The Israeli-Palestinian conflict should be described as colonialism rather than occupation, to illustrate the gravity of the situation.

Renowned expert in Sociology and Anthropology, Professor Dr Syed Farid Alatas, from the National University of Singapore (NUS), underscored the pivotal role of intellectual discourse in shaping our understanding of the Isreali government's treatment of Palestinians.

He contends that it is fitting to categorise Israel as a colonial state, a designation that resonates with the wider global discourse surrounding this complex and enduring conflict.

"The dominant narrative in the west, in the media and even in Malaysia that there is an international conflict in Palestine as if there is an independent Palestine and Israel.

"Its as if there are two entities which is Palestine and Israel in conflict with each other, but that is not the reality.

"The reality is that the whole of what we called Palestine is a colony with three forms of colonialism taking place - settlers colonialism, semi-colonialism and exploitation colonialism," he told an international conference "Settler Colonialism: Analysing the Israeli Occupation of Palestine" today.

Another prominent figure on the panel was senior representative of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, Usamah Hamdan.

Usamah acknowledged the formidable challenges that confront the Palestinian cause, and stood by the belief that their struggles, though arduous, would eventually yield positive results.

He said the emergence of what he terms as "new global powers" on the horizon, suggest a shifting landscape that may provide a ray of hope for Palestinians in their enduring quest for justice and self-determination

"I have to say that we understand that our struggle is not easy. Israel is being supported by the so called 'international community', but awe understand now that the powers are changing," he said.

The conference host, International Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies (IAIS) Malaysia chief executive officer Dr. Syed Azman Syed Ahmad Nawawi,echoed the sentiments expressed by Prof Syed Farid, and emphasised the need for Malaysians to not merely extend their support to the Palestinian struggle but to also delve into its historical underpinnings.

"If you ask any young Malaysians, they won't even know what the historical background of the conflict is. This is what is important and I think the connotation of colonialism instead of occupation that was mentioned throughout the whole conference," he told New Straits Times after the conference concluded.

The conference delved into into the complexities of Palestine's colonial past and post-colonial present, while shed light on the historical, ideological, and economic dimensions of the issue, and highlighted the relationship of Malaysia and Southeast Asia towards the struggling nation.

Among the distinguished speakers were former Foreign Affairs Minister Tan Sri Dr. Syed Hamid Albar, IAIS chairman Professor Dr. Maszlee Malik and Ledang MP Syed Ibrahim Syed Noh, who is also the Palestine Parliamentary Caucus Chief.

Also present at the conference were Asia Middle-East Centre founding member Dr Muslim Imran, Hashim Sani Centre for Palestine Studies director Professor Dr. Mohd Nazari Ismail and a senior lecturer of Sociology and Anthropology based in Jerusalem, Dr. Areej Sabbagh-Khoury.

Published in The New Straits Times on Thursday, 21 September 2023.

The recurrence of violence at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in Islam, during the holy month of Ramadan year after year, has become a predictable pattern.

Last week, Israeli police attacked the mosque compound for two consecutive nights (April 6 and 7), injuring dozens of Palestinians (including children) and arresting over 300. In response, militant groups from Gaza and Lebanon launched rocket attacks and Israel retaliated with airstrikes, resulting in minor injuries.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has strongly condemned the Israeli violence and urged the United Nations Security Council to hold Israel accountable and liable for their "heinous crimes", as well as to demand the immediate release of all Palestinian detainees.

He also urged Israel to halt any aggressive acts that violate the status quo of the holy site and endanger regional peace and stability, highlighting Malaysia's unwavering support for the Palestinian cause.

The Israeli incursion into the holy mosque and Palestinian national symbol is not an isolated episode, but rather a symptom of the larger Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Al-Aqsa lies at the heart of the contention between Muslim and Jewish religious claims, and its current administration reflects the delicate power balance (or imbalance) between the Israelis and Palestinians.

Therefore, addressing this issue could be a leverage point—a place where a small shift can produce significant changes all around—for advancing peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The legal status and access of the compound, known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif, is governed by a delicate arrangement known as the "status quo". This agreement, dating back to 1967, stipulates that Israel is responsible for security, while Jordan's Islamic Waqf oversees religious affairs. Non-Muslims are allowed to visit but not pray at the site.

However, this status quo has been repeatedly undermined and violated by Israeli actions and policies, such as raids, restrictions, settlements, excavations and provocations. These have provoked anger and resistance among Palestinians and Muslims around the world, and have often led to violence and conflict.

One of the more recent major events sparked by the attack on Al-Aqsa was the 2021 war, which was triggered by Israeli raids during Ramadan and whuch escalated into an 11-day conflict between Israel and Gaza that killed over 250 people.

Other notable events include an Australian Christian extremist setting fire to the Al-Aqsa Mosque in 1969, Jewish fanatics attempting to lay a cornerstone for a new temple on the Temple Mount in 1990, which resulted in the deaths of 20 Palestinians and injuries to over 150 others, and Ariel Sharon's visit to Al-Aqsa Mosque in 2000, which sparked the second intifada lasting until 2005.

The ongoing issue of the Israeli incursion into the Al-Aqsa Mosque has not only political and historical implications but also ethical and moral ones from both human rights and Islamic perspectives.

In a March 23, 2023 letter to the International Criminal Court, UN Special Procedures mandate-holders highlighted the worsening situation in Palestine.

The letter, addressed to Karim A. A. Khan QC, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, expressed concern over widespread impunity and the deterioration of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories as a result of alleged violations of international law by various actors. Evidence of intentional and systematic human rights violations since June 13 2014 was also disseminated.

Alternatively, from an Islamic standpoint, resolving this issue is consistent with the higher objectives of Islamic law (maqasid al-shariah), which seek to promote and protect human wellbeing by enhancing welfare (maslahah) and preventing harm (mafsadah).The Israeli incursion violates the traditional five fundamental rights of: religion (din), life (nafs), intellect (aql), lineage (nasl), and property (mal), along with additional maqasid such as dignity (karamah/muruah), justice (adl), and freedom (hurriyyah).

In numerous ways, resolving the problem of Israeli incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque could act as a leverage point for the larger Israeli-Palestinian conflict:

The Al-Aqsa Mosque is of great cultural and religious significance to Palestinians and Muslims worldwide. Addressing the issue of Israeli intrusions in a way that these groups regard as fair and just could perhaps serve to relieve tensions and create confidence among the parties involved in the larger conflict.

It can build momentum for larger negotiations and diplomatic efforts to end the conflict. If the parties concerned can successfully reach an agreement on this matter, it may help to boost confidence and faith that progress on other concerns may be accomplished as well.

It could assist in reducing the possibility of additional unrest and conflict in the region. Addressing this specific issue may minimise the possibility of additional occurrences and contribute to a more stable climate for larger discussions and diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.

Furthermore, the question of Israeli incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque is one of human rights and international law, as well as religious sensitivity and historical relevance. Addressing this problem could improve the prospects for peace and justice in the region, as well as the lives and dignity of millions of people.

In conclusion, the problem of Israeli incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque is difficult to solve, but it is also a key leverage point for achieving lasting peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The frequent raids by Israeli forces and settlers into the mosque compound, often accompanied by violence and violations of Palestinian rights, have sparked widespread anger and resentment among Palestinians and Muslims worldwide.

The recurring clashes in the mosque are not only a security threat but also a source of religious, ethical, and human suffering. Therefore, finding a solution to this issue is not just a political imperative but also a moral and humanitarian necessity.

The writer is research fellow at the International Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies (IAIS) Malaysia. He can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Published in New Straits Times on Friday, 14 April 2023.

https://www.nst.com.my/opinion/columnists/2023/04/899584/ramadan-attacks-al-aqsa-symptom-larger-israeli-occupation

Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was a leading media voice since the intifada or uprising in Palestine in 2000. For over two decades she reported fearlessly on human rights abuses in the occupied territories. She wrote with anguish at the 74-year old genocide raging in Palestine and the Western world’s callous indifference to the dehumanisation and brutalisation of the Muslim and Christian population of the occupied territories.

But on May 11 her voice was silenced for ever when she was shot and killed while reporting on an Israeli raid on a Palestinian house on the West Bank city of Jenin.

Much sorrow has been expressed around the world about her killing. We, the members of the International Movement for a Just World (JUST), in solidarity with the global outcry against her assassination, wish to add our condemnation of her cold-blooded execution. To be silent would amount to complicity with the atrocity of her killing and the degrading and inhuman treatment meted to her in death by the belligerent behaviour of the Israeli forces at her funeral. As the casket was being carried to the Christian cemetery, Israeli police attacked the mourners with batons and stun grenades almost causing the pallbearers to drop the coffin!

For such targeted and senseless killings to cease, a high-level independent and international investigation is called for. Besides the atrocity of Shireen’s killing, the wider aggression against Palestinian journalists must be investigated. It is noteworthy that the International Federation of Journalists filed a complaint against the State of Israel with the International Criminal Court (the ICC) in April.  One also notes that Shireen’s targeted killing follows the fourth anniversary of the death of Palestinian journalist Ahmed Abu Hussein who also fell victim to an Israeli sniper while covering the “Great March of Return” in March 2018.

A bleak reminder of this type of systematic aggression against journalists is recanted by Reporters without Borders which registers the number of journalists who have been killed while covering the plight of the Palestinians.  The number of killings is more than 40 since 2000. This is despite the protection afforded to journalists by international humanitarian law.

We note with sorrow that though a multitude of international organisations have voiced condemnation over Shireen’s killing, there is deafening silence from certain states that preach human rights to the rest of the world.  

We wish to stand in solidarity with the family, friends, colleagues and the people to whom Shireen Abu Akleh gave her voice. We are adding our small voice to a larger call for justice.

We wish to reiterate that though the global attention these days is focused on the Russia-Ukraine war, the world needs to recast its attention and conscience to the genocide, protracted aggression and injustices in the illegally occupied territories of the West Bank. Shireen’s assassination underlies the daily reality of apartheid in occupied Palestine, the systemic violence against innocent civilians, and Israel’s aggression against anyone reporting these crimes. Preventing the media from conducting its duty is one of the messages behind this atrocity.

Prof Dr Shad Saleem Faruqi, Vice President, International Movement for a Just World

Dr Jaspal Kaur Sadhu Singh, Asst. Secretary-General, International Movement for a Just World

Published in: Astroawani.com, Thursday 19 May 2022

Source: https://www.astroawani.com/berita-dunia/recasting-attention-raging-genocide-362788

SEPANJANG dua ribu tahun bangsa Yahudi hidup dalam buangan (exile) akibat dosa-dosa mereka, ribuan ulama ‘Chazal’ yang mahir tentang Taurat telah dilahirkan. Mereka menghasilkan ribuan catatan hukum-hukum agama yang diwarisi setiap generasi. Apa yang menarik, tidak pernah sekali golongan ini mencadangkan penubuhan sebuah negara untuk melindungi bangsa Yahudi yang hidup sengsara di luar tanah Palestin. Yang ada hanyalah amaran mengenai bahaya menubuhkannya.

Mereka hari ini dikenali sebagai Yahudi Haredi, Yahudi Ortodoks dan juga Ultra-Ortodoks. Mereka percaya satu-satunya era bangsa Yahudi dibenarkan untuk memiliki negara sendiri adalah pada dua ribu tahun lampau, pada masa Tuhan meredai mereka. Apabila masanya sudah tiba nanti, walau tanpa bantuan manusia mahu pun kuasa tentera, mereka bakal dikurniakan sebuah kerajaan yang diasaskan atas pengabdian dan keadilan, dan seluruh dunia akan mengakui kekuasaan-Nya.

Menurut ulasan Talmud (Ketubot 111A) dan ayat-ayat Taurat seperti Exodus 2:22, sebarang usaha mewujudkan sebuah negara Yahudi setelah berlakunya ‘exile’ kedua atau sebelum kedatangan Messiah adalah perbuatan melawan Tuhan dan haram hukumnya. Ianya tetap ditegah walaupun negara itu ditadbir mengikut ajaran Taurat. Tuhan masih menetapkan bangsa Yahudi terus tinggal di bawah kekuasaan bangsa-bangsa lain. Sekiranya larangan ini dilanggar, Tuhan akan menimpakan kecelakaan lebih besar ke atas mereka.

Kitab Taurat dan Talmud adalah panduan utama kaum Yahudi Ortodoks. Tanpa keimanan terhadap kedua-duanya, bangsa Yahudi tidak akan wujud sehingga ke hari ini. Bangsa Yahudi percaya mereka adalah ‘bangsa pilihan Tuhan’ untuk membawa keamanan dan keadilan kepada seluruh bangsa. Hanya dengan memenuhi tugas-tugas itu, mereka akan mendapat kejayaan di akhirat kelak. Mana-mana Yahudi yang menolak ajaran Taurat akan terkeluar dari konsep ‘People of Israel’. ‘Israel’ di sini bukan merujuk kepada sebuah negara, tetapi bangsa.

