Arab European League

Last updated
Arab European League
Arabisch-Europese Liga
رابطة الدول العربية الأوروبية
Founder Dyab Abou Jahjah
Founded22 February 2000
Ideology Arab nationalism
Nasserism
Moderate Islamism
Pan-Arabism
Pan-Islamism
Anti-Zionism
Anti-Americanism
Anti-LGBT [1] [2]
Anti-Semitism (denied) [3] [4] [5]
Sunni-Shia unity
Muslim-Christian unity
Political position Catch-all

The Arab European League (Dutch: Arabisch-Europese Liga, AEL) is a Pan-Arabist [6] political organisation active in Belgium and the Netherlands. [7]

Contents

Foundation

AEL was founded and is led by Dyab Abou Jahjah, a Lebanese-born Shi'a Muslim living in Belgium who emigrated from Lebanon in 1991 to begin university studies in Belgium. [8] In July 2006, Abou Jahjah returned to Lebanon allegedly to join the battle of the 2006 Lebanon War on the side of Hezbollah against Israel.[ citation needed ]

Activities

The AEL describes itself as Nasserite, Pan-Arabist and anti-Zionist. [9] The group expresses support for the actions of Islamist "resistance" against the occupation of Iraq and approves the killings of coalition soldiers. [7]

Salon.com reports that the group issued public approvals for the September 11, 2001 attacks [1] and the organization's rallies have been reported by The Christian Science Monitor to end in chanting "jihad" and "Osama bin Laden". [8] However, the group's English-language website has been critical of Al-Qaeda, referring to the September 11 attacks as "horrifying" [10] and condemning al-Qaeda for alleged terrorist acts committed in Jordan. [11]

Following the murder of a 27-year-old Belgian of North African descent by an allegedly mentally ill native Belgian man in Antwerp in 2002, which led to racially influenced riots in the city, [12] the Arab European League began patrolling the streets of Antwerp with video cameras to monitor police activity. The AEL claimed that Belgian police were engaging in a racist "manhunt" of the city's Moroccan youth and that many police officers sympathized with the political party Vlaams Blok. The AEL patrols were stopped after the Antwerp public prosecutor's office began an investigation into whether the activities violated Belgian laws against the organization of private militias. [12] [13] The court however decided on 31 May 2006 that the patrols were not enough to prosecute the organization. [14] Three leaders of the AEL however will be tried for their leading role in the unrest and riots after the 2002 murder. [14]

The organization also responds to issues of concern to Muslims, as with its creation of a short film Al Mouftinoun in response to the film Fitna . (See International reaction to Fitna.)

Electoral participations

Moslim Democratische Partij logo Logo of the Moslim Democratische Partij (Muslim Democratic Party).jpg
Moslim Democratische Partij logo

The AEL strives to develop an Arab Muslim communalist movement in Europe. The group participated in the federal elections in Belgium in 2003 under the umbrella RESIST with the PVDA (Workers Party Belgium, a Maoist political party). The party gained 0.15% in the election of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives [15] and 0.27% in the Dutch electoral college of the Belgian Senate. [16] These electoral results were far too low to win a seat.

They also participated in the Flemish elections in 2004 under the denomination Moslim Democratische Partij (Muslim Democratic Party), reaching their highest share of votes (0.27%) in the province of Antwerp. This electoral result was far too low to gain a seat in the Flemish Parliament. [17]

Controversies

Anti-Semitism

Belgian prime minister Guy Verhofstadt blamed the group for agitating racist Arabism sentiments among Arabs and inciting violence during street riots in Antwerp in 2002 [13] and criticized it for creating patrols to shadow policemen with video cameras to monitor for alleged acts of supposed "anti-Arab racism". [12]

According to Center for Information and Documentation Israel  [ nl ] (CIDI) a think tank established by the Jewish community in the Netherlands in 1974:

In April 2002 the Antwerp-based Arab European League (AEL) leader Dyab Abou Jahjah (1971) performed for the first time at a pro-Palestine demonstration in Antwerp that got completely out of hand, "Where flags of Israel were set on fire and demonstrators shouted anti-Semitic chant" (De Volkskrant, 11/5/02). "Jews are dogs," was heard in the streets (Reformatorisch Dagblad, March 1, 2003). [18]

