Saudi Wealth Fuels Global Jihadism; A new book traces the roots of state-supported terrorism to two seminal events in 1979 - the fall of the shah of Iran and the siege of the Great Mosque in Saudi Arabia

0 Comments | Insight on the News, Nov 10, 2003

Byline: Kenneth R. Timmerman, INSIGHT

Doaa 'Amer is a professional TV anchor who hosts Muslim Woman Magazine on IQRAA TV, a satellite channel broadcasting throughout the Arab world. As she tells it, her job is to educate the next generation of children to be "true Muslims." Readers accustomed to hearing Islam described as a "religion of peace" by pundits and apologists in the West will be surprised to learn what she means, but her view is neither extreme nor unusual in today's Islamic world the real world of Islam, the day-to-day world of mosques and classrooms and teashops and hubbly-bubblies and government-controlled news media that provide a daily diet of hate that until recently has rarely been translated into English.

On May 7, 2002, wearing her customary body-length robe and a fashionable head scarf, Doaa 'Amer announced to her viewers that she had a special guest. The Middle East Media and Research Institute (www.MEMRI.org) taped the show and provided the following transcript, as well as a complete videotape of the Arabic-language original with English subtitles.

"Our report today will be a little different because our guest is a girl, a Muslim girl, but a true Muslim." Exuding sincerity, the attractive young host addresses herself directly to the mothers in the audience, who like her could have a daughter the same age. "Allah willing, may our God give us the strength to educate our children the same way, so that the next generation will turn out to be true Muslims who understand that they are Muslims and know who their enemies are," she gurgles. "This girl will introduce herself immediately. She is the daughter of my sister in faith and of the artist Wagdi al-Arabia. Her name is Basmallah."

The camera pans slowly down and to the right as Ms. 'Amer greets her guest, who turns out to be a small child.

"Peace be upon you," Ms. 'Amer says, welcoming Basmallah onto her show.

"Allah's mercy and blessing upon you," the little girl replies.

'Amer: Basmallah, how old are you?'

Child: Three-and-a-half.

'Amer: Are you a Muslim?

Child: Yes.

'Amer: Basmallah, are you familiar with the Jews?

Child: Yes.

'Amer: Do you like them?

Child: No.

'Amer: Why don't you like them?

Child: Because ...

'Amer (prompting): Because they are what?

Child: They're apes and pigs.

'Amer: Because they're apes and pigs? Who said they are so?

Child: Our God.

'Amer: Where did he say this?

Child: In the Koran.

'Amer: Right, he said that about them in the Koran.

Ms. 'Amer turns to the camera, gushing with praise. "Basmallah, Allah be praised! Basmallah, Allah be praised! May our God bless her. No one could wish Allah could give him a more believing girl than she. ... May Allah bless her and her father and mother. The next generation of children must be true Muslims. We must educate them now while they are still children so that they will be true Muslims."

Shortly before this program aired on IQRAA, the station's part-owner, Prince al-Waleed bin Talal, contributed $27 million to a government-organized telethon in Saudi Arabia that raised $109 million for the families of Palestinian suicide bombers. Saudi King Fahd and Crown Prince Abdallah each contributed $1 million, with their wives kicking in separate checks of close to $1 million. The official story was that the money was intended for the families of Palestinian "martyrs" and to rebuild infrastructure in the West Bank and Gaza that had been destroyed during Israel's antiterror campaign. But as documents seized by the

Israelis at numerous "charities" and government offices throughout the West Bank over the past two years show clearly, money paid by Saudi Arabia and Saddam Hussein's Iraq was considered as "blood money." It was used by Hamas as an enticement to murder by providing a guaranteed income to the families of the murderers.

The telethon was hosted by a prominent Saudi-government cleric named Sheikh Saad al-Buraik, who took the opportunity of the live television coverage to harangue an audience at a Riyadh mosque against America, Christians and Jews. "I am against America until this life ends, until the Day of Judgment," he proclaimed on April 11, 2002. "I am against America even if the stone liquefies. My hatred of America, if part of it was contained in the universe, it would collapse. She is the root of all evils and wickedness on Earth. ... Oh Muslim Ummah, don't take the Jews and Christians as allies. ... Muslim Brothers in Palestine, do not have any mercy, neither compassion on the Jews, their blood, their money, their flesh. Their women are yours to take, legitimately. God made them yours. Why don't you enslave their women? Why don't you wage jihad? Why don't you pillage them?"

Like the owners of the Middle East Broadcasting Network which aired the telethon, Sheikh al-Buraik is closely tied to Prince Abdul Aziz bin Fahd, the King's youngest son. The sheikh hosts a regular show on the government's Channel One called "Religion and Life." Just days after this festival of anti-American and anti-Semitic hate aired in Saudi Arabia, Prince Abdul Aziz bin Fahd traveled to Crawford, Texas, with his uncle, Crown Prince Abdallah, as part of the official delegation that met with President George W. Bush at his ranch.