Professor Mohammed Dajani West Bank Scholars Push for Spiritual Reply to Hamas Extremism -Joshua Mitnick
The recent dominance of Islamic politics in Palestinian life is part of a pan-Arab trend in which religious parties have become the main opposition to regimes perceived as corrupt and undemocratic, says Hanna Siniora, codirector of the Israel-Palestine Center for Research and Information in Jerusalem. "[I]t is becoming fashionable in the Arab world to be an Islamist," he said.
Mohammed Dajani, a political science professor at Al Quds University, argues that the only way to challenge Hamas is by setting up a separate religious party that will push interpretations of Islam that back non-violence and tolerance. Dajani named his party Wasatia - a term used in the Koran that means moderation. "What we want to do is change the culture of the people," he says. "Our goal is to teach youth that suicide bombing is not Islam."
(Christian Science Monitor)
2 comments:
A wonderful idea. It needs to be reported with admiration by the Arab Press, not just the Christian Science Monitor. And then, hopefully, the well intentioned Professor will be left to live safely while pursuing these goals.
It would also be nice if it were featured in more mainstream US press outlets. I'm afraid this kind of story would be seen as boring.
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