In June 2002, the Centre for Equal Opportunities and Opposition to Racism lodged a complaint against the Arab European League for infringing the anti-racist law. [3]

A demonstration tookplace the same month co-organized with the Flemish Green party and NGO's such as 11.11.11 and Kif Kif, during which a puppet representing an orthodox Jew was burned publicly. [19]

According to a 2005 US State Department report, in Europe:

Anti-Semitism, particularly among Muslims, was linked in many cases to the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. Most anti-Semitic incidents were not violent and included abusive language, hate mail, verbal insults at soccer matches, Internet "chat room" discussions, as well as persistent historical revisionism (such as Holocaust denial). However, pockets of militant young Muslims, mostly Moroccan Arabs, on a number of occasions assaulted or intimidated identifiable Jews. In addition to the anti-Semitic acts carried out by a relatively small group of Arab youths, the virulent anti-Israel sentiment among certain groups in society, such as the Arab European League (AEL) and the Stop the Occupation  [ nl ] movement, also have contributed to an anti-Semitic atmosphere in some quarters. [20]

In 2005, Arab European League's president Dyab Abou Jahjah supported and rationalized Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's statements [21] —after The Islamic Republic's head made his controversial speeches including the infamous (widely denounced) genocidal call for Israel to be wiped off—writing:

(…) the foundation of Mr. Ahmadinejad's reasoning is intellectually defendable, and despite the fact that his regime is no perfect example of political morality, I argue that his position on this matter is the only possible moral one. [22]

And adding:

It is not the Jewish people that should be wiped out, and it is not the buildings and the houses and the schools that the settlers built, but it is the institutional frame that is represented by that Zionist entity "Israel" and its founding Ideology: Zionism. Wiping out Zionism from Palestine and establishing one Palestinian democratic state on all the territories of historical Palestine is the only solution that will guarantee peace for all, in equality. It is the only way to build a future together and to turn the bloody page that was opened when Zionism was introduced by western colonialism into the heart of the Arab nation. And, above all, it is the only position any democrat can have if he is to be consistent with himself. Just like abolishing the racist and segregationist South Africa was the only acceptable position. Saying that Zionism and the state built by it and with it as leitmotiv should be wiped out from the map is, regardless of the nuances, the only morally defendable position. [22]

In February 2006, AEL posted anti-Semitic cartoons on its website. [4] In late September 2005, the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published several controversial Muhammad cartoons in which the Islamic prophet Muhammad was associated with terrorism. After Belgian and Dutch newspapers republished the cartoons and politicians defended the publication with the argument of free speech, both denouncing the protests of Muslims and the AEL, the AEL issued statements and posted cartoons on the subject of Holocaust denial on its web pages using the same argument of "free speech" and denouncing official protests against them in return. The cartoons were called antisemitic and negationist by De Standaard , a Belgian newspaper. [21] A Dutch pro-Israel organization "Center for Information and Documentation Israel  [ nl ]" (CIDI) filed a formal complaint in Amsterdam against the AEL following the publication of the cartoons. [4] [5]

In January 2009, the AEL was reported to be the driving force behind Anti-Jewish violence during anti-Israel protests in Antwerp. [23]

On August 19, 2010, the organisation was fined by a Dutch appeals court 2,500 euros ($3,200) for publishing a cartoon which suggested the Holocaust was made up or exaggerated by Jews. [24]

Homophobia

Salon.com states that an AEL official called for the death penalty for homosexuals prior to assuming a leadership position within the group. [1] In 2003, the political party Agalev (currently known as Groen!) attempted to place posters in Antwerp of gay and lesbian couples kissing while dressed in Islamic attire. The AEL considered it blasphemous and as an insult to Islam because according to them, the Qur'an explicitly forbids homosexuality. [2]

Further reading

See also

Related Research Articles

Antisemitism has increased greatly in the Arab world since the beginning of the 20th century, for several reasons: the dissolution and breakdown of the Ottoman Empire and traditional Islamic society; European influence, brought about by Western imperialism and Arab Christians; Nazi propaganda and relations between Nazi Germany and the Arab world; resentment over Jewish nationalism; the rise of Arab nationalism; and the widespread proliferation of anti-Jewish and anti-Zionist conspiracy theories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vlaams Blok</span> Former Flemish far-right party

Vlaams Blok was the name of a Belgian far-right and secessionist political party with an anti-immigration platform. Its ideologies embraced Flemish nationalism, calling for the independence of Flanders.

New antisemitism is the concept that a new form of antisemitism developed in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, typically manifesting itself as anti-Zionism. The concept is included in some definitions of antisemitism, such as the working definition of antisemitism and the 3D test of antisemitism. The concept dates to the early 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carlos Latuff</span> Brazilian political cartoonist (born 1968)

Carlos Latuff is a Brazilian political cartoonist. His work deals with themes such as anti-Western sentiment, anti-capitalism, and opposition to U.S. military intervention in foreign countries. He is best-known for his images depicting the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and the Arab Spring.

<i>De Standaard</i> Dutch-language Belgian daily newspaper published by Mediahuis

De Standaard is a quality Flemish daily newspaper published in Belgium by Mediahuis. It was traditionally a Christian-Democratic paper, associated with the Christian-Democratic and Flemish Party, and in opposition to the Socialist Flemish daily De Morgen. In recent years De Standaard has renounced its original ideological ties.

Vlaams Belang is a Flemish nationalist, Eurosceptic and right-wing populist political party in the Flemish Region and Brussels Capital Region of Belgium. It is widely considered to be on the political far-right, although it self-describes as centre-right.

Radio Islam was a Swedish neo-Nazi and Islamic local radio channel, now a website. The EU's racism monitoring organization has called it "one of the most radical right-wing antisemitic homepages on the net".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dyab Abou Jahjah</span> Arab political activist and writer

Dyab Abou Jahjah is an Arab political activist and writer who was active in Europe between 2001 and 2007. He is the founder and former leader of the Arab European League (AEL), a Pan-Arabist movement that supports the interests of Muslim immigrants in Europe.

This is a list of countries where antisemitic sentiment has been experienced.

International Holocaust Cartoon Contest was a 2006 cartoon competition, sponsored by the Iranian newspaper Hamshahri, to denounce what it called Western "double standards on freedom of speech." The event was staged in response to the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy. Several public figures, including the United States State Department, the Israeli Foreign Ministry, and United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan strongly criticized the contest.

Bloed, Bodem, Eer en Trouw was a Flemish neo-Nazi group, created in 2004 from a splinter of the Flemish branch of the international Nazi skinhead organization Blood & Honour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of the Jews in Belgium</span> Ethnic group

The history of the Jews in Belgium goes back to the 1st century CE until today. The Jewish community numbered 66,000 on the eve of the Second World War but after the war and The Holocaust, now is less than half that number.

Antisemitism—prejudice, hatred of, or discrimination against Jews—has experienced a long history of expression since the days of ancient civilizations, with most of it having originated in the Christian and pre-Christian civilizations of Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anti-Zionism</span> Opposition to Jewish nationalism

Anti-Zionism is opposition to Zionism. Although anti-Zionism is a heterogeneous phenomenon, all its proponents agree that the creation of the modern State of Israel, and the movement to create a sovereign Jewish state in the region of Palestine—a region partly coinciding with the biblical Land of Israel—was flawed or unjust in some way.

Antisemitic incidents escalated worldwide in frequency and intensity during the Gaza War, and were widely considered to be a wave of reprisal attacks in response to the conflict.

RESIST is an electoral list formed as a result of the coalition between the Marxist–Leninist Workers' Party of Belgium and the Arab European League for the Belgian federal election, 2003 in the Flemish Region. RESIST was led by PTB lawyer Zohra Othman, herself an ethnic Arab of Moroccan extraction, and received 10,059 votes. Consequently, AEL distanced itself from PTB and formed a new party called the Moslim Democratische Partij.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Racism in the State of Palestine</span> Discussion of racism

Racism in the Palestinian territories encompasses all forms and manifestations of racism experienced in the Palestinian Territories, of the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem, irrespective of the religion, colour, creed, or ethnic origin of the perpetrator and victim, or their citizenship, residency, or visitor status. It may refer to Jewish settler attitudes regarding Palestinians as well as Palestinian attitudes to Jews and the settlement enterprise undertaken in their name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rachida Lamrabet</span> Belgian writer and lawyer

Rachida Lamrabet is a Moroccan-born Belgian writer and lawyer writing in Dutch.

