Oppression of Christians in Moslem Countries

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An important new development is taking place among millions upon millions of Christians who live as oppressed minorities in Moslem countries. With the rapid rise of Islamic fundamentalism, the minorities now find themselves at the mercy of a growing campaign of discrimination, persecution, and physical elimination. This persecution has given rise to a strong reaction from the Christian leadership in free countries, especially the United States and England, to monitor the Islamic oppression and, moreover, to reorganize resistance and protection for their threatened communities.

Another phenomenon is that many of these Christian leaders now realize that they are in the same boat with Jews in the Moslem countries and that Israel has become, for them, a symbol of hope for their own survival. The Jews are the only non-Moslems who have succeeded in making a comeback to their ancestral home by re-establishing -- in the midst of a vast Islamic ocean -- political and religious independence. Therefore they fervently support a strong Israel -- intact in its biblical borders and not giving in to Islamic pressure to surrender any of its rights.

The Oslo "peace" process, therefore, has been determinedly opposed by the Christians, who in see the weakening of -- as planned by the likes of Peres and Beilin -- a surrender to Islamic expansionism, which is engulfing and destroying the remaining Christian communities of the Middle East.

Dr. Sookhdeo's institute has the backing of a large number of leading personalities in Great Britain and has established links with the council of Christians and Jews, headed by Britain's Chief Rabbi Dr. Jonathan Sacks. His institute has established a Task Force of the Racism and Anti-Semitism Advisory Committee and is planning a research project on the development of anti-Jewish and anti-Christian activities within Islam.

Obviously, I had to ask Dr.Sookhdeo if his constituent groups included missionaries, whose goal remains converting Jews. He gave me his assurance that this is not the case, because the single aim of these groups today is to fight against Islam and its ferocious attacks on all "infidels" -- Jews and Christians.

Iran: Christian and Bahai groups have been outlawed by official legislation. Their members are forbidden employment and are expelled from schools. Those who resist are threatened with arrest and death. Haik Hovsepian Mehr, the chairman of bishops in Iran, has disappeared and is feared killed. Two Presbyterian leaders were murdered.

Sudan: Entire tribes are accused of apostasy -- conversion from Islam to Christianity -- and are promptly brought to trial and executed. Punishment also takes the form of selling women and children into slavery. Hassan al-Turabi, the "Gray Eminence" of terrorism, centered in the Sudan, has called for Jihad -- Holy War -- against the millions of black Christians in Southern Sudan. This war, going on for years, has resulted in the murder of over one million black Christians. The PLO, as Yasser Arafat has admitted, maintains training camps in the Sudan, where the Sudanese are trained in violence and murder against Christians. There may be ties between these camps and some of the terrorists in America.

Pakistan: A blasphemy law has been enacted under which derogatory remarks directed at Mohammed are punishable by death. Many Christians, accused of such blasphemy, have been jailed.

Saudi Arabia: A leading Saudi Moslem leader has published the following statement: "Whoever claims the acceptability of any existing religion today -- other than Islam -- such as Judaism, Christianity and so forth, is a non-believer. He should be asked to repent and if he does not, he must be killed."

Jihad: The institute has published an analysis of the effect on the Christian communities in Moslem countries of Yasser Arafat's May 1994 call in Johannesburg for Jihad against Israel. Once Jihad was pronounced against the Jews, Moslems in Arab countries used the call as a cue to persecute Christians.

The countries being monitored for atrocities against Christians by the institute are Turkey, Somalia, Ethiopia, Libya, Pakistan, Sudan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Morocco, Iran, Algeria, Indonesia, Syria, Lebanon, Niger, Bosnia, Philippines, Iraq and many more.

The leaders of this institute should be applauded for their true human rights protection, as well as for their resistance to the intolerance and intransigence of Islam now spreading terror throughout the world.

Naturally, the aims of these leaders are closely interlocked with those of Jews. And now that they have expressed their support for a strong, intact Israel, their program has also important political significance for all supporters of a strong Israel.

Minorities in the Middle East, by Hebrew University Professor Mordechai Nisan, a Canadian-born expert whose books are used as textbooks in Christian institutes of learning.

Lebanese Christian Nationalism, by Professor Walid Phares. This new book contains a very important chronological account of the history of the close cooperation between Jews and Lebanese Christians.

Jews and Christians Under Islam, by Bat Ye'or, a very important scholar and author whose seminal works on the history of the Dhimmis (pariahs) under Islam -- Jews and Christians -- have revolutionized the scholarly world. I met the author, who is an extremely learned Egyptian-Jewish lady living in Geneva. I hope she will come to the States to lecture as she has done all over Europe.

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