Yang ‘degil’ menubuhkan Israel di Palestin adalah golongan pemimpin Zionis, yang muncul hanya seratus tahun lalu. Zionis menolak ajaran Taurat, bersifat materialistik dan kesemuanya atheis. Sejurus kemunculannya, mereka ditentang para rabbi Haredi ortodoks, yang yakin Zionisme akan hanya membawa kerosakan dan kemusnahan.

Dakwaan Zionis, bangsa Yahudi harus memiliki sebuah negara dan tentera yang kuat. Mereka melaung seolah merekalah bangsa Israel sebenar. Zionislah yang memulakan fahaman anti-Semitisme pada penghujung kurun ke-19, sehingga kaum Yahudi dibenci oleh setiap negara yang didiami mereka. Zionislah yang menyemarakkan kebencian Nazi Jerman terhadap bangsa Yahudi. Melalui penipuan Zionis, bangsa Yahudi diseksa dan dihambat dari negara kelahiran mereka. Kemudian Zionis menampakkan diri mereka sebagai ‘penyelamat’.

Zionis adalah ibarat ‘kanser dalam tubuh’ bangsa Yahudi, yang berusaha melumpuhkan agama Yahudi dengan penipuan bahkan kekerasan. Jika diimbas semula, masyarakat Yahudi mengalami lebih banyak kesengsaraan dan pertumpahan darah dalam era Zionis. Banyak sekali kesengsaraan di sana-sini berpunca oleh tangan-tangan Zionis. Sedangkan menurut Taurat, jalan menuju keamanan adalah dengan berbaik-baik, dan bukannya memulakan perbalahan dengan bangsa lain.

Kumpulan Yahudi Haredi ortodoks seperti Satmar, Shomer Emunim, Toldos Aharon, Toldos Avrohom Yitzchok, Mishkenos Horoim, Dushinsky, Edah Hachareidis dan Naturei Karta menggelarkan Zionis sebagai ‘shandah’, istilah Yiddish (Yahudi Eropah) yang merujuk kepada ‘individu atau kumpulan Yahudi yang memalukan Yahudi, bukan hanya dengan berbuat kejahatan, bahkan mengesahkan ketakutan dan kebencian masyarakat bukan-Yahudi terhadap Yahudi’. Golongan ini konsisten dalam perjuangan menentang negara Israel, kerana khuatir Zionis akan menggantikan kedudukan agama Yahudi, termasuk nilai-nilai dan cara hidup bangsanya.

Terdapat juga golongan Yahudi sekular yang mengutuk idea-idea Zionisme seperti Yevsektsiya dan Matzpen. Kedua-duanya pro-Komunis dan beberapa kali mengambil nama lain setelah dibubarkan di Soviet Russia, Mesir dan Israel. Bagi Zionis dan para penyokongnya, golongan Yahudi anti-Israel ditohmah sebagai ‘self-hating Jews’, dan pembelot bangsa.

Yahudi ortodoks tetap konsisten menuntut negara Israel dibubarkan. Memandangkan hal itu hampir mustahil, mereka kemudiannya mendesak Zionis berhenti mengguna-pakai nama ‘Israel’ kerana Zionisme tidak mencerminkan bangsa Israel yang sebenar, dan tidak berhak mewakili dan menjadi jurucakap bagi pihak mereka.

Pengaruh besar Zionis ke atas media Barat bukan lagi satu rahsia. Zionis akan memastikan hanya berita menyebelahi mereka yang akan didengar. Propaganda Zionis memperlihatkan seolah semua masyarakat dan ulama Yahudi adalah Zionis. Memang terdapat kumpulan Yahudi yang menyokong dan berkerjasama dengan Zionis, seperti golongan Hasidik, Sephardim, Ortodoks Moden, Religious Zionists dan lain-lain, namun pegangan mereka tidak didasarkan kepada pendapat asal Taurat. Mereka keluar dengan tafsiran Taurat dan Talmud yang memanfaatkan Zionis. Suara golongan rabbi Haredi dan majoriti masyarakat Yahudi ortodoks sentiasa ditekan oleh kumpulan-kumpulan pro-Zionis ini.

