SINGAPORE: The humanitarian pause in the war between Israel and Hamas provided much-needed relief for the civilians caught in between. It also scaled down the shrill and savage rhetoric issued by both sides since the onset of the war on Oct 7.
We should seize this moment and redirect attention to bringing about a peaceful resolution. One approach is to learn from the dangers that have transpired thus far.
USE OF INFLAMMATORY RELIGIOUS RHETORIC
The unfettered use of inflammatory religious rhetoric is of serious concern. It could cause an already explosive situation in the conflict zone to escalate, leading to a spillover of religious tensions in societies elsewhere.
The likelihood is very real as religious history, scripture and vocabulary have been appropriated by many parties and in various ways. This is a cruel irony given that religion should be a positive resource for harmony, not a catalyst for conflict and division.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu turned to the Old Testament when he launched the ground assault on Gaza. More specifically, he referred to God’s command to King Saul, to punish and kill the people of Amalek for their persecution of Jews. By likening the Palestinians in Gaza to the Amalekites, he framed the Israeli military response in biblical and religious terms. It was wrong to characterise the Palestinians in this way.
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Likewise, moderate figures and institutions in the Muslim world have become much more strident and combative in their condemnation of Israel for its ferocious attack on the Gazans.
In many parts of the Muslim world, anti-Jewish rhetoric is gaining traction and apocalyptic scriptural references are now spreading fast. Last month, a group of Muslim scholars issued a fatwa (religious edict) characterising the Israel-Hamas conflict as a religious war and called upon Muslim countries to defend the Gazan people militarily.
This is very worrying. We cannot afford to have a world in which faith communities cite scriptural commands to exterminate each other, because there are also many references to peace, reconciliation and compassion in the scriptures.
Literalist interpretations of religious texts play straight into the hands of extremists. Even Pope Francis remarked recently that the Israel-Hamas conflict had gone beyond war to terrorism.
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RELIGIOUS SCRIPTURE CALLS FOR PEACE AND RECONCILIATION
Many Muslims understand the evil that is terrorism and have frequently spoken against it. They have been arguably the worst affected every time an Islamist terrorist group strikes, because Islamophobia increases and relations with non-Muslims weaken.
Muslim leaders have also taken pains to point out clearly that extremist interpretations of Muslim scriptures are misguided and misplaced, and that they conveniently ignore their references to peace, reconciliation and compassion.
Netanyahu’s use of biblical scripture when launching the attack on Gaza was similarly misguided and misplaced. In fact, biblical scholars have called out the error in Netanyahu’s reading of the Amalek story, especially in its implied comparison of the Palestinians with the Amalekites. He also seemed oblivious to the core biblical value of compassion.
The scale of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza calls for deep reflection, compassion and hospitality. Abraham, the father of Jews and Muslims, was renowned for his wonderful hospitality. Instead of peddling dangerous and violent narratives, we should emulate Abraham’s generosity and charity unto others. On the contrary, with the recent flareup, a solution to the conflict seems more distant than ever.
Although Hamas’ brutal attack on Oct 7 precipitated the current war, Israel’s all-out retaliation with scant regard for the safety of innocent Palestinians is creating the worst of perceptions towards itself. For many, Israel is seen as using its superior military power with vehemence to destroy Gaza and its Palestinian population.