Almost 4 days after the first interview the American President Barack Obama held with news media after his inauguration and which was an exclusive to "Al-Arabiya", Islamic leaders in Cairo announced their welcoming of him and their optimism for the new direction he made clear about taking with regards to Muslims as well as his intention of giving a speech at one of the great Islamic capitals.
And even the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, the leaders of the "formerly radical" groups, viewed Obama as having something different than his predecessor. They went to welcome him for giving a much anticipated speech from the Egyptian capital, and, too, the large Al-Azhar world went, on the chance that he would give his anticipated speech from inside the mosque of Al-Azhar, a confirmation that there would be no legal objection preventing such a thing from happening.
Dr. Mahmud Rafit 'Uthman, a professor at Al-Azhar University and member of the society for Islamic research said to "alarabiya.net" that, "It's a good idea for President Obama to give his speech to the Muslim world "from inside the Al-Azhar Mosque."
And he added, "There is a law permitting him to be in the Mosque and giving a speech, despite him not being Muslim, on that condition that he does not stand at the pulpit. The Messenger (God bless him and grant him salvation) used to receive delegations inside the mosque, the reason being Al-Azhar allows tourists to enter, most of them non-Muslim."
Dr. 'Uthman viewed it as a very good idea for Obama to speak from Cairo, and from inside Al-Azhar Mosque or in front of it. "It would be a symbol he would need to gain favor in the Islamic world; if he wanted to extend his hand, we would have no objection to attuning ourselves to him and listening to him and submitting our requests to him, and especially telling him that we are scrutinizing the change of non-neutral American policy toward us and the protection of democracies."
The Egyptian Islamic Party
Dr. Najih Ibrahim, the Vice President of the Advisory Council of the Islamic Party and one of its historical founders, as well as the chief editor on its internet site told "alarabiya.net", "We see Obama as being better than his predecessor, and therefore we call on Al-Qa'ida not to undertake any reckless or irresponsible actions which would cause him to be worse than George Bush, especially since he has come to extend his hand for peace. Even if these matters seems like formalities, it is nevertheless a good start; for he who has come with skepticism will come again assured that he has found encouragement from us, we haven't assailed him with hostility or at least with attacks.
And he added, "September 11 pulled the Islamic movements and the Islamic and Arab world into a conflict with America and the West which we neither wanted nor were ready for and we do not want that this conflict be repeated, one in which Muslims were lost."
Ibrahim went on to say, " We want to turn the page on George Bush and his policies; we want to give Obama the chance to show us that he wants peace and we want that as well, and that he corrects what he can. We realize he can't do everything, but he should do what is possible regarding Sharia' and lawful policy; we mean to encourage him to create what is possible from what is good.
He added, "Even if Obama were able to prevent the heinous acts of his predecessor and didn't come to us in our interest, we would have to encourage him not to drag the Islamic world into something in which we lost previously; Iraq and Afghanistan have been occupied and America has made its way to the center of the whole region."
The Vice President of the Advisory Council of the Islamic Party said, "The foundation of Islam is extending the hand to the hand extended to you out of goodness; we therefore welcome him speaking from Cairo or Saudi Arabia or from any Islamic capital, this is better for us than the one who comes to these capitals to bomb them, occupy them, or destroy them, then we can't pay for it."
He added that the Islamic Party sees good signs in Obama's initial actions up until now, among them his recent announcements on "Al-Arabiya"..pointing to the importance of jumping on this opportunity through rational speech. "We must understand that Obama will not come as a ruler of the Muslims, but for America and to act in its interests and if we are acting on behalf of our country it could be possible to meet in the middle and achieve the interests of both groups."
He continued saying, "His talk with Al-Arabiya was good; we see many positive things in it, which we must deepen. And we are not changing them into negatives. We will not treat him unjustly or fight him or carry out attacks similar to those on September 11. This would make him even worse than George Bush."
