Nonie Darwish
>From Wikipedia Nonie Darwish (_Arabic_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_language) : نوني درويش) is an _American_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States) writer and public speaker. She is the author of the book Now they Call Me Infidel; Why I Renounced Jihad for America, Israel and the War on Terror. Her second book out in January 2009 is Cruel And Usual Punishment: The Terrifying Global Implications of Islamic Law. She is also a public speaker and founder of "Arabs for Israel"._[2]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_note-1) She states her mission is to "promote reconciliation, acceptance and understanding" between Israelis and Arabs. Born in Egypt, Darwish is the daughter of an _Egyptian Army_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_Army) lieutenant general, who, when assassinated by the Israeli army in 1956, was called a "_shahid_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shahid_(martyr)) " by the Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser,_[3]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_ note-2) although Darwish blames "the _Middle Eastern_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_East) _Islamic culture_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_culture) and the propaganda of hatred taught to children from birth" for the assassination. In 1978, she moved with her husband to the United States, and converted to _evangelical Christianity_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evangelical_Christianity) there. After September 11, 2001 she has written on Islam-related topics._[4]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_note-biog-3) Biography Born in _Cairo_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cairo) , _Egypt_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egypt) , Darwish moved to _Gaza_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaza) in the 1950s when her father, Lt. General _Mustafa Hafez_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mustafa_Hafez&action=edit&redlink=1) , was sent by _Gamal Abdel Nasser_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamal_Abdel_Nasser) to serve as commander of the Egyptian Army Intelligence in Gaza, which was then occupied by Egypt. Hafez founded the _fedayeen_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fedayeen) who launched raids across Israel's southern border, that between 1951 and 1956, killed some 400 Israelis. In July 1956 when Nonie was eight years old, her father became the first targeted assassination carried out by the _Israeli Defense Forces_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_Defense_Forces) in response to Fedayeen's attacks, making him a shahid._[5]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_note-4) _[6]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_note-newsblaze-5) During his speech announcing the nationalization of the _Suez Canal_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suez_Canal) , Nasser vowed that all of Egypt would take revenge for Hafez's death. Darwish claims that Nasser asked her and her siblings, "Which one of you will avenge your father's death by killing Jews?"_[7]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_note-6) Darwish explains: "I always blamed Israel for my father's death, because that's what I was taught. I never looked at why Israel killed my father. They killed my father because the fedayeen were killing Israelis. They killed my father because when I was growing up, we had to recite poetry pledging jihad against Israel. We would have tears in our eyes, pledging that we wanted to die. I speak to people who think there was no terrorism against Israel before the _'67 war_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six-Day_War) . How can they deny it? My father died in it." _[8]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_note-cbnnews-7) After his death, her family moved back to Cairo, where she attended _Catholic_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catholic) high school and then the _American University in Cairo_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_University_in_Cairo) , earning a BA in _Sociology_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sociology) /_Anthropology_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthropology) . She then worked as an editor and translator for the _Middle East News Agency_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Middle_East_News_Agency&action=edit&re dlink=1) , until emigrating to the _United States_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States) in 1978 with her husband, ultimately receiving United States citizenship. [ Unsaid in this article is why she moved to the US. This was because under Shariah law , since she married a Coptic Christian man, she was subject to the death penalty. I heard her on C-Span Saturday and she is vehemently opposed to all literalistic understanding of Islam --which she regards, as I do., as a form of Fascism. Indeed, she goes further and says that any religion that orders killing of people for their beliefs isn't a religion at all but is a form or organized crime. She made it very clear that Islam, as actually taught and practiced in Muslim lands, is fundamentally violent and anti-peace. The view heard among many Muslims in the West, and their naive apologists, that jihad means spiritual struggle, is pure malarkey and such a view is never taught in Arab lands , where it is clear that jihad means violent actions against others in the name of Allah. In other words, to be pro-peace and pro-Islam is a complete contradiction. Darwish is damned smart, by the way, and knows Shariah law inside and out ] BR comments --------------------------------------------------- After arriving in the US, she became a Christian and began attending a non-denominational _evangelical church_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evangelicalism) . About a year after the _September 11, 2001 attacks_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11,_2001_attacks) , Darwish began writing columns critical of Islamic extremism and the silence of moderate Muslims. "After 9/11 very few Americans of Arab and Muslim origin spoke out and from my experience it took us a long time to get noticed by Western media. Western media still regards Muslim organizations such as CAIR as representative of moderate Muslims in America. This is not the case. Muslim groups in the U.S. try to silence us and intimidate American campuses who invite us to speak. I often tell Muslim students that Arab Americans who are speaking out against terrorism are not the problem, it’s the terrorists who are giving Islam a bad name. And what the West must do is ask the politically incorrect questions and we Americans of Arab and Muslim origin owe them honest answers."