Free Speech Silenced: Palestinian Activist Sami Al-Arian Arrested In Florida

The Ordeal of Nahla and Sami Al-Arian
By Alex Lynch

There were no streetlights down the long back-road; the arms of the yellow gates were left open just enough for a car to fit through. The darkness of the hidden stretch of road left the Muslim community center of north Tampa secluded from the outside world.

In the parking lot, a photographer was politely asked to leave until she said she had an appointment with one of the sisters. Effects of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on Muslim communities in America have been powerful. Many Americans reach out in understanding; others have sought retribution through vandalism and intimidation.

The children didn't seem to notice anything had changed. A dozen of them ran from the playground past the Mosque and through the courtyard squeaking and sweating on a humid January night under the floodlights. Nahla Al-Arian walked quickly out of the community center for greetings and offered tea for comfort. A number of women dressed from head to toe in finely detailed cloth chatted to one another in Arabic and offered to watch Nahla's youngest daughter while she spoke with the reporter.

Being an Arabic woman in the United States has proved trying since Sept. 11, being a Palestinian is another matter entirely. Once, while at a local mall, Nahla offered to help a woman with her baby carriage down an escalator. The woman gasped and pulled the carriage away from Nahla as if she were "going to kidnap the child," Nahla said. Because she wears a hijab (Islamic head-covering) she has often been looked at in trepidation and mistrust and when she and her kids visited her homeland in 1998, now occupied by Israel, they felt they were looked at like "animals and terrorists".

Nahla's older brother Mazen, spent 3 years of his life in federal custody without being charged for a crime, 1,307 days from 1997-2000. The secret evidence the government had held against him proved not to be so incriminating according to an Immigration and Naturalization Services judge.

Nahla spent those three years fighting for his release and lobbying to end the use of secret evidence.

In November of last year, while doing laundry, Mazen was again detained after Attorney General John Ashcroft received powers given to him by Congress to round up those he felt were a risk to national security. Two months earlier in late September, her husband was put on 'paid leave' from his job as a tenured professor of computer engineering at the University of South Florida for an appearance he made on the conservative talk show The O'Reilly Factor. O'Reilly claimed Al-Arian had ties to terrorists and pointed to an earlier speech he made when a comment was translated in English to "Death to Israel". Al-Arian said the producer deceived him by saying he was to speak for the Muslim community in the U.S. to educate viewers and avoid unwarranted attacks on American-Arabs.

In December, when Sami's student and faculty supporters were gone, the university's board of trustees, a group of local conservative business leaders hand-picked by Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, recommended to university President Judy Genshaft that Al-Arian be fired. Nahla's husband of 23 years has been the center of attention in local news and has received quite a bit of national news as well. He's been called a terrorist link in the United States by some pundits in the media, but has also been a rallying point for civil libertarians and academicians.

Their eldest son Abdullah, a Duke University undergrad and intern to Rep. David Bonior, D-Mich., was asked to leave the White House without explanation while attending a briefing with members of the Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. The incident caused all other groups participating to walk out in protest.

The FBI has shown up unannounced, searched her home and confiscated some of the family's possessions. There have been death threats on her husband and the media have humiliated her family. Since Sept. 11 she and her family have been treated with suspicion, harassed and yet her voice remains soft and centered, her movements are gentle and direct.

"She is such an inspiration," Jodi Nettleton, co-president of Graduate Assistants United at USF and a campus activist said. "She is so strong and has such courage to stand up during these times. And she's just such a sweet woman."

Although she's been through a lot before and after Sept. 11, she is a woman who says she can't complain. Talking to a reporter seems like too much attention, but she does offer some insight. "You know, sometimes I wake up at five in the morning and I start thinking about all of this and can't get back to sleep," she said staring at her thin fingers through her hijab. "I feel very scared for my family and I feel insecure."

"This is stuff she's had to go through her whole life," Laila Al-Arian, Nahla's daughter said. "She's a Palestinian refugee. She's very strong in her convictions even though she's soft spoken."

Only Mazen, the eldest, was born in Gaza in a country once called Palestine. Nahla was born in the city of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, 75 miles northeast of the holy city of Mecca. Her father was an Arabic teacher there and supported the family, which eventually grew to seven children. Nahla was a shy young girl who didn't speak much, remained dedicated to religion and studied meticulously at school. Nahla's father knew the value of education especially for stateless Palestinians. He made it a priority for all of his seven children and made countless sacrifices to ensure that they were given a higher education in college. "My father always used to say, 'education is a Palestinian's only weapon,'" Nahla said.

When Nahla was very young, her father brought the family to the occupied Palestinian territories (Nahla still refers to it as Palestine) every year for vacation to keep the old homeland close to his children's heart. Nahla remembers a little family that lived in Gaza whom was close to her family when they vacationed during those long hot summer days in the early 1960s. She remembers the family was not rich, but didn't struggle, most of all though, she remembers how happy and humble they were. Speaking of that little family brings a smile to Nahla's face.

In the beginning of the summer of 1967, Nahla's father again prepared his family for a vacation in Palestine. Days before departure on June 5, the news came through her father's little transistor radio in Jeddah. The Israeli army had attacked and bombed the Egyptian air force that lay idle. The Six Day War had begun.

"My father literally fainted and fell on the floor right in front of everybody when he heard the news on the radio," Nahla said. "It was devastating." At the end the Six Day War, Israel, armed by the Americans, humiliated the Arab world. Israel now occupied Syria's Golan Heights, Egypt's Sinai as well as the Gaza Strip and the West Bank in Palestine. The biggest embarrassment though, was the loss of Jerusalem.

Gamal Abd-Al Nasser, the charismatic Egyptian socialist president who tried so hard to unite the Arab world in a Pan-Arab political alliance, offered to resign afterwards.

By 1971 the political environment in the Arab world had changed. The Saudi Arabian leaders had begun a closer relationship with the West, and Palestinians, already immigrants there, were finding it more difficult to stay. It wasn't long before Nahla's father began having trouble with the Saudi government.

"The whole situation was very similar to Mazen's many years later," Nahla said. "There was a lot of secrecy involved."

Nahla's mother was crushed.

"She cried as if somebody died, she was very scared about what the future held for us," Nahla's brother Mohamed said.

The family was again displaced and unsure of what to do. In a moment of clarity, or necessity, Nahla's father decided on Cairo.

Contrasting her mother, 11 year-old Nahla was very excited to move from Saudi Arabia to the cultural center of the Arab world. Cairo was a place of modern buildings, the arts and excellent education and was the center of the Arab world for women's freedom. She would no longer be forced to wear a hijab, she would have a choice in Cairo. "Saudi Arabia was much more strict, especially for women. Segregation was everywhere. In Cairo, women had choices. I was very happy to leave Saudi Arabia even though my mother was upset."

At 12 years-old in October 1973 Egyptian president Anwar Sadat earned the respect of his countrymen when he invaded the Sinai on the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. Eventually the Israelis countered and sped toward Cairo where Nahla was introduced to war. Living in Eastern Cairo with Israeli planes flying above, the family got up in the middle of the night to break the Ramadan fast but wasn't allowed to turn the lights on for fear of Israeli bombs. The young family was left in the dark and if someone accidentally turned on a light in the house, neighbors would scream at them to turn it off for fear of being targeted.

"That was the worst thing, I don't ever want to experience anything like that again." Nahla said. At 14 years old Nahla was devastated when she witnessed the death of a close girlfriend who was run over by a street trolley right next to her. The difficulty in watching a close friend die stayed with her for many years.

During those years in Cairo, there was a cultural revolution. Cairo was being heavily influenced by the West, Sadat was liberalizing the economy and the Americanization of Cairo was in full swing. Like many girls in Cairo, Nahla stopped wearing her hijab. She went to the movies, public parks and enjoyed the open society.

