Die Palestinian Authority, also die Fatah-Regierung in der Westbank, geht seit einiger Zeit sehr hart gegen radikale Prediger vor.
Der neue Minister für Religiöse Angelegenheiten, Mahmoud Habbash, hat die Kontrolle über die Moscheen übernommen. Der Hintergrund: Über radikale Prediger hat die Hamas im Westjordanland einen erheblichen Einfluss ausgeübt.
Jetzt ist Fatah offenbar entschlossen, diesen Kanal zu schließen. Die Washington Post schreibt, die Freitagspredigten würden von Habbash zentral verfasst und den Moscheen übermittelt. Die Imame müssen diese Texte als grundlage ihrer Predigten nehmen. Wenn sie davon abweichen, werden sie von Sicherheitsdienst gemeldet.
Die Imame müssen auch durch die Moscheen rotieren, um „Gedenkenkontrolle“ der Gläubigen durch einzelne Prediger zu verhindern. Das System erinnert stark an das türkische Modell des Staatsislams (Diyanet) oder auch an den Zugriff des ägyptischen Staates auf die Religion. Die Zentralisierung der Religion stellt aber für die Westbank eine Novität dar – und die Gegenpropaganda der Hamas lässt auch nicht auf sich warten:
The firm grip on mosques is the latest element in a long effort to curb the strength of Hamas that has included widespread arrests and bans on Hamas media and gatherings. On Tuesday, when 70,000 people gathered in Gaza to mark the 23rd anniversary of the founding of Hamas, there were no rallies in the West Bank to mark the occasion.
The United States has pushed the Palestinian Authority to put an end to the vitriolic sermons that the United States and Israel say undercut peace efforts. But it has been careful not to overtly praise the latest effort. While seen as helpful to U.S. goals, the crackdown also reveals an authoritarian streak in a Palestinian leadership routinely hailed by American officials for its governance.
Such central government control of clerics is not uncommon in the Arab world. But it is disappointing to those who had expected greater tolerance from the Palestinian Authority, which rules parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. As part of its clampdown, the ministry has banned Hamas-affiliated imams from preaching. Those who are authorized to preach are paid by the Palestinian Authority.
„The Palestinian Authority’s plan is to combat Islam and the religious trend within it,“ said Sheikh Hamid Bitawi, a well-known Islamic religious authority in Nablus who delivered sermons for four decades before the Palestinian Authority banned him three months ago.
Bitawi estimates that dozens of other imams have been prevented from preaching since the crackdown started, leading to a preacher shortage at many mosques. „I’m sure the popularity of Fatah [Abbas’s party] and the Palestinian Authority is going down,“ Bitawi said. „They will be punished for their behavior.“
Ein Problem könnte sein, dass die Repression der Extremisten als Verbeugung vor den Forderungen der USA und Israels gesehen wird. Aber Habbash wehrt sich gegen solche Vorwürfe. Der Kampf gegen den Antisemitismus, führt Mahmoud Habbash, selber islamischer Theologe, als Kampf um die Seele seiner eigenen Religion. Ein mutiger Mann.
Habbash insists his goal is to advance Palestinian unity, not to appease the United States or Israel. So far, the Palestinian Authority has focused most of its attention on the mosques and responded quickly when it sees a problem.
After an imam urged Muslims to kill Jews in a sermon broadcast on a Palestinian government-run television station earlier this year, U.S. officials complained. Habbash apologized, said the imam had been a last-minute substitute, and ordered the next Friday’s sermon at all mosques to be about tolerance among followers of Islam, Judaism and Christianity.
Habbash, 47, taught Islamic law and wrote a newspaper column before being forced to flee the Gaza Strip after Hamas seized control of the territory in 2007. Today, he is one of the government ministers closest to Abbas. His policy also makes him one of the most endangered: While most ministers travel with two bodyguards, he has six.
„My main message is, we need to liberate Islam from this madness, from this extremism and wrong understanding of Islam,“ he said. „Islam does not incite to hate.“
Khalil Shikaki, chief pollster at the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, said the overall crackdown on Hamas, including the mosque policy, has clearly weakened Hamas in the West Bank. „They have no media – no newspapers or magazines“ in the West Bank, he said. „No doubt they have lost the mosques as a key platform.“
Liberate Islam from this madness.
Starke Worte. Wer so etwas sagt, begibt sich in Palästina in Lebensgefahr.