Again, whether you support or oppose placement of an Islamic Center near Ground Zero,
you should know that Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, the leader of the project ( The Cordoba Initiative,)
appears to favor positions that can be characterized as anti-Israel.
A win-win solution to the Palestinian/Israel conflict requires a two-state solution: A safe and secure Jewish state and a safe and secure Palestinian Arab state.
In 2005, Imam Rauf publicly advocated for a one-state solution, in which no separate State of Israel will exist.
Rauf said he does not favor the plan to establish a Palestinian state along with Israel.
"The differences, perhaps, may lie on whether the solution lies in the two-state solution or in a one-state solution. I believe that you had someone here recently who spoke about having a one land and two people's solution to Israel. And I personally - my own personal analysis tells me that a one-state solution is a more coherent one than a two-state solution. So if we address the underlying issue, if we figure out a way to create condominiums, to condominiamise Israel and Palestine so you have two peoples co-existing on one state, then we have a different paradigm which will allow us to move forward."
Source: http://www.investigativeproject.org/2121/rauf-lecture-reveals-radicalism ( Steve Emerson) Audio documentation
As you may already know, Imam Rauf declines to repudiate the terrorist organization Hamas.
When asked to acknowledge Hamas as a terrorist organization, Imam Rauf refused, saying, in part:
"I am a peace builder. I will not allow anybody to put me in a position where I am seen by any party in the world as an adversary or as an enemy."
Souce : http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/imam_terror_error_efmizkHuBUaVnfuQcrcabL
In writings translated from Arabic, Imam Rauf states that he sees Hamas, Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad -- organizations identifed by the U.S. State Department as terrorist organizations -- as organizations seeking 'justice."
//Mark Finkelstein jcrc@dmjfed.org