Dr. Najih Ibrahim pointed out that he sees that, "Allah, let him the Sublime be praised, has foredained this man to be better than his predecessor and we have to try to help the goodness grow in him; and we take from him what is possible and if our dealing with him improves the Islamic world, it will bring many benefits and ward of many malicious acts."
The Muslim Brotherhood
However, Muhammad Mahdi 'Akif, the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood group, the largest and oldest of the Islamic movements in the world and in Egypt told "alarabiya.net" that they are not interested in the speech which Obama promised to give to the Islamic world and are not concered about which capital he will pick for it, whether it's Cairo or another one.
He went on to say, " We don't care one iota, and this is because of him and whoever his hosting him; we don't care at all about the politics he will use in his dealings with the region. We won't rely on him much, because his actions and his might are only determined by us as Arabs. And if we were all at the heart of one man and if we all had one agenda and one vision, we could force all people to respect us, but we are a separated nation and there is no hope for someone other than us to stand by our side."
He turned to Obama's statement in his conversation with "Al-Arabiya", that the latter has new plans for his relations with the Islamic world, and as to whether that meant, in the opinion of the Muslim Brotherhood, a change in American policy, 'Akif answered, "We welcome any plan which brings about justice and freedom and fairness to this region. But we have yet to see anything. Of course we will afford the opportunity, because we welcome any charitable act for this nation and the Palestinian situation especially. We are with whomever stands with the people against oppression and with the law abiders against Zionism."
Former leader in "Al-Jihad"
Dr. Kamal Al-Sa'id Habib, the former leader in the Al-Jihad group and a scientist in the field of Islamic movements, considered in his talk with "alarabiya.net" that, "Obama is the first American president to talk directly to the Islamic world specifically, in his inauguration speech and his relationship with it will be based on respect and mutual benefits. This opens many doors for Islamic movements; this may be an era different than the one in the previous administration."
He noted here that some Islamicists sent him letters, such as one from the wife of the Islamic leader imprisoned in Egypt, 'Abbud Al-Zamar, who asked him to intervene into the matter of Shaykh 'Ummar 'Abd al-Rahman--imprisoned in the United States--and welcomed the special decision at the prison camp at Guantanamo. And the letter from Abu 'Ummar Al-Masri who had been kidnapped by CIA agents in Italy, in which he explained his pain and subjection to torture and the issue of building a new bridge in the era of Obama.
Dr. Habib expressed his belief about the existence of specific indications from many Islamicists, about their hope that the new president is different than the the previous administration, from which the Islamic world came out as the biggest loser.
Call to Al-Qa'ida for a truce
'Assam Dirballa, a leader in the Islamic Party, called on Al-Qa'ida, on the official website of the group, to announce a unilateral truce with the U.S. for a period of 4 months, in response to Obama's decision to postpone trying the prisoners in Guantanamo for 120 days in preparation for their release or trial before military tribunals.
Dirballa said, adressing Al-Qa'ida, "What would it hurt if you announced to Obama what kind of good you want, and you said, 'We are holding out our hands in peace based on mutual benefits and what the goodness of mankind can achieve.'"
He added, "Let us welcome peace based on respect for Islamic identity and the right of our people to live free from the shadow of dogma and Sharia', and based on mutual benefits with America and the world."
Dirballa clarified that Obama has something different, "Even if we disagreed about the definition of its scope, he summed it up in one word in his inauguration speech as President of America addressing the Islamic world: We need a new direction based on shared benefits and mutual respect.
In his first televised interview since becoming the President of the United States, an exclusive for the news channel "Al-Arabiya", on Tuesday 1/29/2009, Obama made clear that he would keep the promises he made during his presidential campaign with regards to the Islamic world, in addition to giving a special address to Muslims from a large Islamic capital, in order to, politcally translated, "extend a hand of friendship" to the Islamic world and to strengthen relations which the United States had built.
He made clear that, "What we are proposing to the Islamic world is a hand of friendship." This, after the tensions which caused the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the policies which his predecessor George Bush had pursued.
http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2009/02/01/65499.html#004
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