Muslim critics of Israel often say that Jerusalem's holy sites must be
transferred to Muslim control, because of the central role they play in
Islamic theology. For instance, the Dome of the Rock was built on the site where Mohammed is believed to have ascended to Heaven to receive the revelation of the Koran.
However, these people seldom actually quote the Koran itself. This is
probably because the Koran actually supports Jewish claims. Here are several quotes straight from the Koran:
-Mohammed in Sura 5:21 quotes Moses telling the Jews to "enter into the holy land which Allah has assigned to you". While Mohammed later criticizes the Jews for their sins and their refusal to accept Mohammed's message, he never says that, as punishment, Allah has revoked their title to the land. Hence the title still stands, and Muslim anti-Zionists are apostates.
-A case could even be made that Israel's victory over the Arabs in the 1948 war was a judgement by Allah against the Arabs for their apostasy in opposing the Jews. This would be their just reward for transgressing Sura 2:190, which says, "Fight in the way of Allah against those who fight against you, but begin not hostilities."
-Moreover, Sura 60:9 forbids aiding the enemies of the Muslim people.
Contrast this with the Palestinians' continued support of Saddam Hussein, whose hands are red with the blood of Iranian, Kurdish, and Kuwaiti Muslims.
-The Jews' return from 19 centuries of exile is actually the fulfillment of
Islamic prophecy. Sura 17:104 says that "when the promise of the Hereafter comes to pass, We [Allah] shall bring you as a crowd gathered out of various nations".
-Sura 17:4 says, "And We [Allah] gave (clear) warning to the children of
Israel in the Book, that twice would they do mischief on the earth and be
elated with mighty arrogance (and twice would they be punished)!" The
succeeding verses tell us that the punishment referred to was banishment from the land. But "twice" means twice, not three times; hence the Jews, having been banished from the land once by the Babylonians and a second time by Rome, will never again be banished from the land. According to the Koran, Israel is an eternal nation.
-Sura 83:1 says, "Woe to those that deal in fraud"; yet Yasser Arafat & Co.
reneged on his promise to guard Joseph's Tomb in Nablus after the Israeli troops withdrew.
-The Palestinians deny that there ever was a Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. But Sura 17:7 records the destruction of the First Temple by Babylon and the Second Temple by Rome, and Mohammed never contests the Bible's claim that the Temples were in Jerusalem.
"Bear in mind the words of Moses to his people. He said: 'Remember, my people, the favor which Allah has bestowed upon you. He has raised up prophets among you, made you into kings, and given to you that which He has given to no other nation. Enter, my people, the Holy Land which Allah has assigned for you. Do not turn back, or you shall be ruined.'" (Koran 5:20-21); and: "Thereafter We said to the Children of Israel: 'Dwell securely in the Promised Land, and when the Promise of the Hereafter is near fulfillment, We shall gather you all together.'" (Koran 17:104)
