. The WWII pic shows a soldier threatening a child. The present time pic shows an Israeli soldier with a Palestinian child standing nearby and watching.
I am certainly not saying that everything Israel does is OK or that the Palestinians do not deserve a decent national existence. But for Gods sake, lets be rational and take a balanced, honest, view of what happens in the Middle East today.
Best,
Eliot Vernet
Eliot, I do appreciate your kind and understanding words.
As for being rational, that is exactly what I was trying to do. You mention that Israel is fighting a “well” trained force… that is not true.
And since we differ on that very fundamental point, we will not be able to establish any conversation (on this matter).
My main argument that I built this article upon is the fact that the Zionist and some ultra conservative right wingers have shown little or no sympathy for the people of Gaza in the last month or so… while those very same people demand 110% support and sympathy when it comes to the holocaust (rightfully so)… I m just pointing out the irony and the double standards.. and apparently i am not the only one… check out the British Jewish MP that I linked to his speech in my article.
At the end of the day… All I (Haytham Soliman) am asking for is the right of the children of Palestine to live in a world that is (if not better) equal to the world of the Israeli children… For the average education of the Palestinians to be some where close to the average education of the Israelis… For standard of living of the Palestinians to be some where in the same ballpark of the Israelis … is that too much to ask for?
I am not going to even start diving in to the topic of land and the right of Jerusalem and all that… because apparently we wont reach to an agreement.. so I am appealing to the human side of the Jews (who are closer to us Muslims, believe it or not, than any other nation) and try to work this out………. intellectually.
And Allah over all knows best
Haytham Soliman
The Nazis were so evil and terrible the Palestinians decided to allie with them! Mohammad Amin al-Husseini was a leading Palestinian cleric of Islam who was allied to Hitler. Again, Palestinian propaganda falls on its face…… LOL!
Dude, you cried? Weak!
Horace
I suggest you get your history straight, and facts speak for themselves. I would love to refute you but it would be a long post. Ally is definitely not the right word.