But when she reached the age of 15, she began to have deep questions about life and faith and drew inspiration from a close friend who was a devout Muslim. Unlike most girls her age, Nahla began wearing her hijab again and started taking religion seriously.

She was ridiculed by some men in Cairo for wearing it in a time of social change. There were very small Islamic youth movements beginning though. Cairo was starting to show the ugly side of Westernization such as greed, disparities in wealth and sexual promiscuity. Mosques began to reach out to those in need, a place where the increasing amount of poor people could go for free schooling, food and medical attention which outlines the traditional sense of Islamic charity in the Arab world.

"People turned to God for justice. Going back to God was a revolt against mass consumerism and wearing the head-covering was a revolt against being treated as sex objects for young woman," Nahla said. "It was liberating to wear the hijab again."

An Islamic Marriage It was about this time that Nahla's older brother Mazen began hanging around with another Palestinian. His name was Sami Al-Arian. Nahla never paid any attention to Sami, he was just another guy to Nahla. Yet the friendship between the young Palestinian boys in Cairo was a very special and intellectual one. They went to lectures, spent their money on books and conversed for hours at a time on philosophy, religion and politics.

"My parents used to get mad at Mazen for spending all of his allowance on books," Nahla said proudly. "Mazen is a walking encyclopedia, he really has a photographic memory."

Nahla's grades were excellent, even better than Sami's. When it was time for college she chose to study English Literature even though she was accepted to study medicine. She studied Shakespeare, Milton, Keats and Blake and was enjoying college life.

Every once in a while she would sneak into Mazen's room and read letters that were written to him from Sami who had moved to America and was studying engineering at the University of Illinois. Sami was very active in America, he organized Islamic groups, gave speeches on awareness of Islam and even went to prisons to speak to Muslim inmates.

"I learned a lot about him through his letters," Nahla said. "I loved reading those letters and I learned a lot about his personality. I was impressed."

In 1979, after earning an undergraduate degree in engineering, Sami came back to Egypt to look for a wife. When Mazen said his younger sister was available Sami jumped at the opportunity, as he had already been attracted to her for some time. And thus began the four steps of an Islamic marriage.

First, Sami's mother came to visit Nahla and although they never once spoke of Sami, Nahla was quickly given approval. "My mother and grandmother fell in love with her," Sami said. Second, the future bride and groom sat down together to make sure there was a mental and mutual agreement.

"After one visit we felt we were ready to accept an engagement," Nahla said. Third, the men of Sami's family gathered with the men of Nahla's family for a formal marriage proposal. Nahla's father traveled from south Yemen and didn't accept Sami's proposal until he got the word from Nahla that she was sure. Nahla's father had only one stipulation, after starting a family Sami had to promise that he would see to it that Nahla would finish her education, of which Sami agreed.

The fourth step is the signing of the marriage contract finalizing the union. Nahla is quick to point out where she comes from marriage is important and not taken lightly. "In our culture, a man enters through the front door, not the window," Nahla said. "To go to the family of the woman to ask for her hand shows that he is willing to commit. Marriage is not just between a man and a woman, but between two families," Nahla said.

Sami said he had been attracted to her years before he proposed but never said anything and after reading Sami's letters to Mazen, Nahla felt attracted to him from a distance as well. "I had proposals from other men who were much richer than Sami. But because he was religious and I felt I we were connected, I chose him."

By then, Sami had been accepted in a graduate program in computer engineering at North Carolina University. As an English Literature student in Cairo, Nahla thought she would be able to understand English when she arrived in North Carolina. "Wow was I surprised, I didn't understand a single word, it was nothing like what I had studied," she said.

In order to learn, she started watching Star Trek re-runs over and over until she improved.

By 1981 she had given birth to Abdullah and Laila. Abdullah now is a senior at Duke University majoring in political science and history, a columnist for The Chronicle, a campus newspaper. Laila is an undergrad at Georgetown University and was recently elected to the editorial board of La Hoya, also a campus newspaper.

After Leena was born in 1985, Sami fulfilled his promise to his father-in-law and Nahla went back to college after a six-year hiatus earning a degree in religious studies from USF and has had two of her papers published in nationally recognized periodicals.

For many years she lived the American dream. She was free to teach Islam in the Muslim community where she now has 270 students from many different countries and races. After graduating from North Carolina University, both Sami and Mazen were offered doctoral degrees from USF and afterwards were given jobs as professors at the Tampa university. Both Sami and Mazen organized groups centered around Arab and Palestinian causes. The World and Islam Studies Enterprise and the Islamic Concern Project.

After the first bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993 was connected to a previous speaker for WISE both Mazen and Sami were targeted by the U.S. government for whom they were associated. Later, another speaker ended up becoming the leader of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, a militant group connected to terrorist attacks on Israeli civilians.

The links prompted an FBI to investigate and brought unwanted attention to USF. Both Sami and Mazen were placed on paid leave in 1995 pending the FBI investigation, and an inquiry by William Reece Smith, an attorney hired by the university to conduct an inquiry on his own. Lama, the youngest in the family, had a nightmare about one of the FBI agents that searched Nahla's home.

Sami was eventually given his job back but in 1997, Mazen was detained by federal agents without being charged for a crime. The Secret Evidence Act allowed the government to hold illegal aliens it deemed a threat to national security.

The detention became a national issue and catapulted Sami into the national spotlight in his stance against the use of secret evidence. But Sami was not alone Nahla and many other Muslim women gave speeches in New York, Washington D.C., Georgia and Michigan.

"It was the Muslim women that stood up for Mazen the most. Many of the men were themselves scared of secret evidence.. For myself, I had to learn to push my shyness to the side to be able to speak in public but I had no other choice," Nahla said showing off smiling pictures of George W. Bush on his 2000 campaign trail holding her youngest daughter Lama in his arm.

On a nationally televised debate, after three years of working the legal system for Mazen's release, Republican nominee for president Bush spoke out against the use of secret evidence.

"Millions of people were listening to him when he said that," Sami said. "I couldn't believe what I was hearing. At that moment, he had every American Muslim on his side."

By October 2000, Judge R. Kevin McHugh, after viewing the government's secret evidence against Mazen, released a scathing review of the government's mistreatment of Mazen and proclaimed that "WISE was a reputable and scholarly research center and the ICP was highly regarded. Not one excerpt of the composite depicted (Al-Najjar) engaging in fundraising for any (terrorist) organization."

The government then appealed to Attorney General Janet Reno to review the case on behalf of the government to which she denied. In November, Mazen was finally released, but the government had been embarrassed.

When the tragedies of Sept. 11 occurred, Sami, Mazen, Nahla and the Muslim community of north Tampa immediately released a statement distancing and denouncing them as acts of cold-blooded murderers. But the USA Patriot Act was pushed through by a landslide and in a perplexing move, the government suddenly linked Mazen to terrorists again in a statement released through the Department of Justice even after Judge McHugh thoroughly denied the government on every front less than a year earlier.

On Sept. 26, Sami was asked to appear on The O'Reilly Factor where, according to Sami, he was to speak for Muslim Americans in the U.S. Sami was then questioned by host Bill O'Reilly about ties to terrorists and then mentioned that if he were the FBI, he'd be following Sami everywhere he went. Over the next few days, threats were sent to USF where he was a professor of computer science. The administration immediately put Sami on paid leave until an investigation of the threats was undertaken and the campus calmed.

On Nov. 13, 2001, an Atlanta appeals court ordered Mazen deported, yet, no country was willing to take him since he had been considered a terrorist threat in America. Add to that the fact that he is a stateless Palestinian and he has absolutely nowhere to go.

