Coordination Committee of Indian Muslims – a consortium of more than five major national Muslim organisations – on January 6 staged a protest march at Jantar Mantar ub the Capital against the Israeli aggression on the unarmed and innocent Palestinians in Gaza Strip. Speakers seemed united that it is not just the fight of Muslims only but of the whole humanity. It is a fight against the imperialistic and capitalistic policies of Israel with the backing of the United States of America. All peace loving nations and individuals must stand up against Israel’s aggression. The Muslims in India must boycott Israeli and US products. Speakers also urged the Arab League and the Arab rulers as well as the UNO to come forward to help the besieged and hapless Palestinians.
President All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat (AIMMM) and Editor Milli Gazette, Dr. Zafarul-Islam Khan noted, “We have gathered here not as Muslims but as Indians and human beings. Israel is out to destroy Palestine. The real issue is of Israeli occupation and Israel is not relenting.” Shedding light on the life in Gaza, Dr. Khan pointed out, “Gaza Strip is one the most densely populated region the world. At a stretch of just 350 sq. km more than 15 lakh people reside. The Israelis have blockaded the area for the last two years and have cut off power supply, and no essential commodities are available there.” Giving details of the casualties in the Gaza Strip since the Israeli attacks, he disclosed, “Till this morning more than 560 Palestinians, including innocent children and women have been killed and nearly 3000 persons have been injured (now when we rush to the Press, on January 13, the figure of casualties comes at 880 and of those injured at 3620). It is actually the US and not the Israel who is attacking.”
Secretary and Spokesman of Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind (JUH) Maulana Abdul Hameed Nomani opined, “All peace loving nations of the world condemn Israel’s aggression.” He asked the government of India to “revert to its foreign policy and stop inching towards Israel. Indian government must immediately scrap all diplomatic ties with Israel.” Maulana Nomani insisted, “Those who cannot make it to Palestine, should pray for them here itself.”
He called upon the Arab countries to end all relations with Israel and boycott Israeli and US products. “Taking leaf from Iran, Arab countries should follow and see the US eyeball to eyeball,” he suggested. “From the Israel’s attitude it is conspicuous that Israel and Mossad agents have penetrated deep into the Arab countries,” opined he. Mentioning the ungratefulness of the Jews, Maulana Nomani recalled, “When the Jews were being persecuted in various parts of the world including Europe Muslim and Arab countries gave refuge to them. Now these ungrateful Jews are attacking and killing the same people who have helped them in their time of distress.” He stressed reciting Qunoot-i-Nazila regularly.
Quoting a Qur’anic verse, General Secretary All India Milli Council (AIMC) Maulana Abdul Wahab Khilji emphasised, “Whenever a believer loses anything or is in grief, he or she utters: everything belongs to Allah and will go back to Him.” He termed absolutely “unjust” Israel’s attacks and the fight back by the Palestinians as Jihad. “There is no doubt the US and Israel are terrorist states. The vanguard of peace and secularism is applying double standards on the issue of terrorism.”
“If Arab countries cannot oppose Israel then every Muslim of the rest of the world including India is with the Palestinians. We pledge our support to them.” He pleaded for an all out support to the Palestinians by donating blood, supplying relief material, etc.
Mr. Naved Hamid said, “We have to raise voice against this repression of the Palestinians by the terrorist state of Israel.” Sharply criticising the Muslim rulers of the Arab World for their inaction, Mr. Hamid observed, “It appears all of them (Muslim rulers) are in tacit understanding with Israel for its massacre of the Palestinians.” On the future course of action, Mr. Hamid said, “We should not end here itself rather we have to move forward from here (Jantar Mantar) and demonstrate in front of the Embassies of the Arab countries, League of Arab Nations and the headquarters of the United Nations.”
Former President of Aligarh Muslim University Students’ Union (AMUSU) and
Member Rajya Sabha Muhammad Adeeb looked visibly dismayed over the fact that on the land of Gandhi the Indian government has remained a silent spectator over the Israeli barbarism. “It is utterly ironic that we are standing on the land of Gandhi yet finding ourselves hapless and helpless. It seems that the Indian government is also not respecting the Gandhian principles of non-violence by not condemning the Israeli government for its attacks on unarmed and innocent Palestinians,” complained he. Taking a critical posture against the Indian government attitude, Mr. Adeed urged it to ask Israel “either to stop aggression or shut down its embassy in New Delhi.” He further added, “Let us ask our government to stop all ties with Israel. Let us say to the Arab countries that if they maintain ties with the US and Israel then we are going to scrap all of our ties with them.”