_[4]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_note-biog-3) Darwish's Arabs for Israel website describes itself as an organization of _Arabs_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabs) and _Muslims_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslims) who "respect and support the State of Israel", welcome a "peaceful and diverse _Middle East_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_East) ", reject "suicide/homicide terrorism as a form of Jihad", and promote "constructive self-criticism and reform" in the Arab/Muslim world.[_citation needed_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed) ] She often says "Just because I am pro- Israel does not mean I am anti- Arab, its just that my culture is in desperate need for reformation which must come from within". She has spoken on numerous college campuses including _Harvard_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvard_University) , _Yale_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yale_University) , _Columbia_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_University) , _Princeton_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princeton_University) , _Brown_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_University) , _Hebrew University_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebrew_University) in _Jerusalem_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerusalem) , _Oxford_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford_University) , _Cornell_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornell_University) , _UCLA_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UCLA) , _NYU_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NYU) , _Virginia Tech_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Tech) , _UC Berkley_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UC_Berkley) and several others. She has also spoken on _Capitol Hill_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Congress) , and the _House of Lords_ (http://en.w ikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Lords) . Views on Islam Darwish believes Islam is a backward and authoritarian ideology that is attempting to impose on the world the norms of seventh-century culture of the Arabian Peninsula. She writes that Islam is a "sinister force" that must be resisted and contained. She remarks that it is hard to "comprehend that an entire religion and its culture believes God orders the killing of unbelievers." She accuses Islam and Sharia of forming a retrograde ideology that adds greatly to the world's stock of misery._[9]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_note-book-8) She claims the Qur'an is a text that is "violent, incendiary, and disrespectful" and says that barbarities such as brutalization of women, the persecution of homosexuals, honor killings, the beheading of apostates and the stoning of adulterers come directly out of the Qur'an._[9]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_note-book-8) Notes 1. _^_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_ref-dailynews_0-0) Friedman, Lisa. _"Ex-Muslim calls on her people to reject hatred"_ (http://www.truthandgrace.com/escapeislam.htm) , _Los Angeles Daily News_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles_Daily_News) , 5 June 2005. (reproduced) 2. _^_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_ref-1) _Arabs for Israel_ (http://arabsforisrael.com/) 3. _^_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_ref-2) "We Don’t Like to Hear That Here". November 20, 2006. "In Nasser’s famous speech to nationalize the Suez Canal, he hailed my father as a national hero, a shahid." 4. ^ _a_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_ref-biog_3-0) _b_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_ref-biog_3-1) _Interview on Now They Call Me Infidel on National Review Online_ (http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MjUyOWJkNTMyOGJjZjdiNzQzOGQ1MDk3MWMwOWU3MGU) 5. _^_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_ref-4) Gannett News Service. _"Peace moms push tough love in Arab-Israeli conflict"_ (http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/news/national/021006b7_peacemakers) , Tucson Citizen, 10 February 2006. 6. _^_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_ref-newsblaze_5-0) Gray, Alan _"Mothers for Peace Challenge The Brainwashing of Middle East Children"_ (http://newsblaze.com/story/20060216080217nnnn.nb/topstory.html) , News Blaze, 16 February 2006. 7. _^_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_ref-6) _Interview with_ (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml;jsessionid=1SLC02MASLYXPQFIQMFSFFWAVCBQ0IV0?xml=/opinion/2006/02/12 /do1205.xml&sSheet=/portal/2006/02/12/ixportal.html) _Daily Telegraph_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daily_Telegraph) ; "We were brought up to hate and we do." 12 February 2006 8. _^_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_ref-cbnnews_7-0) CBN News. _"Call Me Infidel: An Ex-Muslim Speaks Out"_ (http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/67146.aspx) , _CBN News_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CBN_News) , 27 March, 2007. (reproduced) 9. ^ _a_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_ref-book_8-0) _b_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_ref-book_8-1) _"Throwing the book at sharia law"_ (http://www.financialpost.com/scripts/story.html?id=1261944) . _http://www.financialpost.com/scripts/story.html?id=1261944_ (http://www.financialpost.com/scripts/story.html?id=1261944) . 10. _^_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nonie_Darwish&printable=yes#cite_ref-9) _http://www.cblpi.org/media/press_release.cfm?ID=19_ (http://www.cblpi.org/media/press_release.cfm?ID=19)
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