Yet 15 INS agents took him by surprise and pushed him to the pavement in his apartment complex while he was doing laundry and didn't identify themselves until after he was
subdued.

"He thought he was being kidnapped," Nahla said. "He had no idea who they were." Mazen's daughters were still in the apartment and when the agents finally told him who they were, he struggled to let his daughters know what was going on. Mazen was then manhandled by the agents as was apparent by the bruises and scratches on his arms and hands. His daughters didn't know until over an hour later what had happened and for a week the family and his lawyers had no idea where he was taken.

Since that day in November last year, Mazen has been under 23-hour solitary confinement in Coleman Federal Correctional Facility about 75 miles north of Tampa. He is only allowed one phone call per week for 10 minutes, three-hour visitation on weekends only and is strip-searched twice a day. "They even check behind his ears for weapons," Nahla said. "If it was already held in an open hearing that he is not a threat, why detain him again in a high security correctional facility?" Martin Schwartz, a Tampa attorney defending Al-Najjar said.

Three days after Mazen was detained, Nahla and Sami appeared on a live local television show, The Cathy Fountain Show. A neighbor in Mazen's apartment complex, who witnessed Mazen's detention, called the show and described how Mazen was treated "like a dog" and went on to explain that it reminded him of how blacks were treated during the civil rights era.

"I just started crying," Nahla said. "I was shocked to hear the description of how my brother was arrested because until that day, we hadn't heard from him. Then (Cathy Fountain) asks me what I thought of it while we were on live television."

"It seems heartless and inhumane to detain him now," David Cole, a constitutional law expert at Georgetown University Law Center in Washington said (in November).

Unfortunately, Mazen's health is deteriorating. He was detained during the holy month of Ramadan where Muslims fast and one of his attorney's, Joe Hohenstein said he and Mazen's family were "worried that he may not be receiving proper treatment for his diabetes."

"Nothing is helping my brother," Nahla said. "He is suffering terribly from the 23-hour solitary confinement."

On one of the family's weekend visitations recently, Lama was complaining about school and Mazen began crying. "He cries for anything," Nahla said. "He even cries when he prays. "

Life went from bad to worse for Nahla when USF's board of trustees called for an emergency meeting to discuss what to do about Sami who was still on paid leave. The board recommended to university president Judy Genshaft in a 12-1 vote that Sami be fired, the single vote coming from the only academic on the board. University Provost David Stamps immediately sent Sami a letter of intent to termiate.

By the time school had come back in session, controversy split the campus in two and a national debate has since ensued. On Jan. 9, 2002, the USF Faculty Senate voted not to support Genshaft's intent to fire because of the lack of due process at the clandestinely held emergency meeting in December. Afterward, the state and national faculty union, the ACLU and numerous civil libertarian groups followed suit as well as scathing editorials from the local St. Petersburg Times to the New York Times and the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) also sent words of discouragement to Genshaft.

The student government voted to support Genshaft although 14 of the 36 senators abstained because they said the student body hadn't been properly polled to represent them. The Coalition of Progressive Student Coalitions, which includes 15 campus groups, decided unanimously not to support Genshaft and so did the graduate assistants union.

Although most people don't agree with Sami's views of the Middle East with statements such as 'Death to Israel,' what is at issue with the firing of Sami is academic freedom, especially for a tenured professor as he is. "Sami didn't mean death to any particular person or peoples when he said that," Nahla said of the English translation 'death to Israel.' "He only means death to the occupation. The Palestinian people are treated like dogs and it just such a horrible injustice."

Many people have also questioned Sami why he even went on O'Reilly's show in the first place and find it hard to believe he is gullible enough to get duped by the show's producers. "It's true, he always thinks positively of people," Nahla said. "We have to treat all people with positive assumptions until they prove otherwise. As Muslims, we believe in the goodness of human nature and that people are not evil."

Nahla smiles proudly and shows the remnants of her old shyness when she speaks of her husband and in a passing tone mentions that the word "Arian," Sami's last name and the name she adopted when she married him, actually means 'naked from sins' in Arabic. Although she has grasped the courage to overcome her shyness to speak in public and has avoided becoming cynical, the effects of having her husband and brother arrested, treated like second-class citizens and admonished in the media are beginning to show.

"She's definitely been affected by all of this," her brother Mohamed said. "She is not the same person as she was before Mazen was first taken in 1997. She was much stronger and happier then."

"I felt at home here until Sept. 11," Nahla said. "After that I've felt like I'm living in a nightmare. I don't know what will happen to my husband and my brother or my kids.

"I have a lot of sleepless nights because of these worries," she said. "I feel better after reading the Quran. When I put my sacrifice in place of other Palestinian women, I feel grateful that (Mazen and Sami) are still alive. Then I think I'm not suffering enough. God gives me patience and makes me feel guilty if I complain."

The media has been a quandary for Nahla. At once it has been extremely helpful, cruelly invasive and inflammatory. Bill O'Reilly of The O'Reilly Factor first created the problem for Sami by digging up speeches he made 12 years earlier and later took a stand against the USF administration's intent to fire, while calling for the head of President Genshaft.

"I have anxiety when I watch American television, especially talk shows that are sometimes very aggressive toward Muslims in general," Nahla said. "I feel tormented by the media how it portrays that American people are against us."

She then goes on to explain that the people she meets are not against her family and speaks of when she recently visited a friend at Tampa General Hospital. A white man who was walking by shook Sami's hand and wished him and his family good luck.

One particular media critic, NBC terrorism correspondent Steven Emerson, has gone after the family with a fervor and at a speech given locally in January mentioned he was very hopeful that Sami would be picked up by the FBI in the next coming days.

"I was crying everyday after that," Nahla said. "You know, they accuse us of being hateful after so much horrible injustice. I just can't understand it sometimes. The media doesn't look at us as if we're human beings sometimes."

The Muslim community where Sami is imam, or preacher, is a 15-acre piece of land that includes a mosque, school, playground, a center for picnics and offices. At their Muslim community, 20 percent of the board of directors are women and includes members of six different countries.

"Sami is the one who wanted to open the board for women," Nahla said. "Every member's vote weighs equally." Recently though, the most important aspect of the community to Nahla is the emotional support she gets from her friends. Especially now that her brother is back in jail and Sami is under fire.

"I am very lucky," Nahla said. "When I feel sad my friends surround me, without their help I wouldn't be able to make it. If I ever need help with my children they are there for me. They just want me to ask for help so they can reach out to me."

The parochial school in the community where Nahla is a teacher has over 270 students. "We teach tolerance," Nahla said. "We are proud of the fact that it has a wide curriculum. Above all, we emphasize tolerance and promote fairness."

Nahla is a religious woman and takes pride in the fact that Islam accepts other forms of religion. "God wanted people to be able to choose," Nahla said.

She explains that Osama bin Laden and the Taliban are a very small group of extremists out of 1.2 billion faithful. "It is not fair to judge Islam by a small group of crackpots," Nahla said.

Yet, the community is isolated from the rest of Tampa, secluded down a long stretch of road. Muslims are still new to America and the adjustment to understand American culture has not been an easy one. Many times, Nahla's students tell her they are scared of the clash of cultures. They feel Americans don't want to understand their culture and ever since Sept. 11, they've become a source of hatred. One of the sisters spoke about how a man was following her in his car and how she took off her head covering to avoid him. Nahla said American women sometimes smile at her strangely.

In 1998, Nahla decided to take Abdullah, Laila and Leena to the Palestinian territories to get a sense of where they come from. They landed in Cairo where they took a six-hour cab ride to the Egyptian-Palestinian territory border where Israeli soldiers checked their American passports. They were made to wait almost half a day but eventually were allowed in. Nahla took them to meet relatives in Gaza and once again met up with the little family she knew as a child. "They remembered me from when I was a baby," Nahla said. "But their living conditions had deteriorated incredibly. They were despondent and living in absolute squalor."

