‘Israel will lose to a billion angry Muslims’

Sheikh Kamel Khatib, the deputy chairman of the Islamic Movement's northern Israel branch, says following Friday’s incident in which a pig’s head was thrown into a Tel Aviv mosque, “future holds an escalation of the rift beyond political boundaries. It may become a religious struggle emanating from the Israeli establishment and right-wing; Jews will find themselves facing not only five million angry Palestinians, but more than a billion angry Muslims all over the world

By Ali Waked|

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Should the Israeli-Arab strife become more and more religious in nature, Israel and the Jews would lose, Sheikh Kamel Khatib, the deputy chairman of the Islamic Movement's northern Israel branch, told Ynet Saturday after a pig’s head was thrown into a mosque’s courtyard by the Herbert Samuel promenade in Tel Aviv. 
The withdrawal from Gaza may encourage more far-right Jewish activists to attack Muslims and their holy sites. This would have catastrophic implications, he added.
“Friday’s incident symbolizes the beginning of a dangerous attitude on the part of Israelis and Jews toward Arabs and Muslims,” Khatib said.
“This attitude has turned into violent acts such as the Shfaram murders and the killing of Palestinian workers in the settlement of Shilo, aswell as the ongoing attempt to attack the Temple Mount. These acts are supported by the silence of the Israeli authorities.”
He said the Arab public has lost its trust in the Israeli governing bodies, saying, “After the October events the Or Committee determined that we were at fault. In the aftermath of the Shfaram attack the police focused on finding those who assaulted the murderer. This is why we do not have faith in the establishment or in the police.”
'A religious struggle nears'
“This is why we are calling for the establishment of a voluntary guard to protect the holy places, as well as public venues and schools,” Khatib said. 
“So far we have been treated in Israel as suspects, now we will treat any non-Arab who comes near our towns or institutions as a suspect and potential threat.”
He said he is not optimistic, adding that “Islam’s restriction’s regarding pigs are well-known, and therefore the mosque incident marks an escalation in the threat against mosques and Muslims.”
“Also, the inscription of Muhammad’s name on the pig – all these indicate the motive for the act was religious, ideological and racist,” Khatib said.
“This incident shows the future holds an escalation of the rift beyond political boundaries. It may become a religious struggle emanating from the Israeli establishment and right-wing. If this will be the case, it is the Israelis who will eventually lose.
"The incidents in Guantanamo Bay and the Megiddo Prison in which Korans were destroyed, the attempts to attack the al-Aqsa mosque and Friday’s incident at the mosque show the rift is becoming more cultural-religious in its character. The Israelis and Jews will lose in this situation. They will find themselves facing not only five million angry Palestinians, but more than a billion angry Muslims all over the world.”