[ARABNEWS] As the self-ascribed Islamic State...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling
Allaharound with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not
reallyMoslems....
(IS) continues to murder as many people as possible and idiots with automatic weapons try to wipe out journalists who "hurt their feelings," a trend is emerging to lay the blame for all the world's wills on Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face...
Since the Charlie Hebdo
...
A lefty French satirical magazine, home of what may well be the majority if the active testicles left in Europe...massacre a new wave of anti-Moslem and anti-Saudi opinion articles have been telling the western world that Saudi Arabia's policy of "exporting" Wahhabism to their shores is the true reason for all of this murder and mayhem.
It would be nice if these guys and gals could offer some kind of evidence beyond vague WikiLeaks memos and 25-year-old Saudi textbooks, but, hey, why let the facts get in the way of an ill-informed opinion.
I do not mean to flippant, but Saudi Arabia is facing a crisis at an unprecedented level and it would be foolish to ignore the misguided anger directed at the Kingdom.
The passing of King Abdullah only magnifies these recent journalistic attacks, which have not considered the king's track record of fostering unity among Saudis and tolerance between religions and cultures.
No matter how one feels about Saudi Arabia, it can't be denied that real efforts spearhead by King Abdullah have been made to bridge religious differences. It's the critics of Saudi Arabia that seem intent to widen that gap.
King Abdullah was the first king to establish organized international interfaith dialogue. He met with the pope in 2007 and a year later organized the interfaith conference in Spain that attracted more than 200 Christians, Jews and Moslems. Jewish leaders Michael Schneider, the World Jewish Congress secretary-general, and Rabbi David Rosen among others attended the conference. What head of state can make that claim?
The late king also chaired the United Nations
...an organization conceived in the belief that we're just one big happy world, with the sort of results you'd expect from such nonsense...
interfaith dialogue conference. But King Abdullah's crowning achievement was the 2011 opening of the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Center for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue in Vienna.
The center devotes itself to promoting reconciliation, justice and peace and to combating against the abuse of religion. As an NGO it also advocates the preservation of holy sites and promotes religious education.
Further, King Abdullah authored the Arab Peace Initiative that would give Israel full recognition among the Arab countries. As J.J. Goldberg pointed out on Saturday in the Jewish Daily Forward
| ...a highly influential New York City Socialist Jewish newspaper, or as influential as such a thing can be with an (English language version) circulation as of 2013 of 28,221, mostly in Manhattan, judging by the focus of the articles. Fits beautifully in the recycle bin, if one lacks a bird cage to line... |
| ...known chiefly for his myopic weekly column in the New York Times, and blowing up a throwaway dinner party line into a full fledged "Arab Peace Initiative", much to the embarrassment of the then-Saudi prince involved ... |
...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing...
and near-unanimous acceptance by 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation (56 in favor, Iran abstaining). The initiative has been re-ratified repeatedly and its text liberalized."
| Golly. "If Israel unilaterally pulls back to the pre-Six Day War boundaries, we'll consider giving up our half-century war against her." What a bargain that is for Israel. |
...I am not a dictator!
won the Nobel Prize in 2009 with fewer accomplishments. But skepticism and outright hostility dogs Saudi Arabia like no other country, including
North Korea and Iran.If we are to exercise any intellectual honesty about the country we live in, then we must unflinchingly examine the root of western hostility and how to overcome it. King Abdullah did a remarkable job in the decade he led our country. He laid the foundation for future generations of Saudis. We must honor his memory by continuing his good deeds while at the same time recognizing our own flaws and finding the path to correct them.