In Gaza, where the vast majority of men are unemployed there is a saying that states 'Palestinian men can beat Israeli men in bed because they're always at home.'

In 1982, hundreds of Palestinians were massacred in the refugee camps of Sabra and Shatila when Ariel Sharon was defense minister for Israel. Back then Sharon lobbied to have Palestinian men sterilized, now Sharon is Prime Minister and has dashed any hopes the Palestinian's once had since Sept. 11. "The Palestinian people are completely despondent right now," Nahla said. "I see children killed for throwing stones, they are portrayed as animals." Nahla and family were able to roam freely in Israel and the Palestinian territories because of their American passports, a fact that others were jealous of, Nahla said. Palestinians have to put in a request weeks and even months in advance just to go to a movie or a lecture and more times than they are turned down.

They visited and attended mosques in Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Hebron but one particular occasion in a northern coastal city where a lot of Israeli tourists were vacationing hurt Nahla when her children said they felt like foreigners in Palestine.

"The tourists were looking at us like we were terrorists," Nahla said. "It was very sad for me to have my children looked at that way." "That was a bizarre experience." Laila said.

Throughout her life, Nahla has been treated like a second-class citizen without ever being able to call a country home. Her brother is suffering in solitary confinement and her husband ostracized. Even through this, she has decided to believe in the positive aspects of human nature and shield herself from becoming pessimistic, something that truly isolates her from American society.

"We have to understand the human side of suffering and humiliation," Nahla said. "I refuse to be cynical."

http://www.counterpunch.org/lynchnahla.html

First they came for the Muslims
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Muslim.
Then they came for the Arabs and Iranians
and I did not speak out
because I was not an Arab or Iranian.
Then they came for the Anarchists
and I did not speak out
because I was not an Anarchist.
Then they came for me
and there was no one left
to speak out for me.

This isn't exactly related, but sort of - when's the next INS demo?

There should be a protest for the release of this man!

The Associated Press


Excerpts from Thursday's federal indictment against University of South Florida professor Sami Al-Arian:

- There existed a PIJ (Palestinian Islamic Jihad) manifesto, entitled, "Manifesto of the Islamic Jihad in Palestine," which described the goals and principles of PIJ, along with its command and organizational structure. ... The "Manifesto" rejected "any peaceful solution to the Palestinian cause, and the affirmation of the Jihad solution and the martyrdom style as the only choice for liberation." The PIJ "Manifesto" indicated that the only purpose of the PIJ was to destroy Israel and to end all Western influence (of the "Great Satan-America") in the region regardless of the cost to the inhabitants.

- USF was utilized by PIJ as the instrumentality through which the co-conspirators could bring other PIJ members and associates into the United States under the guise of academic conferences and meetings.

- On or about April 7, 1991, in Cleveland, Ohio, Unindicted Co-Conspirator One introduced Sami Amin Al-Arian as the head of the Islamic Committee for Palestine (ICP), which was described as the active arm of the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine (PIJ), in North America. Unindicted Co-Consiprirator One said the PIJ was referred to as the ICP for security reasons. Sami Amin Al-Arian spoke and praised the Intifada, and praised individuals who had escaped from a prison in 1987 with the help of the PIJ and then killed many people. (This terrorist act is also referred to as the Battle of Al-Shujaiya.) Sami Amin Al-Arian further mentioned the Gulf War, and questioned why they stopped the protests against it. He then said they should continue the protests, continue to damn America, continue to damn Israel, and continue to damn the allies of the American and Israel until death. Sami Amin Al-Arian also said that going to the Holy Land for Muslims was not a matter of going for a visit or tourism; rather, it was a matter of going for Jihad.

- Sami Amin Al-Arian said Jews were damned; that Allah had made them monkeys and swine and damned them in this world and in the afterworld.

- On June 3, 1993, Sami Amin Al-Arian caused four wire transfers of $1,944.00 each from his account at Bank Leumi to accounts at Mercantile Discount Bank in Umm El Fahem (West Bank), Israel in the names of: Zahera Agbarya, Rokayah Agbarya, Mostafa Agbarya and Bushra Suleiman, all of whom were spouses or other relatives of recently convicted PIJ terrorists serving sentences in Israeli jails for their participation in a terrorist attack in or around mid-February, 1992, in which they murdered three Israelis.

- On or about December 30, 1993, Sami Amin Al-Arian filed a false application with INS for naturalization to become a United States citizen.

- On or about April 25, 1994, Sami Amin Al-Arian received a three-page facsimile listing people killed and names and account numbers of people receiving money on their behalf.

- On or about November 11, 1994, a co-conspirator associated with the PIJ murdered three people and wounded approximately eleven in a suicide bombing in the vicinity of Netzarim Junction, Gaza Strip.

- On or about November 11, 1994, Sami Amin Al-Arian wrote a note to be sent via facimile ... which announced his pride in the recent attack by the PIJ. He asked that God bless the efforts of the PIJ and accept the "martyrs," and urged PIJ members to be cautious and alert.

- On or about February 10, 1995, Sami Amin Al-Arian wrote a letter to Ismail Al-Shatti in Kuwait asking for money for the PIJ. Sami Amin Al-Arian bragged about the January 22, 1995 Beit Lid bombing, and cited the bombing as an example of what PIJ could do. He asked for money and said that Shaker and Sukkar left large families and debts; he also wrote that the PIJ was poor and destitute and indicated the Iranians were providing little financial assistance. He wrote that despite the hardships the PIJ carried out distinctive operations which all the Arab armies lacked the strength to execute. Sami Amin Al-Arian noted that the link with the brothers in Hamas was very good and improving, and there were serious attempts at unification and permanent coordination. In the letter, Sami Amin Al-Arian requested additional money so that operations such as Beit Lid could continue.

- On or about November 2, 1995, Sami Amin Al-Arian had ... (a) telephone conversation with ... (a) journalist from the Tampa Tribune, in which Sami Amin Al-Arian falsely stated that Ramadan Abdullah Shallah had been a genuine scholar while at WISE (World and Islam Studies Enterprise, Inc.) and that Sami Amin Al-Arian had no suspicion that Ramadan Abdullah Shallah was affiliated with a terrorist organization.

- On or about October 18, 1996, Sami Amin Al-Arian who was in Tampa, Florida, sent a facsimile to the Abdul Latif Jamell Company, Ltd., in Saudi Arabia, and inquired about obtaining pelletized urea fertilizer in fifty kilogram bags suitable for ocean transportation.

http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date=20030220&Category=APN&ArtNo=302201054&Ref=AR

According to all the evidence collected he conducted his terrorist activities for a decade. They should have arrested him long time ago. Hope he will be locked up till the rest of his wicked life.

Talking about locking up terrorists (and cold blooded mass murders), Sharon's time is overdue, how much Palestinian blood on his hands? 20,000

Naw, doesn't count, they are only cockroaches, sez Ariel.

When Bush get's his dirty little war, he'll never be hauled before a World Court, as he should, as all murdering bastards should, including Saddam and anyone else who spills the blood of innocents.

Hey, who are those five young Israeli's dancing on the hood and roof of that Van (9-11)?

