Imam’s incendiary sermon on Middle East opportunistic

Dr T Hargey, The Open Mosque, Cape Town

When Abdurahman Alexander, the imam of that orthodox institution, gives a highly incendiary sermon to mark the end of the blessed month of Ramadan, his manifestly ill-informed address only entrenches prejudice and partisanship.

Instead of focusing on the venal corruption and religious tyranny of the Muslim Judicial Council, this opportunistic stalwart of the traditional Islamic clergy expediently defects attention from the growing rot that pervades the local Muslim community by highlighting the conflict in the Middle East.

A far more effective and beneficial strategy would be to urge everyone in Israel/Palestine to come to the negotiating table so that a genuinely just, equitable, and lasting peace can be secured that guarantees the legitimate rights of Jews and Arabs.

Anything that jeopardises the future of Jews in the region only exacerbates matters and encourages hardliners and extremists on both sides of the divide.