Pelbagai usaha dibuat oleh Zionis untuk menarik lebih ramai Yahudi berpindah ke Israel. Antaranya dengan menjanjikan kesenangan kepada keluarga Yahudi yang hidup miskin di negara-negara asing. Pun begitu sambutannya masih tidak menggalakkan. Ironinya, Israel sendiri pun bergantung kepada sokongan ekonomi dari Yahudi di luar. Sekiranya negara Israel begitu bermanfaat kepada bangsa Yahudi, mereka tidak perlu diajak berhijrah ke Israel. Masyarakat Yahudi yang hidup aman damai di luar Palestin hakikatnya tidak ‘selera’ untuk tinggal di Israel. Hal ini kerana Israel sentiasa diancam perang dan pergolakan. Demi kepentingan politik, Zionis sanggup meletuskan perang yang membahayakan nyawa rakyatnya. Ramai yang dahulunya ‘terpesona’ dengan janji Zionis telah berpindah ke negara lain yang lebih aman.

Nur Iman Ramli, Pegawai Eksekutif Persidangan, IAIS Malaysia.

– BebasNews

https://bebasnews.my/?p=63902

You and I are human beings, with family, perhaps children and grandchildren, certainly with friends and neighbors. We are of different nationalities, ethnicities, beliefs. We have all seen extreme poverty, and witnessed wars and the killing and the dying, whether firsthand or through the news.

We have similar sentiments. Empathy is a part of us, in our DNA. Unless one can completely block out this aspect of all human beings, it is impossible to view what has happened in the last weeks the people of Gaza without being heartbroken, angry, and feeling helpless.

The country inflicting such disproportionate war on the inhabitants of Gaza is the one that was carved out of ancient Palestine following one of the worst, and one of the most heartbreaking man-made human calamities, the Jewish Holocaust.

As the smoke clears, and as both parties finish their “victory celebrations,” it is on all of us to ask ourselves what we can do.

A mostly barren region of the world, the Israeli and Palestinian land is the holy birthplace of the prophets of the three primary monotheist religions of the world. One would think that with the wisdom of these powerful religions, it would be a heaven of harmony. Instead, we find a hell on Earth, a ground soaked in the blood and tears of far too many innocent victims.

No conflict has consumed so much thought, wisdom and mediation by so many sages. It has produced more “peace plans” and “road maps” than any other conflict of the last century, the writers and planners at times rewarded prematurely with the Nobel Peace Prize, creating false optimism followed by disillusion, more frustration and anger. The hopes of Palestinians have been betrayed by their own leaders, by the rulers of their fellow Arab nations, and by the US.

We have just witnessed a new round of horrors, unleashed by an Israeli state that is apparently without moral constraints, one that believes it somehow has God’s exclusive mandate to be the unchallenged regional power, and one that believes itself entitled to nuclear arsenal that is denied to others in the region. Hamas rockets are easily overwhelmed by the unmatched air force and infantry army of Israel, the world’s 4th world military power.

Israel is the largest cumulative recipient of U.S. foreign assistance since World War II.

AS of 2020, the United States had provided Israel $146 billion (current, or noninflation-adjusted, dollars) in bilateral assistance and missile defense funding. In 2021, the Trump Administration requested and additional $3.3 billion in Foreign Military Financing for Israel and $500 million in missile defense aid. Israel receives the second largest foreign aid allocation in the US budget, second only to Afghanistan, including ultra-modern lethal weapons, advanced missile shield technology and the most advanced jet fighters. 

Rhetoric and fist-waving aside, Israel has no discernible external threats to its survival. Iran is as close as it comes to a plausible enemy – but with no nuclear weapons against Israel’s 200 nuclear warheads it is difficult to call this credible. The rockets fired by Hamas, most of them destroyed by Israel’s “Iron Dome,” are comparable to a child throwing rocks at an army of tanks in proportion to Israeli might. Yet the Israeli army has continued to wage wars against the Palestinian people, as it has done since the Arab-Israel war of half a century ago.

 The recent conflict, ignited by the invasion by Israeli security forces of the most sacred of Muslim sites, the Al-Aqsa Mosque, resulting in hundreds wounded, is only the latest move in a long campaign. It is made even more absurd today by the fact that 44% of the population of Gaza is under 14 years old, a demographic often seen in populations that have been subjected to campaigns of annihilation.

The US is an irreplaceable partner in the region and is critical to is resolution. The Biden Administration is inheriting a legacy of extraordinary blunders by the Trump administration that were received by Netanyahu as a green light and license for a scorched earth war against the Palestinians. It will demand courage and wisdom, and strong international support, to undo.

A path to the resolution must begin with all parties being held to the recognized international standards for crimes against humanity. No alliance with the powerful should shield any state or party from accountability for the violation of these standards. International Standards of crimes against one’s fellow human beings, when applied to Slobodan Milošević or Omar Al-Bashir but not to Benjamin Netanyahu become pointless.

Every conflict in this ongoing theater of insanity, including the “eviction” by armed forces from one’s home, to missiles landing in one’s bedroom in Gaza to a 10-year-old Israeli girl cowering in fear in a shelter, should reaffirm the validity and urgent need for the two-state solution based on the 1967 borders. The only other option is a unified state composed of Israelis and Palestinians, with the recognition that Palestinians would be the majority. There are no other options.

The  next steps on this vital road must  now include unimpeded access to Gaza for international humanitarian agencies, and international support for the reconstruction and compensation for the destruction of infrastructures and human lives needlessly lost and wounded. Our common empathy and humanity demand it.

(Article by Professor Muhammad Yunus, 2006 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, and José Ramos-Horta, 1996 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate)

Source : https://www.muhammadyunus.org/news/2221/the-war-on-gaza-there-is-only-one-road-out

BANGSA Yahudi pernah diberi tanah percuma untuk mereka bina negara sendiri. Tanah atau wilayah yang dimaksudkan ini umurnya 14 tahun lebih tua daripada negara haram Israel, bahkan ia masih wujud. Justeru apa sebab Zionis masih mahu renggut tanah Palestin?

Wilayah yang dimaksudkan ini adalah ‘Israel’ yang tidak ditubuhkan dengan merampas tanah sesiapa, dan memang ditubuhkan untuk menempatkan kaum Yahudi seramai mungkin dalam sebuah wilayah. Ia dikenali sebagai ‘Jewish Autonomous Oblast’ (Wilayah Autonomi Yahudi) di wilayah Birobidzhan, Rusia. Letaknya di bahagian paling timur (Russian Far East) bersempadan dengan Republik Rakyat China (PRC). Oblast bermaksud ‘wilayah, zon atau provinsi’ dalam bahasa Rusia. Keluasan tanah yang indah dan aman ini adalah 36,000 km persegi, hampir seluas negeri Pahang Darul Makmur dan 14,000 km persegi lebih besar dari Israel.

Ditubuhkan secara rasmi pada 6 Mei 1934, JOA masih satu-satunya wilayah autonomi di Rusia sejak zaman Kesatuan Soviet lagi. Bandar Birobidzhan (sebut Birobijan) menjadi bandar pentadbiran JOA sehingga ke hari ini.

Individu yang mencetuskan idea penubuhan JAO ini adalah Vladimir Lenin, pemimpin parti Bolshevik yang memperkenalkan polisi ateisme. Idea Lenin mahu beri ‘homeland’ untuk bangsa Yahudi kedengaran agak ganjil. Tujuan utamanya adalah untuk menunjukkan kerajaan Bolshevik pimpinannya mengamalkan sikap toleransi. Lenin sebenarnya mahu meraih sokongan kaum Yahudi dan mengekang pengembangan ideologi Zionis Sosialis dalam kalangan Yahudi haluan kiri, yang dilihat mampu menyaingi Marxisme di Rusia.

Lenin juga dikatakan berimpian memajukan wilayah paling timur Rusia itu dengan mengumpulkan kaum Yahudi (dan lain-lain etnik Rusia). Beliau mahu mewujudkan sebuah penempatan Yahudi yang menurutnya ‘berjiwa sosialis dalam tubuh nasionalis’. Setelah kematiannya pada 1924, idea penubuhan wilayah Yahudi di Rusia diteruskan pemimpin baharu Bolshevik, iaitu Joseph Stalin.