I met Sami when he visited Berkeley last year and he definitely didnt seem to be very religious (supporting a single secular state and opposing Arafats corruption). Its sad to see a professor framed for something that seems out of character. Its even sadder to think that many Americans will demonize him simply because of Ashcroft's lies. It doesnt seem to matter whether someone is innocent or guilty anomore; many Americans just want to see people get locked up. Its getting easier to see how the Germans sat by and watched people be taken away. Patriotic knuckle heads probably cheared while the Nazis rounded people up, but I'm hoping the American people won't fall for the lies this time. If they can frame Sami nobody is really safe :(

The money powers prey upon the nation in times of peace and conspire
against it in times of adversity. It is more despotic than a monarchy, more
insolent than autocracy and more selfish than a bureaucracy. It denounces,
as public enemies, all who question its methods or throw light upon its
crimes. I have two great enemies, the Southern Army in front of me and the
bankers in the rear. Of the two, the one at the rear is my greatest foe,,1866

Remarkable. Unbelievable.
Ask Booth.
JFK also tried to twart the
bankers when he ordered green backs
printed to defang the Fed.

Americans seem bloodthirsty. Sami didnt DO anything even according to the FBI. They claim that money he gave to charities went to a group they now call terrorist. But hes a busy preofessor of Computer Science who has been speaking around the country for the past year about academic freedom.

But thats not enough for Americans. Just the sight of an Arab not behind bars makes Americans want to drool at the mouth. Soon the world will wake up and see the US for the bully it is... crazed American warmongers will hopefully speed that up since the inhumanity of some people is amazing.

Uh, shut up. There are millions upon millions of arab/Muslim citizens in the United States, and 99.999999% of them are not being bothered in the least. Quit your stupid ranting.

"I met Sami when he visited Berkeley last year and he definitely didnt seem to be very religious..."

I heard a rep. from the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Organization (League?) yesterday who defended Al-Arian in his previous case. He stated that "His politics are different than my own, I am a secularist."

Anyone who supports Islamic Jihad or Hamas in any way, shape, or form is no secularist. They are explicity religious organizations (unlike the PLO, PFLP, etc.). This guy has been public in his support of radical Islam so why do you feel the need to defend him? It's one thing to say that the man has a right to freedom of speech and freedom of religion, it's quite another to deny the things he has said and the organizations he is affiliated with.

You say we are "knuckle heads" yet it is luncacy to allow people who are dedicated to the violent overthrow of the US to live here, teach here, and benefit by the freedoms they supposedly despise. I say give the guy an open trial. If he's guilty, lock him up and throw away the key. If he's not, deport his ass.

any religious organization at all is an enemy of liberty.

"It's pointless to speak negatively about any aspect of the Palestinians or pro-terrorists here on indymedia, since the editors here will just delete points they don't like, even if they are presented in civil and fact-based fashion. "

This is not true. I'm troubled by their tendency to set certain posts so they won't appear in the "Latest Comments" page, and wish they'd be a little more explicit about how in particular one's posts -- including one I made defending Rabbi Lerner -- end up getting marked in such a way. But the posts aren't deleted, although you could argue that they're just thrown into the ocean tied to a boulder instead.

But being anti-Hamas, anti-Islamic-Jihad, anti-Al-Aksa-Martyrs, anti-Arafat isn't enough in itself to get your posts deleted, and neither is being anti-Israel or anti-Zionist enough to guarantee your post _won't_ be deleted if it also wanders over the border into overt antisemitism.

In general, I think the editors are doing a creditable, credible job, one which by definition can't please everybody.

@%<

How can this prof. be a terrorist ? He is not - he was on Flashpoints (Aug 2002). This proove he is not a terrorist.

The editors like to leave pro-israel or anti-palestinian posts that don't contain any useful information. Posts that won't harm their cause. They delete posts that show balance and fairness.

I have tried to post the following about 50 times now over the last month, and it has been deleted every time.

The UN has always singled out Israel in EXTREMELY EXCESSIVE, UNFAIR fashion.

As Morris Abram, the late chairman of United Nations Watch, once observed, the UN has held only two special emergency sessions since 1982. No session was ever convened to condemn China's occupation of Tibet, Syria's occupation of Lebanon, the Indonesian occupation of East Timor, or the slaughters in Rwanda, the disappearances in Zaire, or any other global horror. Only Israel was so targeted - twice.


At the UN's urging, only one member state has ever been brought before the Geneva Convention. Not Cambodia for its genocide, Russia for its brutal repression of Chechnya or Sudan for its atrocities. Again, it was Israel.


The UN General Assembly, driven by a coalition of Arab, Muslim and other dictatorships, has passed more resolutions condemning Israel than any other nation on Earth. But it has never censured Israel's assailants for their three wars of aggression in 1948, 1967 and 1973.


The UN Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) passes at least five resolutions a year condemning Israel (last year it was seven) and spends about 30% of its time solely on the Jewish state. In contrast, as Beichman notes, each of the following countries or regions has been the subject of one resolution - Iraq, Iran, Russia/Chechnya, Afghanistan, Burundi, Congo, Cuba, Myanmar, Sierra Leone, Southeast Europe and Sudan. Manuel Prutschi of the Canadian Jewish Congress notes this double standard is compounded by the fact the UNCHR devotes one agenda item to focusing solely on Israel. All other nations are lumped together under a separate item.


Despite this, Israel, the only Mideast democracy, is not allowed to join the UNCHR, or the Security Council, while many of the world's worst dictatorships - Syria, Libya, Sudan, Saudi Arabia - can and do. As David Goldberg of the Canada-Israel Committee explains, membership on major UN bodies is conditional upon belonging to one of the UN's five regional groups. Israel is the only UN member excluded from this system because it has been prevented from joining its regional group - Asia - by an ongoing Arab boycott. Thus, it cannot even get a delegate appointed to the 53-nation UNCHR to defend itself from unfair attacks. Due to efforts by the U.S. and, to its credit, Canada, Israel now has partial membership in the "Western European and Others Group."


Israel, Beichman notes, is the only country to which the UNCHR assigns a special "rapporteur" to investigate human rights "violations." In other nations, rapporteurs investigate "situations." The reports by Israel's rapporteur are always one-sided because his mandate prohibits investigating Palestinian actions in addition to Israel's, even if they occur in the same area. The Israeli rapporteur's mandate is the only one not periodically reviewed by the UNCHR.


Each year on Nov. 29, the UN holds a United Nations Day of International Solidarity with the Palestinian People. The day is always a vicious diatribe against Israel. There is no UN Day of International Solidarity With the Victims of Palestinian Terrorism. No other "people" on Earth, no matter how brutally oppressed, receive a similar day of UN solidarity.


While the anti-Semitic ravings aimed at Jews at the infamous UN conference ostensibly against racism held in Durban, South Africa in 2001 are well-known, Israel is also the only UN state to have been subjected to two blood libels. In 1991, the Syrian delegate to the UNCHR accused Israel of murdering Christian children to use their blood to make matzo, an ancient anti-Semitic canard. In 1997, the Palestinian delegate accused Israel of injecting 300 Palestinian children with HIV-infected blood. Neither of these lies was immediately denounced by the UN. From 1975-91, in what even UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has called a "low point" in its history, a General Assembly resolution equating Zionism with racism stayed on the books until it was finally repealed due to a campaign by the U.S. By contrast, in 1997, the mere mention of an allegedly blasphemous reference to Islam by a UN expert from an academic source, was instantly rebuffed by the UNCHR and deleted from the record.

No fair-minded person argues Israel should be above scrutiny by the UN. No fair-minded person dismisses the suffering of the Palestinians in the Disputed Territories and the human rights abuses committed by Israel, albeit in the context of responding to the constant threat of terrorism.

But to pretend, as the UN does, year after year, that Israel is the world's worst human rights violator, is not only sheer nonsense, it is anti-Semitism. And it is the UN's stock in trade.

one less jew killer(or 'freedom fighter') on the street!

