{"id":7096,"date":"2014-03-06T10:45:04","date_gmt":"2014-03-06T18:45:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/?p=7096"},"modified":"2014-03-06T10:45:04","modified_gmt":"2014-03-06T18:45:04","slug":"the-past-and-the-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/the-past-and-the-future\/","title":{"rendered":"The Past and the Future"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Raymond Ibrahim \/\/\u00a0RaymondIbrahim.com<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>
\n<\/i><\/p>\n

\"Crucified-Again-Cover\"Last November Raymond Ibrahim was interviewed by Egyptian reporter Sherif Awad.\u00a0 The interview appeared in several Egyptian magazines and websites, as well as American ones, such as the\u00a0Westchester Guardian<\/a>. \u00a0The interview follows:<\/em><\/p>\n

Awad<\/strong>: Can you tell us about your family and their profession and how and why they decided to migrate to the US? Tell us about your childhood and the intercultural elements that shaped it until you decided to select your profession.<\/p>\n

Ibrahim<\/strong>: My father and mother, both Copts, one from Cairo the other Alexandria, left Egypt in the late 1960s for America, where I was born.\u00a0 They left Egypt for a better life. \u00a0I grew up speaking both Arabic and English and visited Egypt with my parents often when I was young.\u00a0 It was natural, then, for me formally to study the region, its languages (primarily Arabic, which I already spoke), its history and conflicts, in college.\u00a0 Growing up in Egypt in the 1940s-1960s, my parents experienced little by way of direct persecution, but they did experience religious discrimination, and that was one of the reasons they came to America, for better opportunities.<\/p>\n

Awad<\/strong>: In regards to your MA thesis and book about the\u00a0Battle of\u00a0Yarmuk<\/em>, can you compare its events to the happenings that led to the ending of Islamic rule in Andalusia? Do you consider researching the Islamic empire in Andalusia? About the Crusades?<\/p>\n

Ibrahim<\/strong>: Yes, I am very interested in early and medieval Islamic history, especially military history vis-\u00e0-vis Christendom.\u00a0 Not only are there parallels between those various battles and encounters, but indeed, the patterns continue to this very day.\u00a0 Most in the West are wholly unaware that to Islamist groups like al-Qaeda, they see the conflict as a continuum of history\u2014as jihadis (mujahidin<\/em>) fighting infidel \u201ccrusaders.\u201d\u00a0 This is precisely why I have an interest in the long history of the conflict\u2014most of which is\u00a0concealed from people in the West<\/a>\u00a0by the forces of \u201cpolitical correctness,\u201d which predominate in the classrooms, the government, and the media.<\/p>\n

Awad<\/strong>: You researched al-Qaeda\u2019s early history but I want to ask about 9\/11 and how far al-Qaeda was involved, because many conspiracy theorists claim that certain US entities have something to do with those events.<\/p>\n

Ibrahim<\/strong>: Well, of course, conspiracy theorists say what they say.\u00a0 And for my part, I can\u2019t prove anything; we work with the information we are given, ultimately.\u00a0 For example, we were told that Osama bin Laden was killed; but others say he wasn\u2019t.\u00a0 And no one can really\u00a0prove<\/em>either position (since his body was purportedly and hurriedly dropped in the ocean).\u00a0 So, while I do not necessarily discount what are sneeringly dismissed as \u201cconspiracy theories,\u201d in this profession, one must articulate one\u2019s position within the reasonable bounds of what is collectively deemed \u201ctruth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Awad<\/strong>: In your book\u00a0Crucified Again<\/em><\/a>, you shed light on the troubles faced by the Christian minorities across the Arab world. It was followed by new articles about the attack on the church of Waraq neighborhood in Cairo (which is next to my house in KitKat by the way). Do you differentiate between\u00a0tolerance and fundamentalism in Islam or do you think that Islam is broadly violent right now?<\/p>\n

