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October 8, 2004
Every person has the right to live
Israeli Arab injured in Tel-Aviv terror attack supports the security
fence and criticizes Palestinian leadership.
SIMA BORKOVSKI SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH BULLETIN
When I held her in my arms as she drew her last breath, she smiled
at me and I felt her soul joining with mine. Since then I feel her
inside me, as if I see the world through her eyes," says Sami
Masrawa, an Israeli Arab who was injured in the July 11 terror attack
near the Tel-Aviv central bus station.
The young woman who was dying in his arms was 20-year-old Sgt. Maayan
Na'im from Bat Yam. Masrawa arrives at our meeting, in a crowded
café in North Tel-Aviv carrying an enlarged portrait of her.
"If it was an Arab woman I was trying to save, nobody would
make a big deal out of it. Since it was an Israeli girl, and a solider,
it became an issue. This is sad because I think every person has
the right to live," he says with pain in eyes.
Hellish experiences
Nothing in this young man's boyish appearance reveals the kind of
bravery he has demonstrated making statements endorsing the security
barrier and calling on Arab Knesset members to resign in interviews
he gave from his hospital bed. These statements resulted in murder
threats for him and his family and eventually caused his wife to
force him out of their home in Jaffa, where he is now considered
"persona non grata."
Losing his home and family wasn't the only price Masrawa had to
pay. Following the horrific sights he was exposed to after the blast,
he is incapable of practising his profession as a chef. "I
cannot hold a knife or cut meat after seeing human limbs spreaded
around me," he explained.
This is Masrawa's second "horror experience"; the previous
one occurred on Bus No. 5 in Tel-Aviv. "The driver, who I knew,
handed me some change to buy him a newspaper. A few minutes after
I got off the bus, there was a huge explosion. I was left with the
change and paper in my hands." No one survived this blast except
Masrawa, who destiny's hand sent out of that cursed bus.
After experiencing this hell on earth twice, he is here with a message
of truth he wishes to share with anyone who cares to listen: "After
death passed me by twice, I feel God is over me and therefore have
no fear of saying what I believe to be the truth. I don't care if
I am murdered tomorrow as long as my voice is heard," he said.
As an Israeli Arab, he is aware of the effect his opinions have
on his fellow Arabs and of how contradictory he must sound to them.
Still, he says it's not his wish to get publicity on their account.
Masrawa not only speaks in favor of the security fence, but he is
also critical of Arab members of the Knesset such as Ahmed Tibi
and Azmi Bishara who always speak against Israel and in favor of
the Palestinian Authority. "How can a person like Bishara swear
allegiance to the state of Israel and then go and meet with its
enemies like Sheikh Nasrallah. These members of Knesset do not truly
represent their public and all they care about is promoting themselves
by encouraging feelings of inferiority among the Israeli Arabs.
"Arab Knesset members incited the riots of 2000, during which
Israeli police killed 13 Israelis Arabs, after Ariel Sharon went
up to the Temple Mount. They claimed that Sharon intended to take
over the Al-Aqsa Mosque, which was a complete lie. Like every Jew,
I believe Sharon is entitled to visit Al-Aqsa and the Temple Mount
if he wants to," Masrawa explained, which is quite a surprising
statement.
Corruption in the PA
It seems I am not the only one astonished by his opinions. His fellow
Arabs blame him for talking "like a Jew" and Israeli peace
activists blame him for leaving them confused as he speaks in favor
of the security fence.
October 2000 is the name of a manuscript he started writing a year
ago in which he wrote about the corruption, not only of the Palestinian
Authority, but also that of the Islamic movement, whose leader,
Sheikh Ra'ad Salah, was arrested in May 2003, together with 13 of
his followers, for transferring millions of shekels to Hamas. Masrawa
criticizes Arab leaders, like Sheikh Salah, for promoting terror
activities instead of using their fortune in positive ways to create
jobs, build factories, etc.
When relating to the fence and its destructive humanitarian effects
on the Palestinians, he says that he prefers the Palestinians being
uncomfortable to terror on the streets of Israel.
"It is true the Palestinians should be compensated for their
lands and for their livelihood being harmed. However, it is not
the Israeli government that should compensate them but rather the
Palestinian Authority. By not fighting terror, Israel was forced
to build the fence."
One by one he points out the sums of money every senior Palestinian
personality has and the sources of its fortune. "It is outrageous
that these so-called leaders should be so rich while their people
starve."
Encourage evolution
Having relatives in the West Bank, he confesses feeling sorry for
the Palestinians and their sufferings but nevertheless he pities
them for what he considers their stupidity. In relation to the growing
force of extreme Islam in the world and its correlation with terror,
he said, "Islam is not the kind of religion that calls for
killing the innocents. Muslims who grew up in Western countries
and experienced the rapidity of modern life are being told that
the world is evolving too fast towards its doom. They can stop this
by fighting Christians and Jews like it was done in ancient times.
Instead of encouraging people to evolve and make a better future
for themselves, these extreme Muslim leaders try to bring their
followers back in time and keep them ignorant. I think Israeli Arabs
should learn from the Jews and keep their families small so they
can give better lives to their children."
The Islamic movement offered to pay him $30,000 if he would recant
his statements, yet Musawa chose to stick to his words. His only
wish now is to influence as many people as possible. Even though
he says politics is not his way, perhaps it's time for a voice like
his to be heard in the Knesset.
Sima Borkovski is a freelance journalist based in Jerusalem.
Her articles have been published by various Jewish publications
both in Europe and in the United States. She also writes for NANA,
a news web site in Israel.
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