Please wake up America. Sami Al-Arian is a criminal of the worst sort. He has helped finance murders of American citizens and other ethnic groups. He helped send money to families of suicide bombers. He has used a United States College to help with his criminal activity and you bleeding hearts still insist he is innocent.

Maybe we should form a militia, which is our right, to protect American land and interests. Then Sami and his partners would really fear for their lives. He has no constitutional rights because he is not a citizen. Wake up America.

"He has helped finance murders of American citizens"

so did the bush administration. so did the clinton administration. so did the bush sr. admininstration. so did the reagan administration. so did the carter administration. so did the ford administration. so did the nixon administration.... so they should all be rounded up as well?

"and other ethnic groups."

since when are american citizens an ethnic group?

"He helped send money to families of suicide bombers. "

so have the friends and allies of the bush administration in saudi arabia. oh, and by the way, israel's shin bet created and funded hamas to be a wedge against the (secular) PLO. this means that YOUR TAX DOLLARS were used to fund suicide bombers. what are you going to do to yourself about it?

"you bleeding hearts still insist he is innocent. "

here in america we have a concept known as "innocent until proven guilty" - -it is one of the cornerstones of the american legal system. you sound like an unamerican to me.

"He has no constitutional rights because he is not a citizen. "

the constitution applies to all territories of the USA. it does not differentiate between citizens and non-citizens. if it did, you would be living in a police state where you would have to first prove your status as a citizen before you could have any rights. is this the kind of land you want to live in? if an american citizen is in another country, the constitution does not apply. if a foreigner is in the US, the constitution does apply. you might not like it, but it is the legal truth.

you've done a rather poor job of trying to rally americans. try basing your arguments on truth rather than lies, you might find it more effective, at least around here...

"so did the bush administration. so did the clinton administration. so did the bush sr. admininstration. so did the reagan administration. so did the carter administration. so did the ford administration. so did the nixon administration.... so they should all be rounded up as well? "

So your argument is that if our government has committed a crime such as murder, and there is clearly little chance they'll be punished, you think since they aren't punished, we shouldn't arrest and prosecute all the civilian murderers??

Now you're talking.

AUDIO. Hear Sami Al-Arian tell his side of the story in his own words (interview with him starts at 7 minutes in the audio):

i personally believe that the members of those administrations should be rounded up and charged with crimes against humanity, and, if found guilty, should be punished.

i was trying to point out to the poster that his own logic should lead to the same conclusion.

note how, in your confusion, that was the only point you were able to (try to) rebut. that leaves the rest of the points i made unrebutted. :)

Israel is an appalling civil and human rights abuser, and runs a brutal, overtly racist, supremacist apartheid regime in the Occupied Territories - land that should decades ago have been ceded to the Palestinian people for the state promised them alongside Israel since its formation. It continues even as we speak to steal Palestinian land, and engage in slow ethnic cleansing by means of house demolitions and farm and livelihood destruction, and construction of Jewish-only settlements and roads. These are populated by racist, holy-book thumping religious fundamentalists, who think that God is their real estate agent.

Israel reacted with the most extreme violence and repression to the first Intifada, a civil rebellion and movement for Palestinian rights which used less violence and much more non-violent resistance than the current one. Israel's vicious response to the Palestinians' just demands insured that all-out violence would be employed in the second Intifada.

The violence, oppression and degradation of the occupation itself, not to mention the at least four times as many Palestinians slaughtered, is the reason for feelings of solidarity with the Palestinians rather than the Israelis – no matter how bloody the violence on either side, people tend to sympathize more with the ones being ground under a jackboot.

I wanted to make all of the above perfectly clear before answering your complaint; I will not mince words, or listen to you do so, about what exactly it is that Israel is doing. Don't like it? Suck it up, grow some balls, and face it, and stop whining about the UN's "unfair" targeting of Israel. Instead get to work and do something to help change what Israel is doing, the real source of legitimate and wholly justified international protestation. And any protestation anywhere. If the world were to suddenly turn all its attention and condemnation to Rwanda, would that make the perpetrators of the atrocities there one iota less guilty or less deserving of the negative attention? Complaints about Israel’s “security” are no excuse; Israel’s security does not morally outweigh the Palestinians right to a life of dignity, free from crushing oppression, or, for that matter, THEIR right to security. Any half sentient observer can see that Israel’s occupation and oppression of another people is undermining, rather than reinforcing, their security. Finally, it is hard to take seriously complaints about security when coming from the world’s fourth most militarily powerful state (“poor little Israel”? Pul-eeze.), and the only regional nuclear power. Which in addition has an almost symbiotic relationship with the worlds MOST powerful state. Again, the best thing it could do to keep it’s individual citizens safe would be to do the right thing, and thereby pull the necessary support
"rug" out from any Palestinian guerrillas unwilling to respond by also doing the right thing. Though I daresay, regardless of the stated aims of certain groups to destroy Israel, they would be more than happy to ceasefire if Israel were to actually show with actions, not just words, that this time, at last, it meant it.

No, Israel's regime in the Occupied Territories is not the worst in the world (only one of the worst). But, unlike the other human rights abusers in your list, Israel purports to be a westernized democracy. The contrast is particularly offensive to other westernized democracies (who, in at least some part, probably feel guilty about their own histories of colonization and occupation, and don’t like being slapped in the face with a particularly ugly, 20th century reminder), and the claim itself is irritating to third world dictatorships, who see Israel engaging in as terrible or worse human rights violations as their own. Also, the Middle East is much more visible than other regions, the world is more focused on it and the media is more focused on it, because of oil, the interest the US has in it, and so on. Which of course makes people more continuously and painfully aware of what is going on there, and more likely to get caught up emotionally in it and react to it. Not fair, you say? Well maybe not, but there you have it. Yet another factor is the fawning patronization of the world’s lone superpower, which arouses widespread anger, resentment and envy. Anti-semitism? I don't think so. I'm sure, however, that many people can't help but notice the terrible irony, given the Jewish people’s recent history. It reminds one eerily of that cycle of abuse thing that psychologists talk about.

Oh, here's an example for you of one of many, many fine Jewish American activists of guts, integrity and unwavering commitment to social justice, a man who refuses to compromise his own principles: Josh Ruebner:
http://www.counterpunch.org/ruebner1210.html

Leah


No war for oil!
No war for Israel!

Thank you Leah for your post. It's good to see people out there who actually care about Palestinians.

One thing I'd add is that the reason Americans in particular should be concerned with Israeli crimes is because we pay for them -- we pay for them to an unbelievable degree. They get around 40% of our entire foreign aid, gifts to Israel are tax-deductible (as though it were a charity), loans given to them are regularly forgiven, congressmen trip over themselves to see who can assign Israel even more aid, etc.

No other country is singled out for such special treatment, consequently, Israel should be singled out by activists in this country because they use our money, weapons, and diplomatic shielding to continue their war crimes. Plus this has been going on for 55 years and is the cause of almost all the resentment against us in the Middle East because of our support for it.

Not one of you has the evidence that either supports this guy or condemns him. The Justice Dept does. Let them deal with it.
You elect the politicians who direct our government agencies. Your voice is heard here in the US in that way. Our system is not obligated to only carry out YOUR individual desires, and it is incredibly arrogant to believe it should.
For once, consider the concept that you could be paying attention to all the wrong facts, making up some of your own, repeating what others say without checking facts, or that your conclusions are just plain wrong.
Those who are evil are the ones who oppose our form of government and profess to destroy it, not those who are responsible for operating it for the next few years and wish to preserve it.
Get a little perspective, people!
Toad

I would ask Leah: Suppose Israel oks a Palestinian state, and that state decides that Israel should also be Palestine? And in the consequence of that determination, welcomes other arab armies and munitions into this Palestinian state for the purpose of attacking Israel? What would your position be at that point?

