We need the press to report on the awareness shift in most Muslim Israelis

October seven made them realize how great it is to be with the Jews and how very different their Muslim understanding is from Chamas’ immorality.

We need realistic hope, not fancy theories detached from reality.

Israeli Muslims have told pollsters for decades that, first of all, they were Palestinians. No more. First of all, Israeli, then, Muslim, then, whatever.

This is in stark contrast with Muslims in our neighboring countries, in Gaza, on the West Bank, and the Muslim Street around the world—fortified by Western Jew-haters. They saw Israel going after Chamas as them against us. But Muslims in Israel understood that it’s us against them.

Maybe, some of them were afraid we’d take revenge on them. Then they realized Jews have no problems with Muslims. The hatred is one-sided.

Their guilt feelings much remind me of the guilt most Germans feel vis-à-vis the Jewish People. It’s guilt that can be harvested against genocide.

Now, most (not all, but say 80%) of Israel’s Muslims have discovered who we Jews really are, the sweetest, let’s discover them and their stories.

Mizrachic/Arab Jews could easily take the lead here. We’re no longer just talking about a sporadic Muslim (and many Bedouin and Druze) in the IDF or among our diplomats. Some 80% of 2 million Muslims is lots of people.

Muslim Israelis, supported by Jewish Israelis, could coach Muslims in Gaza and on the West Bank toward democratic self-reign without terrorists involved. If Germany could de-nazify, so can every hostile body on Earth.

Once, the president of a Pacific Isle Nation, always voting with Israel in the UN, asked an Israeli: Why don’t you just kill all the people who hate you?

Muslim Israelis could teach everyone about respect for Jews. How lucky they can be to be with the Jews. Any other people would have had no mercy and, after a wave of terrorist attacks, would have gone from house to house mass murdering and raping the terrorist-led populations. Not for nothing do many non-Jews (but not our best friends) assume that what the IDF now must do in Gaza must, at least partially, be motivated by revenge. This is a projection of their own emotions, of what they would have done.

There is complete democracy in Israel, with Muslims in the Supreme Court, the Knesset, and the previous government. But equality is not enough.

The hatred must stop. Muslims must understand their holy duty (and opportunity) to respect and protect Jews. Just like Germany did, after the Holocaust, Muslim Israelis must take all power away from preachers and leaders hating Jews. Not to ‘help us’ but to be able to live with themselves.

Just like a proud man ensures that all women around him are safe, a proud Muslim will guard all the Jews around them. After being blatant about this inside of Israel, German, Austrian, and Israeli Gentiles can visit the Muslim-majority States and teach them about Jews, so lovely to be close to.

They can also teach the West that a Two-State Solution is nonsense. If there is a viable Palestinian State, it would be Jordan. But, when Muslims do not want to fully participate in Israeli democracy, they will also wage war against it. If you can’t live with us, you also can’t live next to us.

Do you remember how Israel welcomed Sadat? Watch the above clip. With dry eyes, I can’t do it. Every Israeli came to honor him. You’ve seen nothing yet. When Muslim Israelis decide to stand with us, Jews will reciprocate as never before. Not by intermarriage—that would be genocide on the small Jewish People. But we don’t need to marry our best friends to be close.

The Israel and international media need to train their spotlights on Israeli Muslims. Not to search for yet more victim stories but to hear how they are ready to build a (global) movement of standing with the Jews.

And, as with all our friends, they will profit most. The honor killings and blood feuds will need to go. And together, we’ll disarm the crime families.

And this certainly doesn’t need to be a sole, Israeli movement.

