Intolerance
Today's conflict between Ishmael and Israel entails both a religious-political conflict and a secular-political conflict. Both aspects are emotionally driven by an intolerance.
With regard to the religious-political conflict, Islam does not respect any other religious tradition, particularly the Jewish religious tradition because the Jewish religious tradition is its rival with respect to monotheism. This disrespect was true from its inception. In modern times, witness the Jews who left Moslem countries in the 1940's and 1950's, leaving everything they had behind because life in the Moslem country was so intolerable to them. Witness the 6th-Century Bamiyan Buddhas, the two largest statues of Buddha, that were blown up by the Taliban Moslems in Afghanistan in 2001. Witness the second century Buddha in north-west Pakistan that was damaged in 2007 by pro-Taliban militants. The Buddhas were offensive to the Moslems. Witness the Moslem silence about these atrocities.
In September 2006, Palestinian gunmen attacked and set fire to the Young Men's Christian Association headquarters in Qalqiliya, a large West Bank city controlled by Hamas. Local government sources identified the attackers as members of the Hamas and Islamic Jihad terror groups, saying the identities of the gunmen are "well known" to Qalqiliya's security forces, which are controlled by the Hamas government. But nothing was done to bring these gunmen to justice. In fact, they were even backed by the Moslem preachers who issued a petition.
We the preachers of the mosques and representatives of major families in Qalqiliya ask you to close the offices of the YMCA because the population of Qalqiliya doesn't need such offices, especially since there are not many Christians in our city.
Today, the Christian population in the Palestinian controlled areas has decreased from about 18% in 1948 to about 1.5% and the Hamas rulers of the Gaza Strip are pressuring non-Muslims to either become Muslims or leave the area. They announced that Jews and Christians will not be allowed to live in a future Palestine unless they are prepared to accept Dhimmi status. This is Islam in its kindness. Those who do not leave will be subject to theft of property and land, beatings, torching of their homes and businesses, and threat of death, and finally being killed. This is Islam in practice, when it becomes the dominant force in a society.