Mungkin juga niat asal penubuhan JAO ini tidak lain hanya bertujuan untuk menyingkirkan kaum Yahudi nun jauh di hujung timur Rusia. Wilayah tersebut sering dicerobohi tentera China dan pemberontak anti-Bolshevik. Sekurang-kurangnya bila ada sejumlah kaum Yahudi di situ, bolehlah mereka ‘menampan’ pencerobohan di perbatasan Soviet ketika itu. Ringkas kata, ini kerja serampang dua mata.

Tiada negara yang mengalu-alukan bangsa Yahudi di Eropah ketika itu. Kaum Yahudi Rusia terkenal dengan kekayaan hasil daripada menjalankan pelbagai jenis perniagaan. Selepas kejatuhan Tsar, Rusia dipaksa menganut Marxisme dan sektor perniagaan milikan peribadi diharamkan. Kaum Yahudi yang dahulunya kaya-raya, tiba-tiba jatuh miskin. Pada 1924, kadar pengangguran dalam masyarakat Yahudi Rusia adalah 30%. Antara penyebabnya adalah tindakan ‘pogrom’ (pembersihan etnik) yang menyasarkan kaum Yahudi dalam Empayar Rusia. Zaman sebelum Bolshevik pun, Tsar Rusia memang tidak suka dengan kaum Yahudi.

Justeru, bagi memastikan kaum Yahudi kembali menyumbang kepada ekonomi Soviet, kerajaan menubuhkan ‘Komzet’, jawatankuasa untuk penempatan pertanian kaum Yahudi.

Untuk mendapat kepastian sama ada wilayah JAO itu sesuai untuk didiami, Stalin telah menghantar kumpulan jawatankuasa pengkaji untuk menilai keadaan cuaca dan tanah di wilayah tersebut. Jawatankuasa itu mendapati tanah di wilayah sekitar Birobidzhan agak berbatu, hutan oak, cedar dan painnya agak tebal, banyak juga kawasan berpaya dan pada musim panas, serangan serangga perosak agak teruk, justeru tidak sesuai untuk tanaman mahu pun ternakan. Pun begitu, bagi Kesatuan Soviet, tiada apa yang tidak boleh dibuat atau dicipta. Idea JAO tetap dilaksanakan.

Sebenarnya semasa kajian tersebut dibuat, wilayah Birobidzhan sudah dihuni 30,000 masyarakat etnik Cossak, Korea, Kazakh dan beberapa etnik lain, termasuk golongan bekas pengikut Tsar Rusia.

Dipendekkan cerita, kumpulan pertama Yahudi Rusia yang berpindah ke JAO adalah seramai 654 orang pada 1928. Untuk menggalakkan lebih ramai kaum Yahudi memulakan hidup di JAO, kerajaan Soviet menghadiahkan tanah ladang, haiwan ternakan dan alatan pertanian. Idea berpindah ke JAO disambut baik dengan penuh kesyukuran oleh Yahudi Rusia, kerana Yahudi adalah satu-satunya bangsa di dunia yang tak punya tanah mahu pun negara.

Sekitar tahun 1930an, tauke-tauke besar Yahudi dari USA dan Brazil pun turut berpindah ke JAO. Pada 1932, keluarga perisik terkenal Rusia di kemudian hari, George Koval tiba di Birobidzhan. 1,200 Yahudi non-Soviet memilih untuk memulakan hidup baharu di situ.

Kaum Yahudi di JAO bertambah kepada 20,000 orang pada tahun 1937. Idea penubuhan JAO itu nampaknya menjadi dan berjalan lancar. Kedai-kedai dan perusahaan milik Yahudi tumbuh, kuil Yahudi didirikan, akhbar berbahasa Yiddish juga diterbitkan, manakala sekolah Yiddish juga dibuka untuk anak-anak kaum Yahudi.

Namun populasi Yahudi di JAO ada kalanya menaik dan menurun. Disebabkan cuaca dan faktor bumi JAO yang begitu ekstrem, penduduk Yahudi dan etnik-etnik lain mula menurun. Kerajaan Soviet juga tidak sepenuhnya menepati janji untuk membantu golongan Yahudi membina hidup baharu di JAO. Bagi yang berkemampuan, mereka angkat kaki keluar ke negara baharu. Yang tak mampu, terpaksalah teruskan hidup di situ. Faktor lain yang menyebabkan penurunan jumlah masyarakat Yahudi JAO adalah dasar ‘Red Terror’ Joseph Stalin antara 1936-1938 yang ironinya turut menjadikan kaum Yahudi sebagai sasaran.