Belgium is a European country with a Jewish population of approximately 35,000 out of a total population of about 11.4 million. It is among the countries experiencing an increase in both antisemitic attitudes and in physical attacks on Jews.

Lebanese people, who come from various religious and ethnic groups, form a distinct community in Belgium as part of the global Lebanese diaspora. It was estimated in 2006 that there were 8,000 Belgians who identified as Lebanese in terms of origin or descent. More recent estimates put their numbers at only 3,500. The majority are Belgian citizens and live in major cities such as Brussels and Antwerp. In addition, it was reported the same year that 1,200 were living in Lebanon. They sometimes refer to themselves as Belgo-Libanais in French or Belgisch-Libanees in Dutch.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Archived February 7, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
  2. 1 2 "AEL boos over 'homo-affiche' Vlaamse Groenen ("AEL angry about 'gay poster' Flemish Greens")". Kenniscentrum lesbisch en homo-emancipatiebeleid (Knowledge Centre lesbian and homo emancipation policies), citing from newspaper De Telegraaf 9 September 2003. Archived from the original on 15 January 2005. Retrieved 6 February 2006.
  3. 1 2 Archived November 23, 2005, at the Wayback Machine
  4. 1 2 3 Archived April 27, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
  5. 1 2 Important points on the Cartoon riot, AEL, 7 February 2006
  6. Emerson, Michael; Roy, Olivier (March 2009). Ethno-religious conflict in Europe: Typologies of radicalisation in Europe's Muslim communities. Centre For European Policy Studies (CEPS). ISBN   978-92-9079-822-4.
  7. 1 2 "AEL: every Dutch soldier's death is a victory," Archived 2012-09-24 at the Wayback Machine Expatica (25 October 2004). Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  8. 1 2 'Belgian Malcolm X' seeks office, Christian Science Monitor, 16 May 2003
  9. Zionism is Racism: AhmadiNajad said it, but we mean it Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine , AEL, 28 October 2005
  10. The Arab European League (AEL) condemns rage in the west against Arabs and Muslims, announces picket 16 September to commemorate victims of terror, AEL, 13 September 2001
  11. Self-Destruction: Mustafa Al Akkad killed by Al Qaida, AEL, 11 November 2005
  12. 1 2 3 Yann Tessier "Arab murder sparks two days of riots in Antwerp: Police deny murder was racist, but immigrant groups claim many officers sympathise with far-right Vlaams Blok party," The Guardian (28 November 2002)
  13. 1 2 Ambrose Evans-Pritchard "Arab racist sparked riot in Antwerp, say Belgians," The Telegraph (29 Nov 2002). Retrieved 08-08-2010
  14. 1 2 (in Dutch) AEL geen privé-militie (AEL not a private militia), De Standaard, 1 June 2006.
  15. "Elections 2003 - List results - Chamber of Representatives - The Kingdom". Polling2003.belgium.be. Retrieved 11 December 2012.
  16. Archived August 16, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  17. "Elections 2004 > Flemish Council". Polling2004.belgium.be. Retrieved 11 December 2012.
  18. (in Dutch) "AEL Nederland - Arabisch Europese Liga". cidi.nl. Archived from the original on 2003-04-25.
  19. Concentra Media N.V. "Manifestation in Antwerp, June 2002". Asp.gva.be. Archived from the original on February 20, 2003. Retrieved 11 December 2012.
  20. "Report on Global Anti-Semitism," US Department of State: Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (January 5, 2005)
  21. 1 2 (in Dutch) AEL spot met holocaust ("AEL ridicules holocaust"), De Standaard , 6 February 2006
  22. 1 2 Archived October 12, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  23. "The RIGHT News...RIGHT Now". PipelineNews.org. Retrieved 11 December 2012.
  24. "Dutch Muslim group fined over Holocaust cartoon". Reuters. Reuters.com. 2010-08-19. Retrieved 11 December 2012.