When it came to light that Egypt’s new president had made blatantly anti-Semitic remarks (in the Western context today, they could also be called racist), it finally became necessary for the U.S. government to reluctantly and grudgingly remark on these statements, through the medium of spokesman Jay Carney. (By the way, this also occurred only after the New York Times covered the story, putting Morsi in the most apologetic light.) A State Department statement said that Morsi now saying he is against intolerance was an important first step, and they expected him to show that he believs in religious tolerance.
by Barry Rubin
My problem in dealing with statements such as Morsi’s is that they are treated as isolated acts.
As I’ve been writing for about 30 years, the Muslim Brotherhood has always talked this way, as does Hamas, Hizballah, the Ba’ath Party, the Iranian regime, and many — though not all — Arab intellectuals, politicians, and journalists of living memory. In fact, already another Morsi statement has surfaced: ”We must nurse children on hatred towards Jews.” Note he did not add: “until I become president and then we can start teaching them to live in peace with others of different faiths.”