Ibrahim<\/strong>: This is a good, important, and ultimately complicated question.\u00a0 To be brief: I always distinguish between Muslims, the humans, and Islam, the religion.\u00a0 Muslims, like all humans, are free agents who are capable of doing anything; they, like all people, can be tolerant or they can be intolerant.\u00a0 Likewise, they, like all peoples of all religions, can interpret their religion anyway they want (or simply ignore its tenets).\u00a0 That said, when it comes to the actual\u00a0religion of Islam<\/em>, it is inaccurate to describe it as \u201ctolerant\u201d of non-Muslims\u2014certainly not by modern, 21stcentury standards.\u00a0 Plain and simple, Islam teaches that non-Muslims are inferior to Muslims.\u00a0 Quran 9:29 calls on Muslims to subjugate the People of the Book (ahl al-kitab<\/em>), until they pay jizya while feeling humiliated.\u00a0 The prophet of Islam commanded Muslims not to greet non-Muslims and to push them to the side of the road.\u00a0 One can go on and on with examples (see my book\u00a0Crucified Again<\/em>\u00a0for many more with complete documentation).\u00a0 Ultimately, this suggests that the pious Muslim who tries to follow the Sharia will be more intolerant of non-Muslims than the casual or \u201ccultural\u201d Muslim\u2014and both types exist.<\/p>\n

Awad<\/strong>: How do you see the rise and fall of ex-president Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) in Egypt? Do you think Egypt will be under more terrorist attacks from their supporters in the future? How do you see Egypt in the near future?<\/p>\n

Ibrahim<\/strong>: Again, good and complicated question.\u00a0 I actually think it was good that Morsi won elections and that the Brotherhood was temporarily empowered.\u00a0 Because finally, the Egyptian people experienced what it would be like under\u00a0ikhwani<\/em>\u00a0[Brotherhood] rule.\u00a0 And the result of that was the June 30 Revolution\u2014millions of Egyptians protesting in the streets.\u00a0 So the good news is that Egyptians now know exactly who the Brotherhood is.\u00a0 On the other hand, the Brotherhood still has supporters in Egypt, and more importantly, abroad\u2014U.S., Qatar, Turkey, etc.\u00a0 So it is likely that they will still try to undermine Egypt, whether through terrorism or political maneuvers from their supporters.\u00a0 But overall I believe that Egypt\u2019s experiences under the Brotherhood, and now after their ousting, have opened many eyes, thus ultimately weakening the Brotherhood\u2019s influence.<\/p>\n

Awad<\/strong>: In\u00a0a recent article<\/a>, you quoted the report published in\u00a0al-Watan<\/em>\u00a0newspaper about Muslim Brotherhood in the US. Do you think MB have influences on Obama\u2019s administration?<\/p>\n

