Somehow Sa’d Al-Din Al-Shazli seems to have gotten the crazy idea that the Koran makes it incumbent upon Muslims to wage war against Israel. Now where could he have gotten such an impression of the Book of Peace? Has he been listening to greasy Islamophobes? Hasn’t he read the Book of Peace for himself?
For a clue as to how this really might have happened, consult my book The Complete Infidel’s Guide to the Koran. “Former Egyptian Chief of Staff Sa’d Al-Din Shazli: There Will Definitely Be More Wars between the Arabs and Israel,” from MEMRI TV, August 17 and September 14 (posted more recently), with thanks to John):
Following are excerpts from two interviews with former Egyptian chief of staff Sa’d Al-Din Al-Shazli, which aired on Al-Jazeera TV on August 17, 2009 and September 14, 2009.
[…] The [Soviets] said to us openly, even in the days of Gamal Abd Al-Nasser: “We supply [arms] to you so that you can retrieve the land you lost in June 1967, but the destruction of Israel is where we draw the line.”
Interviewer: That’s an important point.
Sa’d Al-Din Al-Shazli: Of course. Who are we to destroy Israel?! There was still a long way to go… They could give us weapons, knowing for sure that we were a long way from destroying Israel, which was the red line of the USSR vis-Ã -vis the US. Obviously, this could be done only under a different international balance of power.
Interviewer: If you had destroyed Israel’s military force in the Sinai and the “Seam Line,” this would be tantamount to the destruction of Israel.
Sa’d Al-Din Al-Shazli: No, no. Even if we had destroyed their armored brigades, we could not have reached the straits. We could not reach the straits as long as the Israeli air force was in place. We did not yet have mobile air defense systems. There was still a long way to go. The destruction of Israel is still difficult to accomplish. The [Soviets] helped us only to retrieve our land, and even this – in stages.
[…]
Interviewer: Do you expect future wars between the Arabs and Israel, or was the October 1973 war the last war, as some people have claimed?
Sa’d Al-Din Al-Shazli: There will definitely be more wars. This is based on our belief in God, the Koran, and the Prophet Muhammad.
Interviewer: So you do not ignore the aspect of faith…
Sa’d Al-Din Al-Shazli: Absolutely not. Without the aspect of faith, we could not have done a thing. Without faith, we are nothing. Like any regular person, faith is the basis for everything. The words “Allah Akbar” are a central component of victory. The great thing is that this religious perception is supported by the strategic perception, which says that sooner or later, the Arabs will definitely defeat the Jews, or defeat Israel.
Interviewer: That is the strategic perception?
Sa’d Al-Din Al-Shazli: This is definite.
We’ll see about that.