--"Suppose Israel oks a Palestinian state, and that state decides that Israel should also be Palestine?"

I think a better question would be "Why should we pay for Israel's ability to ethnically cleanse the remaining 22% of Palestine making it a part of a larger Israel and using our weapons to do it (attacking innocent civilians in the process and creating animosity not only against Israelis but also against us for equipping them)?"

And we need not speculate as in your question because this is already happening, presently and with our support.

Once we rid Iraq of Saddam, and the people of Iraq have a government that is dedicated to the people, then the Israeli/Palestinain conflict will be easier to resolve.

FROM THE INDICTMENT

147. On or about March 19, 1995, SAMI AMIN AL-ARIAN, RAMADAN ABDULLAH SHALLAH, SAMEEH HAMMOUDEH and Unindicted Co-Conspirator Twelve received a facsimile at WISE/ICP in Tampa, Florida, which contained a recently published interview of Fathi Shiqaqi. In the interview, Fathi Shiqaqi described the formation and evolution of the PIJ, the objective of the PIJ, the location of PIJ bases or training camps, the relationship of the PIJ with Hizballah, Iran’s financial assistance to the PIJ, and the impossibility of the co-existence of Israel and a Palestinian state. Fathi Shiqaqi further discussed his determination to seek the destruction of Israel because it was an imperialist base and partner of the United States. He also said that suicide operations would continue and he would fight to the death.

148. On or about March 21, 1995, SAMI AMIN AL-ARIAN, RAMADAN ABDULLAH SHALLAH, SAMEEH HAMMOUDEH and Unindicted Co-Conspirator Twelve received a facsimile from PIJ headquarters in Damascus, Syria, which stated that two PIJ members had been killed two days before when a bomb blew up in their hands.

149. On or about March 21, 1995, SAMI AMIN AL-ARIAN, RAMADAN ABDULLAH SHALLAH, SAMEEH HAMMOUDEH and Unindicted Co-Conspirator Twelve, who were at WISE/ICP in the Middle District of Florida, received a facsimile from outside the State of Florida from Fathi Shiqaqi, stating he had read RAMADAN ABDULLAH SHALLAH’s remarks concerning the interview of Fathi Shiqaqi which had previously been sent via facsimile. With respect to the interview, Fathi Shiqaqi stated that he also sought the opinions of RAMADAN ABDULLAH SHALLAH, Unindicted Co-Conspirator Twelve and SAMI AMIN AL-ARIAN.

link to PDF: http://www.sptimes.com/2003/02/20/TampaBay/indictment.pdf



The Muslim Public Affairs Council Responds

Aschroft Indictment
Thursday, February 20, 2003

The Justice Department's indictment of eight individuals today, four of whom are American residents in South Florida and Illinois, raises several concerns of the American Muslim community.

Dr. Maher Hathout, Sr. Advisor to MPAC, said, "Rather than defending the individuals in this case, we need to defend some important American principles."

He said that the community is gaining the perception that people are rounded up and targeted because of their political opinions and because they exercise their right to dissent on current US policy. "Our community is in dire need to understand how these charges are founded on concrete evidence of criminal activity and not guilt by association or political considerations," said Dr. Hathout.

MPAC and other American organizations will monitor this case to assess the evidentiary basis of the prosecution.

Dr. Hathout added that it was disturbing that Attorney General John Ashcroft inserted religious expressions, like Jihad and martyrdom, to a major federal investigation and indictment. Such ambiguous assertions and inflammatory language about religious terms does not help in clarifying the direction of the war on terrorism nor does it reassure Americans of the effectiveness in the government approach in rooting out terrorism.

link to statement: http://www.mpac.org/home_article_display.aspx?ITEM=415

For more links on the events leading up to the arrest of the professor, see the blog entry, "Professor Sami Al-Arian" from Thursday, February 20, 2003 (both sides are represented)

-- S. Boyle

Talking about free speach on this site is like..... well, if your not a tard yuo get the idea.

Have we forgotten that Israel, led by Barak at the time, offered to arrange for Palestinian independence and sovereignty, and turn over 98% of what Arafat said the Palestinian people wanted? Why was the agreement never sealed? Arafat nixed it, not Barak. Why is there no criticism of Arafat here?
I hear lots of talk about "colonization" and "occupation". This has gone on for hundreds of thousands of years, and people of very different backgrounds find ways of getting along. It should be no different now. Nor should it be different between Israelis and Palestinians. The strong survive, the weak assimilate into the strong population or find new ground. It's just a fact of life everywhere. It's tough, but that's the way it works. Eat, be eaten, or find a way to coexist. But in the Middle East, grudges are held and claims to land are made with intentional ignorance of historical possession. As a result, hate is fomented in very ignorant and uninformed people. So the cycle continues. Israel is certainly no innocent bystander, but the majority of the world cannot understand why the PLO will not settle with Israel for what they can get and be done with it. The only possible explanation is that they don't really want what they tell the world they want.
The world does not believe the PLO any more. And the Palestinian people have a choice. Continue to follow the PLO into certain failure and abject poverty for generations to come, or reject the PLO and its lies and make a better life for Palestinian children. We make things so complicated for ourselves, and it's really so simple when you stop to think.
Toad

MORIARITY: Shortly after that appearance, al Arian was fired from the teaching job he had held for 16 years at the University of South Florida. This is part of the evidence Emerson relies on: a videotape of a conference held in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1991. On it, al Arian is actually introduced as the American representative of the Islamic Jihad. There's also a fiery speech that he gave. But because he wouldn't speak with us if we showed you the actual tape, we'll quote from it instead. “Let us damn America,” he said. “Let us damn Israel. Let us damn their allies until death. Let us damn America.” I mean, what other interpretation is there of that—Damn America?

AL ARIAN: Right. That's a stupid comment. But really what was meant here is the American policy. It's a figure of speech when he was speaking about the policy.

MORIARITY: What about "death to Israel"? I mean, there's really only one way to interpret “death to Israel,” and that means death to the Israeli people.

AL ARIAN: No, no. "Death to Israel" means death to the system. It's like saying “death to apartheid.”

MORIARITY: So why didn't you say that?

AL ARIAN: "Death to occupation." Because when the Arab and Muslim people -- when they hear me, they understand what I mean.

MORIARITY: But what about the fact that al Arian was actually introduced as the head of a terrorist group? He says he objected to that. You didn't object, at least publicly. There's nothing on tape that indicates that you objected to it. AL

AL ARIAN: I don't know -- I wasn't taping this. I don't know who taped it or what was said. I did object to it.

MORIARITY: What's more, in October of 2000, an immigration judge found no evidence that al Arian's organization was a front for the Islamic Jihad. But that's not stopping Emerson.

EMERSON: The judge's ruling was in total error. The fat lady has not sung. This is not over yet.

MORIARITY: Emerson points to documents, including a letter written by the professor, in which the FBI believes al Arian is raising money for the families of suicide bombers. Al Arian, who didn't want to discuss that letter, claims that Emerson is simply a mouthpiece for groups with an anti-Arab agenda.

MORIARITY: And who are these interest groups?

AL ARIAN: A lot of them are pro Israel.

MORIARITY: Emerson doesn't deny he has many Jewish donors. But his work is also getting support from some prominent Muslims -- like the editor of Pakistan Today, Tashbi Sayyed.

TASHBI SAYYED: I support him in many ways. He is opening my eyes.

MORIARITY: As for Sami al Arian's 1991 speech, Sayyed says phrases like "damn America" and "death to Israel" can mean only one thing.

SAYYED: I am a Muslim. And I belong to the same society. And I understand what symbols mean in my country. In my society, death means death.

MORIARITY: You don't think there's any other way of interpreting that?

