The Al-Alam satellite television channel interviews Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim

  His eminence Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim has stressed that the religious authorities in the city of the holy Najaf have issued statements of criticism, denunciation and condemnation for the Israeli aggression against Palestine and called for taking practical steps, He also pointed to the marches and the positions that had been adopted by the Iraqi political leaderships, which expressed the outrage of the Iraqi people as a consequence of those massacres in Gaza and the great solidarity with our people in Palestine.

  These themes came during a meeting conducted by the Al-Alam satellite television channel, on Sunday Jan 4, 2009 at the office of his Eminence Sayyed Abdul Aziz Al-Hakim, the head of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq and the leader of the Unified Iraqi Alliance.

 

The following is the text of the meeting:

 

 Reporter: Israeli aggression against Gaza Strip entered its second week and the death toll and injuries increases continuously, how do you evaluate this aggression?

 

 Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: We have been painfully and in deep sorrow watching these massacres that committed by the Israeli enemy, which have broadly aimed at the man and the life in the Gaza Strip, besides inflicting the sons of our people in Palestine the great massacres and genocide, which led to falling of hundreds of martyrs and thousands of injured and affected, as well as the destruction of infrastructure.

All of that are done under the pretext of settling disputes with influential political parties in the Gaza Strip, despite the fact is that the military operations and the behavior are aimed at destroying every aspect of the life in Gaza Strip, the thing that excited the great surprise, amazement, and the great condemnation.

 

In addition, we have noticed the prominent personalities, the religious authorities and the political leaders in the Arab and Muslim worlds in addition to the great many votes in international community declared their abhorrence and condemnation to this aggressive attitude, which is conducted against the Arab Muslim Palestinian people, who are today being exposed to measures not compatible with the human rights, So, Where are those who allege that they defend the human rights? And where are the applications of the human rights?

 

Incredibility of these slogans have been proved by such  a treatment; furthermore, we find that the international community is not capable to take any step in face of the massacres which have been committed in front of the public opinion, which has been looking at these events moment by moment,

 

Moreover, so far, the Security Council has not been able to make a decision or a statement to stop the bloodshed in such difficult circumstances.

 

But we have seen that the religious authorities in the holy Najaf issued statements of condemnation and denunciation for these actions and called for taking practical steps.

 

In addition, The Iraqi government represented by both the council of the presidency and premiership in Iraq called in the ambassadors of the five permanent members of the Security Council to a meeting attended by all members of the presidency and this is a remarkable phenomenon and a strong message to the world for the sake of making clear the extent of condemnation and denunciation of this position by the Iraqi government, thus,  we have also seen the marches and the positions that had been taken by the political leaderships, as well as we have seen that Iraq today is living in a state of outrage as a result of these massacres, and expressed great solidarity with our people in Palestine.

 

 Reporter: the crimes of the Israeli occupation in Gaza Strip against the Palestinian people, which began to worsen, what do you think about the main objective of this aggression against the Palestinian people?

 

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: It is not strange that Israel adopts its historical attitudes of hostility to the Arabs and Muslims in Palestine, in addition to the mentality of Israel by which it thinks for resolving its problems,

 

but we believe that this kind of targeting and bloodshed in this way and killing the innocent lives will have repercussions and will have a significant negative impact on Israel and on this stereotyped way of thinking and on the implementation of projects, because it will certainly lead to greater solidarity and cohesion in the positions of Arab and Islamic peoples and will gain the great sympathy from the international public opinion, besides that the honorable men in the world today in all different positions can not deal with such a violent way positively, and this is what we find today in the great marches in Europe and the West and in different places and what citizens of non-Muslims are doing and expressing their sympathy with the Palestinian people and with the wounded Gaza in its actual circumstances.

 

Certainly, such irresponsible attitudes and these aggressive actions would create large effects on the cohesion of the positions and in clarifying the scene, the thing that would make clear the aggressive manner practiced by Israel in dealing with such issues.

 

Reporter: concerning the developments in Gaza, what is required of the Arab peoples and what is required of the official position of the Arab governments as well as to the different international Governments in the world in general?

 

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: The responsibility falls upon all parties, and it is a shared responsibility, governments in the Arab, Islamic world and international and the non governmental organizations, intellectuals and the media, in addition, everybody who has the ability to adopt a positive stance, he has to take an initiative that helps in healing these wounds, or gives an assistance to the Palestinian people or exposing these schemes aimed at destroying the life and the Man, furthermore, this role should be exercised, as it was recommended by the religious authorities, the religious scholars and the political leaders in their statements, which were not only limited to denunciation and condemnation, but had put the responsibility upon all of these social strata.