Selepas Perang Dunia Kedua tamat pada 1945, idea untuk menempatkan pelarian Yahudi Eropah di JAO mula dilaksanakan. Pada 1948, populasi Yahudi meningkat kepada 46,000 ke 50,000 orang, yakni 25% daripada populasi keseluruhan JAO ketika itu.

Pada 1958, lebih kurang 50% masyarakat Yahudi meninggalkan JAO. Ada yang berpindah semula ke USA dan juga ke Israel. Hari ini, jumlah kaum Yahudi yang menetap di JAO hanyalah 1% daripada lebih kurang 162,000 keseluruhan penduduk JOA. Majoriti penduduk JAO adalah penganut Kristian pelbagai aliran, diikuti penganut ateisme, manakala terdapat juga 1% masyarakat Muslim di JAO.

Ada ura-ura di Moscow untuk menutup JAO dan diserap ke dalam wilayah lain sekitarnya, namun idea itu mendapat tentangan dari masyakat JAO, terutama kaum Yahudinya. Sungguh pun jumlah penganut Yahudinya kecil, terbukti JAO tetap menjadi ‘safe heaven’ kepada mereka berbanding jika mereka tinggal di Israel, atau mana-mana negara lain.

Di JAO mereka bebas mengamalkan Judaisme dan mengekalkan budaya tradisi Yiddish. KeYahudian wilayah JAO bagi mereka harus terus dikekalkan dan dipertahankan. Bandar Birobidzhan kini indah dengan binaan-binaan asal dan baharu, arca-arca artistik dan sekiranya Moscow menyokong pembangunan di situ, JAO mungkin akan terus berkembang pesat. Dengan penggunaan teknologi, sektor perindustrian dan pertanian juga semakin berkembang di JOA.

Hari ini, semakin ramai penduduk Yahudi yang pernah berpindah ke Israel pulang semula ke JAO. Jelas sekali hidup mereka lebih aman di JAO berbanding di Israel.

Presiden Vladimir Putin juga amat mengalu-alukan kaum Yahudi untuk kembali ke Rusia. Pada Januari 2016, Putin berkata di hadapan Kongres Yahudi Eropah: “Mereka (Yahudi) meninggalkan Rusia pada zaman Soviet, tapi kini mereka boleh kembali”.

Jadi bolehlah Yahudi sama ada Ortodoks mahu pun Zionis Sekular pergi menetap dan bina negara sendiri di JAO. Wilayah ini bersempadan dengan China, ada harapan tempias kemakmuran ekonomi di China akan turut masuk ke JAO. Potensi JAO lebih besar dari Israel di Palestin. Jiran-jiran JAO pun ‘mesra Yahudi’ belaka, tak macam negara-negara Arab. Tanahnya kini subur. Cuaca yang tidak menentu bukan lagi faktor penghalang untuk memajukan sesebuah negara. Teknologi canggih memungkinkan padang pasir pun menghijau dengan pelbagai pokok dan tanaman dalam abad moden ini. Tiada yang mustahil.

Di JAO, hidup masyarakat Yahudi lebih aman sentosa. Keindahan seni bina dan alam semula jadi di Birobidzhan dan daerah-daerah dalam JAO kini sekali lagi menjadi magnet kepada keluarga dan masyarakat Yahudi yang mahukan hidup dan masa hadapan yang lebih terjamin berbanding jika terus tinggal di Israel.

Jadi apa yang menghalang bangsa Yahudi Zionis dari memakmurkan JAO dan memilih untuk merampas tanah Palestin? Zionis ini majoritinya bukan dari keturunan asal penduduk Yahudi Palestin, tapi pendatang Yahudi dari Eropah, India, China, Afrika, Amerika Selatan dan lain-lain. Mereka itu bukan Bani Israel asal dan hanya menunggang agama Yahudi. ‘The Law of Return’ yang mereka laungkan itu hanyalah berdasarkan khayalan semata-mata.

Nur Iman ialah Conference Executive, International Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies (IAIS) Malaysia.

– BebasNews

https://bebasnews.my/?p=61107

POST-ARAB Israeli wars, Israeli Zionists have been emboldened to expel Palestinians through evictions and land grab, in defiance of international laws.