Yes, I do.\u00a0 It is well known that several people who advise or associate with Obama, the White House, and in fact the entire U.S. government are somehow or other associated with the Muslim Brotherhood.\u00a0 Moreover, since the June 30 Revolution, we have seen, repeatedly, how the Obama administration and U.S. leadership\u2014including Anne Patterson, John McCain, and Lindsay Graham\u2014have intervened on behalf of the Brotherhood.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Raymond Ibrahim \/\/\u00a0RaymondIbrahim.com\u00a0 Last November Raymond Ibrahim was interviewed by Egyptian reporter Sherif Awad.\u00a0 The interview appeared in several Egyptian magazines and websites, as well as American ones, such as the\u00a0Westchester Guardian. \u00a0The interview follows: Awad: Can you tell us about your family and their profession and how and why they decided to migrate […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[227,518],"tags":[161,366,1035,1017,30,1060],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p466Sb-1Qs","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":7282,"url":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/raymond-ibrahim-on-cbn-news-will-egypts-el-sisi-protect-christians\/","url_meta":{"origin":7096,"position":0},"title":"Raymond Ibrahim on CBN News: ‘Will Egypt’s el-Sisi Protect Christians?’","author":"victorhanson","date":"May 1, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"by Raymond Ibrahim \/\/ CBN News\u00a0 On April 24, CBN News Senior International Reporter Gary Lane interviewed me about Egypt. Lane\u2019s write-up, \u201cWill Egypt\u2019s el-Sisi Protect Christians?\u201d as well as the three part interview, follow: With only one month to go before Egyptians elect a new president, it looks like\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Egypt"","block_context":{"text":"Egypt","link":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/ahref=\/index.php\/categories\/angry-reader\/categorylink\/a\/the-world\/the-middle-east\/egypt\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/lklkl-300x223.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3848,"url":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/why-the-egyptian-revolution-can-be-the-best-or-worst-thing-to-happen\/","url_meta":{"origin":7096,"position":1},"title":"Why the Egyptian Revolution Can Be the Best or Worst Thing to Happen","author":"victorhanson","date":"February 5, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"by Raymond Ibrahim NRO's\u00a0The Corner It is clear that the media and its host of analysts are split in two camps on the Egyptian revolution: one that sees it as a wonderful expression of \"people-power\" that, left alone, will naturally culminate into some sort of pluralistic democracy, and another that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Egypt"","block_context":{"text":"Egypt","link":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/ahref=\/index.php\/categories\/angry-reader\/categorylink\/a\/the-world\/the-middle-east\/egypt\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6920,"url":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/gen-sisi-religious-discourse-greatest-challenge-facing-egypt\/","url_meta":{"origin":7096,"position":2},"title":"Gen. Sisi: ‘Religious Discourse Greatest Challenge Facing Egypt’","author":"victorhanson","date":"January 16, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"by Raymond Ibrahim \/\/\u00a0RaymondIbrahim.com\u00a0 According to Egyptian media,\u00a0during\u00a0his recent speech at the Dept. of Moral Affairs for the Armed Forces, Gen. Abdul Fateh al-Sisi\u2014the man who ousted former President Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood in response to the June Revolution and who is seen as the nation\u2019s de facto ruler\u2014declared\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Egypt"","block_context":{"text":"Egypt","link":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/ahref=\/index.php\/categories\/angry-reader\/categorylink\/a\/the-world\/the-middle-east\/egypt\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6353,"url":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/egyptian-military-warns-obama-supporting-terrorism-in-egypt-is-red-line\/","url_meta":{"origin":7096,"position":3},"title":"Egyptian Military Warns Obama: ‘Supporting Terrorism’ in Egypt is ‘Red Line’","author":"victorhanson","date":"August 19, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"by Raymond Ibrahim \/\/ RaymondIbrahim.com According to a report titled \u201cSisi to Pentagon: We will not turn back, sovereignty is a red line,\u201d published in\u00a0Watan\u00a0newspaper (Saturday, August 17 edition), Egyptian Maj. Gen. Muhammad al-\u2019Assar has just issued a strongly worded letter to the Pentagon, on behalf of the Egyptian military\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Egypt"","block_context":{"text":"Egypt","link":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/ahref=\/index.php\/categories\/angry-reader\/categorylink\/a\/the-world\/the-middle-east\/egypt\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6138,"url":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/libyan-intelligence-muslim-brotherhood-morsi-involved-in-u-s-consulate-attack\/","url_meta":{"origin":7096,"position":4},"title":"Libyan Intelligence: Muslim Brotherhood, Morsi Involved in U.S. Consulate Attack","author":"victorhanson","date":"June 27, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"by Raymond Ibrahim RaymondIbrahim.com According to a Libyan intelligence document, the Muslim Brotherhood, including Egyptian President Morsi, were involved in the September 11, 2012 terrorist attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, where several Americans, including U.S. ambassador to Libya, Chris Stevens, were killed. 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I tried to find this story in English-language media and, as expected, found nothing, except for one report in\u00a0Al-Masry Al-Youmtitled\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Women"","block_context":{"text":"Women","link":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/ahref=\/index.php\/categories\/angry-reader\/categorylink\/a\/women\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7096"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7096"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7096\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7098,"href":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7096\/revisions\/7098"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7096"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7096"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/victorhanson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7096"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}