 

Reporter: How do you evaluate the position of the European Union concerning the events in Gaza?

 

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim:  no doubt that we look at the Security Council's position with great surprise and amazement, and certainly there is  influential and effective states in the European Union that have permanent membership in the Security Council, nevertheless, they did not assume their responsibilities in preventing Israel from the continuation of the aggression throughout this period, subsequently, the ground offensive began, the thing that caused more victims and a material damage, which aimed at the Palestinians citizens in this ugly image that we see in the media.

 

Reporter: Who is the major responsible for what is happening in Gaza, is it the Arab governments or the United States?

 

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: the main responsibility falls upon Israel which adopts this aggressive position against Palestine and its people, as well as the responsibility falls upon everybody supports Israel in this aggression.

 

 So, we and the Arab, Islamic and international worlds besides all honorable men in the world have to adopt a position that shows that these aggressive policies do not result in a conclusion, and the injustice does not realize anything, only further reactions that lead to further complication of matters and will not help to resolve them.

Then, where is the Arab initiative that we have been talking about?

 

And how can we talk about the peace in view of this atmosphere of bloodshed, destroying the infrastructure and this big scale of casualties and severe aggressiveness, which blocks the way for seizing any opportunity, by which a comprehensive treatment in the region can be reached?

 

 

Reporter: Can demonstrations and popular sit-ins lead to exert pressure on the Arab governments, the thing that will result in a positive outcome to what is happening in Gaza?

 

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: no doubt that the overwhelming popular anger by the Arab and Muslim peoples besides the international community peoples would pressure and help in finding pressing attitudes for the sake of ceasing the bloodshed and to dissuade Israel from launching its aggressive operations.

 

Reporter:  What is the importance of the religious opinions "Fatwa" issued by the Moslem religious scholars, which urges Muslims to defend and confront the aggression in Gaza?

 

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: We must support our brothers the Palestinians, and the nature of the support is identified by the objective conditions of the peoples and governments, And all have to play their national and moral role in this matter, and no doubt that a significant responsibility fall upon the Muslim scholars on the basis of their special position in issuing the religious guidelines and recommendations, which increase the cohesion of the Islamic peoples in supporting the Palestinian people.

  

Reporter: has the Iraqi stance in the events of Gaza been a positive attitude?

 

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: the religious authorities in the holy Najaf, as well as the scholars of Islam in Iraq have issued  clear statements and expressed their denunciation and condemnation for what is happening in Gaza and called for the adoption of the practical means to stop the bloodshed, on the other hand, the Iraqi government altogether has taken a unified position concerning this matter, and summoned the ambassadors to determine its position and issuing the statements of clear condemnation and the call for setting up popular demonstrations and giving the support and assistance on the humanitarian level, and endeavoring to heal our people's wounds in Gaza.

 

Iraq will do anything that would help and support the fellow Palestinian people; in addition Iraq will contribute in view of the available circumstances to deal with the situation and ceasing the bloodshed.

  

Reporter: Don't you believe that the Gaza Strip needs more supportive attitude from the Iraqi people by setting up demonstrations and sit-ins in order to reduce this cruel assault?

 

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: As I have said, we have noticed these manifestations and these compressive manifestations will continue, the Iraqi people had been accustomed to express their solidarity with the issue of the Palestinian people and their calamities, and as you know, the Iraqi people are suffering from bloodshed every day, today dozens of martyrs and wounded have been exploded by the terrorists near the door of the shrine of Imam Al Kadhim (p) in Baghdad,

 

Thus, the sons of our people are being aimed at by these criminals, as well as we live the day of Ashura, in which all the feelings of the support for the right and its people are revived, and certainly in such as these climates, our people will have progressive positions for the sake of solidarity with the Palestinian people.

 

Reporter: How do you explain the solidarity and sympathy with the Palestinian people by the Iraqi people and the rest of the peoples of the world?

 

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: We explain it in view of the fact that it is a humanistic, moral and religious responsibility, and Arabism and Islam bring us together, so, a people that exposed to this level of the flagrant aggression, violations and genocide, so ,we have to act in solidarity with them by all  available means.

Reporter: What do you think about the results of the continuation of this military campaign against Gaza, what do you expect the results?

 

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: the defeat is for the enemies and more of solidarity and support are for the right position,

 

The blood can not go in vain and be lost, and these pure bloods that are being shed on the Gaza's land would leave their effects and lead to more coherence and support for the Palestinian people, and we are now living in the atmosphere of the month of Moharam, and we are still after passing of 1400 year recall the tragedy of the father of all freemen Imam Hussein (p).