(Gatestone Institute) Bassam Tawil - This week, Palestinians declared a general strike in the West Bank and Gaza to protest Israel's new Nation-State Law. It is far from clear, however, why they should be concerned about the new law since they are not Israeli citizens and are not part of the Israeli political system. The Palestinians living in these areas have their own (Palestinian) citizenship, their own flag, their own parliament and their own government. They are not affected by the law in any way. The Palestinian Legislative Council enacted the "Palestinian Basic Law" in 2002. Article 4 of the law states: "Islam is the official religion in Palestine. The principles of Islamic Sharia shall be the main source of legislation. Arabic shall be the official language." Before condemning Israel for seeking to preserve its character as a Jewish state, the world needs to explain why it is all right for the Palestinians to plan that their future state will be ruled by Islamic law. Why are the Palestinians permitted to have Islam as their official religion, while Israel is denounced for seeking to maintain its Jewish character and identity?
2018-10-05 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive