PM: Probe Jerusalem mufti who encouraged killing of Jews

Netanyahu urges attorney general to order investigation against Palestinians' top Muslim cleric who cited hadith calling for religious battle against Jews. Minister: If this isn’t anti-Semitism, I don't know what is

Roi Kais|Published: 01.22.12 , 15:07

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday called on Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein to order an investigation against the top Muslim cleric in Jerusalem and the Palestinian Authority who quoted a religious text that includes passages about killing Jews.

During an event celebrating the 47th anniversary of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement last week, Mufti Mohammed Hussein cited a hadith (saying attributed to the Prophet Muhammad) claiming that the Earth's end of days will not happen until Muslims kill Jews in a religious battle: "The Hour (of Resurrection) will not come until you fight the Jews. The Jew will hide behind stones or trees. Then the stones or trees will call: 'Oh Muslim, servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.'"

The moderator who introduced the mufti at the Fatah event said, "Our war with the descendants of the apes and pigs (i.e., Jews) is a war of religion and faith."

Netanyahu condemned the mufti's comments, which were posted on YouTube by an Israeli watchdog group, as "heinous."

Minister Yuli Edelstein (Likud) told Sunday's weekly cabinet meeting, "What's frightening is the fact that the mufti's comments were aired on the Palestinian Authority's official television station and website and have been backed by all the Palestinian officials.

"If this isn’t anti-Semitism, I don't know what is," he said.

Minister Uzi Landau (Yisrael Beiteinu) said the mufti should be investigated and prosecuted, adding that the "extremist Muslim imam who spoke of a final solution gets his inspiration from Nazi Germany."