About the Author

MM is a prolific and creative writer and thinker, previously a daily blog contributor to the TOI. He often makes his readers laugh, mad, or assume he's nuts—close to perfect blogging. He's proud that his analytical short comments are removed both from left-wing and right-wing news sites. None of his content is generated by the new bore on the block, AI. * As a frontier thinker, he sees things many don't yet. He's half a prophet. Half. Let's not exaggerate. Or not at all because he doesn't claim G^d talks to him. He gives him good ideas—that's all. MM doesn't believe that people observe and think in a vacuum. He, therefore, wanted a broad bio that readers interested can track a bit what (lack of) backgrounds, experiences, and educations contribute to his visions. * This year, he will prioritize getting his unpublished books published rather than just blog posts. Next year, he hopes to focus on activism against human extinction. To find less-recent posts on a subject XXX among his over 2000 archived ones, go to the right-top corner of a Times of Israel page, click on the search icon and search "zuiden, XXX". One can find a second, wilder blog, to which one may subscribe too, here: https://mmvanzuiden.wordpress.com/ or by clicking on the globe icon next to his picture on top. * Like most of his readers, he believes in being friendly, respectful, and loyal. However, if you think those are his absolute top priorities, you might end up disappointed. His first loyalty is to the truth. He will try to stay within the limits of democratic and Jewish law, but he won't lie to support opinions or people when don't deserve that. (Yet, we all make honest mistakes, which is just fine and does not justify losing support.) He admits that he sometimes exaggerates to make a point, which could have him come across as nasty, while in actuality, he's quite a lovely person to interact with. He holds - how Dutch - that a strong opinion doesn't imply intolerance of other views. * Sometimes he's misunderstood because his wide and diverse field of vision seldomly fits any specialist's box. But that's exactly what some love about him. He has written a lot about Psychology (including Sexuality and Abuse), Medicine (including physical immortality), Science (including basic statistics), Politics (Israel, the US, and the Netherlands, Activism - more than leftwing or rightwing, he hopes to highlight reality), Oppression and Liberation (intersectionally, for young people, the elderly, non-Whites, women, workers, Jews, LGBTQIA+, foreigners and anyone else who's dehumanized or exploited), Integrity, Philosophy, Jews (Judaism, Zionism, Holocaust and Jewish Liberation), the Climate Crisis, Ecology and Veganism, Affairs from the news, or the Torah Portion of the Week, or new insights that suddenly befell him. * Chronologically, his most influential teachers are his parents, Nico (natan) van Zuiden and Betty (beisye) Nieweg, Wim Kan, Mozart, Harvey Jackins, Marshal Rosenberg, Reb Shlomo Carlebach, and, lehavdil bein chayim lechayim, Rabbi Dr. Natan Lopes Cardozo, Rav Zev Leff, and Rav Meir Lubin. This short list doesn't mean to disrespect others who taught him a lot or a little. One of his rabbis calls him Mr. Innovation [Ish haChidushim]. Yet, his originalities seem to root deeply in traditional Judaism, though they may grow in unexpected directions. In fact, he claims he's modernizing nothing. Rather, mainly basing himself on the basic Hebrew Torah text, he tries to rediscover classical Jewish thought almost lost in thousands of years of stifling Gentile domination and Jewish assimilation. (He pleads for a close reading of the Torah instead of going by rough assumptions of what it would probably mean and before fleeing to Commentaries.) This, in all aspects of life, but prominently in the areas of Free Will, Activism, Homosexuality for men, and Redemption. * He hopes that his words will inspire and inform, and disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed. He aims to bring a fresh perspective rather than harp on the obvious and familiar. When he can, he loves to write encyclopedic overviews. He doesn't expect his readers to agree. Rather, original minds should be disputed. In short, his main political positions are among others: anti-Trumpism, for Zionism, Intersectionality, non-violence, anti those who abuse democratic liberties, anti the fake ME peace process, for original-Orthodoxy, pro-Science, pro-Free Will, anti-blaming-the-victim, and for down-to-earth, classical optimism, and happiness. Read his blog on how he attempts to bridge any tensions between those ideas or fields. * He is a fetal survivor of the pharmaceutical industry (https://diethylstilbestrol.co.uk/studies/des-and-psychological-health/), born in 1953 to his parents who were Dutch-Jewish Holocaust survivors who met in the largest concentration camp in the Netherlands, Westerbork. He grew up a humble listener. It took him decades to become a speaker too, and decades more to admit to being a genius. But his humility was his to keep. And so was his honesty. Bullies and con artists almost instantaneously envy and hate him. He hopes to bring new things and not just preach to the choir. * He holds a BA in medicine (University of Amsterdam) – is half a doctor. He practices Re-evaluation Co-counseling since 1977, is not an official teacher anymore, and became a friendly, powerful therapist. He became a social activist, became religious, made Aliyah, and raised three wonderful kids. Previously, for decades, he was known to the Jerusalem Post readers as a frequent letter writer. For a couple of years, he was active in hasbara to the Dutch-speaking public. He wrote an unpublished tome about Jewish Free Will. He's a strict vegan since 2008. He's an Orthodox Jew but not a rabbi. * His writing has been made possible by an allowance for second-generation Holocaust survivors from the Netherlands. It has been his dream since he was 38 to try to make a difference by teaching through writing. He had three times 9-out-of-10 for Dutch at his high school finals but is spending his days communicating in English and Hebrew - how ironic. G-d must have a fine sense of humor. In case you wonder - yes, he is a bit dyslectic. If you're a native English speaker and wonder why you should read from people whose English is only their second language, consider the advantage of having an original peek outside of your cultural bubble. * To send any personal reaction to him, scroll to the top of the blog post and click Contact Me. * His newest books you may find here: https://www.amazon.com/s?i=stripbooks&rh=p_27%3AMoshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&s=relevancerank&text=Moshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1