Jyotsna of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) was of the view, “The fight in Palestine is our fight, the fight of we Indians. We have to oppose this illegitimate act of state terror of Israel.” Referring to the terrorism in our country and the way Muslims of India are being targeted, Jyotsna said, “Today the ghost of terrorism is being imposed on the common man of our nation. The Muslims are being made scapegoats of the state terror. Recently two innocent Muslim students were killed by the Police. We protested then at this very place. Today once again we have gathered here to show our disapproval of Israel’s policies. It’s also a show of our solidarity with the Palestinians.”
Father Dominique Emmanuel read out the message of the Archbishop Vincent condemning the Israeli attack on the Palestinians. Commenting on the policies of the US administration, Fr. Dominique revealed, “Actually, the Economic and Foreign policies of the US are designed by the Jews. Therefore, it is obvious they are heavily loaded in favour of the Jews.”
Maryam Fatima of Delhi University underlined, “Our fight does not end here. This is just the beginning. We have to fight till the end.” She advised the Muslims not to consider themselves week. “We should not undermine the strength of masses because it will bring the change sooner or later.”
The demonstrators were holding anti-Israel placards and raised slogans against the US, Israel, UN and Arab countries. Afterwards, they took out a protest march from Jantar Mantar to the Parliament Street Police station. The demonstration came to an end with the collective Dua led by Maulana Abdul Wahhab Khilji.
As the protest march was concluding, two demonstrations of Muslim leaders left to the Union Ministry of External Affairs and United Nations Mission in New Delhi to present their memorandum. The text of the memorandum is as follows:
“Occupied and wantonly impoverished Gaza Strip of Palestine is under constant Israeli raids and bombardment since 27 December 2008 while the whole world is simply watching as if this genocidal attack against an unarmed people and land does not concern the larger humanity. Not only this, efforts are being made by Israel’s blind supporters to protect it at the UN and to prolong the misery of the people of Palestine which is mostly a creation of the United Nations through the Partition Plan and its predecessor the League of Nations through the Mandate which allowed aliens to be settled in the land of Palestine and finally led to the logical conclusion in the shape of the expulsion of the majority of the Arab people of Palestine who now mostly live as refugees in camps in countries adjoining Israel and even within the borders of what was left of Palestine in 1948. Over 80 per cent of the population of Gaza Strip is refugee made homeless by the Zionist terrorist groups like Haganah, Stern and Irgun etc in 1948. The United Nations recognises this historic injustice and offers some help to the refugees through UNRWA.
“The problem of Gaza Strip was compounded when Israel and its western backers refused to accept a government elected in the Middle East’s most free elections three years ago. That criminal rejection of this popular mandate led to one catastrophe after another and now Israel, with active American support is bent on annihilating a whole population whose sole crime is that it believed in the western slogan of democracy which, it seems, is acceptable only if the outcome is palatable for western powers.
“The problem of Gaza and the thoroughly symbolic “rockets” fired by the resistance seeking to end the occupation stems solely from the fact that despite Israel’s unilateral evacuation from the Gaza Strip three years ago the area remains under factual occupation as the occupying power still exercises full control over the land, sea and air of the barren Gaza Strip which totally remains dependent for its survival on import of foodstuff and all other necessities through Israel. Israel, on the one hand remains in full control of the borders of the Gaza Strip and, on the other, has washed its hands off legal responsibilities of an occupying power towards the occupied population as envisaged in the international law like the Geneva Agreements of 1949 and especially the fourth agreement regarding the protection of civilians during war and under occupation. UN’s own representatives and observers like Professors Dugard and Falk have described the Israeli actions as war crime. Umpteen UN General Assembly, Security Council and other UN forums have hundreds of times reprimanded Israel for its war crimes and blockade of the occupied terrority of Gaza inhabited by 1.5 million poor people who are now condemned to a precarious life without food, medicines, water and even electricity. All this is happening while the whole world is simply watching.
“We request you to immediately intervene in order to stop this genocide, proctect the unarmed people of Gaza Strip against the fourth largest and most cruel army in the world. Every passing day is only increasing the miseries of the occupied people of Gaza Strip. Your intervention will save many innocent lives and stop the one-sided aggression by the occupation forces of Israel.”
The memorandum was signed by Mujtaba Farooq, Secretary, Jamaat-e Islami Hind and Coordinator, CCIM; Dr. Zafarul-Islam Khan, President, All India Muslim Majlise Mushawarat; Maulana Abdul Hameed Nomani, Secretary, Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind; Mauji Khan, Secretary, All India Milli Council; Maulana Mahmudul Hassan, President, Jamiat Ahle Hadees, Delhi State; Dr. Tasleem Rahmani, President, Muslim Political Council of India; Dr. S.Q.R. Ilyas, Member, Central Advisory Council, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind; Maulana Zeeshan Hidayati, Shia Imam & Chairman, Majlis-e Fikr-o Amal; and Shahnawaz Rihan, Secretary, Students Islamic Organisation of India (SIO).