(Excerpts, Jerusalem Post, 2001.01.30, p. 4)
 |
| Pâ•qidꞋ Yi•rᵊmᵊyâhꞋ u |
"A Sunni sheikh who is the secretary-general of the Italian Moslem Association, Prof. Abdul Hadi Palazzi, has come out in favor of Israel retaining complete sovereignty over Jerusalem's Old City. He also charges that the Palestinian Authority-appointed mufti of Jerusalem is using religion for a political goal in a way that distorts the history of Islam.
"'In the present situation, the only way to preserve religious freedoms for all three major religions is for Israel to be the single sovereign over the Old City,' Palazzi said yesterday…
"By denying Judaism's connection to Jerusalem, the PA mufti is in essence negating Islamic history as well, Palazzi said.
"'Saying that there was no such thing as a Solomon's Temple, even though that is mentioned in major medieval Islamic commentaries, contradicts not only the Bible and history but Islam and the Koran as one,' he said – noting that the Koran is 'a confirmation of the scriptures that came before it.'
"A lecturer at the University of Velletri in the department of history of religion, Palazzi has also served as imam for the Italian Islamic community. He holds a doctorate in Islamic sciences by decree of the grand mufti of Saudi Arabia.
"In 1998 he cofounded the Islam-Israel Friendship Society, which promotes a positive Moslem attitude toward Jews and Israel. A 1997 essay he wrote entitled, 'The Jewish-Moslem Dialogue and the Question of Jerusalem' was published by the Institute of the World Jewish Congress."
 |
|
 |