Arab Perpetuation of the "Big Lie"

From: Anti-Defamation League adl@adl.org
Date: Nov 15, 2005 12:44 PM
Subject: Conspiracy Theories - Blame Israel


Arab Perpetuation of the "Big Lie"

Abu Musab al-ZarqawiReports following the horrendous terrorist bombings in Amman demonstrate anew that conspiracy theories about Jews and Israel continue to dominate the Arab world.

Much like what took place after the 9/11 attacks, so in the Amman bombings, the belief is rampant in Jordan that it was Israel that was behind the attacks. This, despite the fact that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has taken credit for it and that the individuals responsible have been identified.

Evidence and rational explanations seem to take a back seat to blaming the perpetual scapegoat. Unfortunately, the media often portray the public reaction as “spontaneous,” thus obfuscating the most important role that leadership plays.

Historically, most notably in Nazi Germany, the “big lie” technique was a calculated, organized approach taken by government and others to inculcate a conspiratorial anti-Semitic explanation for national problems.

The truth is that today in the Arab world government, religious and media officials repeatedly communicate such notions about Jews and Israel. An example is the anti-Semitic and anti-Israel media barrage, often in official government outlets, throughout the Arab world that ADL reports on every month. It is true that these bigoted and dangerous ideas fall on fertile soil but that soil has been nurtured for decades by the public depictions of Israel and Jews as the source of all their troubles.

It is urgent that the world community start doing something abut this dangerous trend. So much of the extremist tendencies in the Arab and Islamic world, with concomitant support for terrorism, rest on the acceptance of these conspiracy theories.

If these conspiracies continue to win the day, it will not only harm Israelis and Jews but it will make true reform in the Arab world unlikely, if not impossible.


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