SAYYED: I don't think so personally. When I say kill someone, it means kill someone.

MORIARITY: After toiling in near obscurity for so long, Steve Emerson is suddenly in demand. He regularly briefs government officials, and his new book, "American Jihad," will be released this week. He believes that putting heat on alleged Islamic extremists has already cooled down the rhetoric. But that doesn't necessarily mean Americans are any safer.

EMERSON: The bottom line is that there are always going to be people who hate us. And to the extent that they are able to hide under our radar screen, that is exactly the vulnerability that gives them the explicit capability of harming us.

In a candid and emotional exclusive interview, ABC's Diane Sawyer talks with the Dixie Chicks -- Natalie Maines, Emily Robison and Martie Maguire -- who finally speak out about controversial comments regarding President Bush, made last month overseas during a London concert.

The on-stage remarks, which many say were unpatriotic, have resulted in a flood of criticism and a backlash that has included a boycott of their music.

The interview will air on PRIMETIME THURSDAY (10:00-11:00 p.m., ET) on

NATALIE MAINES ON WHETHER SHE IS TRULY SORRY FOR HER ON-STAGE COMMENT ABOUT PRESIDENT BUSH:

MAINES: I think it came down to, it was ... that it was in a foreign country and it was that it was an off-the-cuff statement…And I think the way I said it was disrespectful. The wording I used, the way I said it, that was disrespectful…

DIANE SAWYER: …I hear something not quite ... what? Whole-hearted ...

MAINES: …Really?...

SAWYER: ... when you talk about apologizing for what you said about the President.

MAINES: ….It's not because it's not genuine. It's because I'm on guard now…I feel regret for, you know, the choice of words. Or the non-choice…Am I sorry that I asked questions and that I don't just follow? No.

ON PERSONAL THREATS:

MAGUIRE: …I also believe that yes, some of our fans were upset by it, but… does the punishment fit the crime? How far are you going to go? I think it's rational and totally acceptable for people to write a letter... and say "You know, I was really offended by what you said about the President."… we know some of our fans were shocked and ... and upset, and we are compassionate to that. I totally understand it. My problem is, when does it cross the line? When is trashing Emily's property okay? When is writing a threatening letter okay?...

MAINES ON THE FIRST SIGNS OF THE BACKLASH:

SAWYER: When was the first sign you had that there was sort of a seismic tremor from this?

MAINES: We were going into this hotel…and he [the Dixie Chicks' manager] got a call … he's pacing back and forth. "Oh, no!" You know, we're automatically going "What? What happened?" And then he says, you know, he gets off the phone and I was like, "What? What happened?" "Well, the AP picked up what was said the other night... But don't worry, it's going to blow over in three days." And I looked at him and I go, "No, it's not." He goes "Yes, it is, yes. Don't worry about it." You know, giving the old manager spiel. And I said, "Oh, I don't think so."

MARTIE MAGUIRE ON THE FALL-OUT:

MAGUIRE: …We are pretty tough and we have each other and we stand by each other through thick and thin and we know we're going to make mistakes…But this was colossal. This felt so colossal.

ON THEIR SUPPORT FOR US TROOPS:

NATALIE MAINES: …we support the troops. We support the troops l00 percent. We have said that from day one. People have quoted we don’t support the troops, which is the opposite of anything we have ever said. There is not a correlation between not wanting a war and not supporting the troops who are doing their job…

EMILY ROBISON: Martie and I have family in the military. But it’s nothing more than that we want to do than have our troops be safe, successful…you know we’re very patriotic…

DIANE SAWYER: ...But there are those who say to support them is to understand how much they believe in what they're doing. And it does matter to them that you believe in what they're putting their lives on the line for.

MAINES: …as passionate as they are about their cause, I love that about them, but accept that I am passionate about mine as well…

ON THE LONDON CONCERT:

SAWYER: Why did you say it?

MAINES: Out of frustration. At that moment, on the eve of war, I had a lot of questions that I felt were unanswered….

MAINES: You know we didn't walk off that stage going, oh my God, oh my God, I can't believe I said that.

ON THE FANS' REACTION:

ROBISON: …I think our fans, and I think people who know us, and event the people who don't know us, know that we come from a real compassionate place…mistakes are made…

MAGUIRE: …those are true fans. So I have to believe that they're with us…in spirit and support, no matter what we do. We are bound to make mistakes…we're human beings… Don't put celebrities up on this pedestal. We are human beings.

ON PUBLIC PERCEPTION/IMPACT ON RECORD SALES:

ROBISON: We're ... I think we're dealing with bigger issues than record sales and lost things like that…I'm concerned about my safety. I'm concerned about my safety for my family, for them ...

SAWYER: …You really don't care about the sales ?...

ROBISON: … It's not that we don't care. We just put in perspective as to what is really important…You know, when you're getting death threats... you know, at our concerts this year, we have to have metal detectors, and to me that's just crazy…But we have to take those precautions because this thing has gotten so out of control.

ON WHETHER THEY SEEK FORGIVENESS:

MAINES: Accept us. Accept an apology that was made. Accept that we ... what we're saying right now is heartfelt, full of compassion, and honesty, but to forgive us ... don't forgive us for who we are.

ON PRESIDENT BUSH:

SAWYER: Are you ashamed that the President is from your state?

MAINES: No.. I'm not truly embarrassed that you know President Bush is from my state, that's not really what I care about. It was the wrong wording with genuine emotion and questions and concern behind it…

MAGUIRE: I felt like there was a lack of compassion every time I saw Bush talking about this. I honestly felt a lack of compassion. And I realized ...

SAWYER: For whom? For ... ?

MAGUIRE: …for me…for people that are questioning this, for the people that are about to die for this on both sides…

ON THE WAR:

MAINES: …I just personally felt like why tomorrow? It's not that I don't ever want you to go over there. It's not that I don't ever want you to clean things up and fix things. It's just why can't we find the chemical weapons first…why not tomorrow?

ROBISON: There were a lot of questions that were unanswered. I don't think that's a wrong place to be; I don't think that you have to go I totally agree or I'm totally against it. It was one of those things we wanted more information

ON PATRIOTISM:

MAGUIRE: …at the Super Bowl ... Marilyn and I were talking about the fact that we could barely get through it... it was just so emotional and wonderful. And I won't let anybody take that away from me. No matter what you said, I will not let somebody tell me I'm unpatriotic.

MAINES ON THE APOLOGY SHE ISSUED:

MAINES: …The people who are on our side think I was pressured. They would like to believe that I was made to apologize… They liked me until I apologized. (Laughs) And then the people who didn't like me thought that it was written by someone else and couldn't give me credit for my own apology, and neither of those are true…

MAINES ON HER OUTSPOKEN NATURE:

MAINES: …I ask questions. That's smart. That's intelligent. To find out facts not to just, 'Okay, we're going over here now.' I say, 'Why are we going over there?' And I don't mean to Iraq, I mean across the room. Since I was tiny, you've had to tell me why I have to do something…

ON THE IMPACT OF THIS ON THE PERCEPTION OF COUNTRY MUSIC:

MAGUIRE: …I just remember listening to country music as a young girl and knowing that I wanted to play the fiddle and that's all I ever wanted to do, knowing that I'd get into country music and trying to convert people over to country music and hearing them always say oh, but it's ... no, that's redneck music, no, those people are so backwards and conservative and closed minded and this and that. And I'm always saying to these people, no, just give it a chance

A few weeks ago when the people of Iraq were desparately fighting to save their country from the terrorist attack by war criminals Bush and cohorts, they were called terrorists.

But in America they are militia? To save America?

The rest of the world needs protection from the US, the biggest threat to world peace today. Especially if the country in question has oil. And, of course, if Israel doesn't like them.