According to Islamic sources, one of the signs of yawm al-qiyamah (Judgment Day) and redemption is the appearance of the False Messiah, masih dajjal, sent by Satan in the guise of the True Messiah. He is charismatic and powerful, his skin is the color of bronze, his hair is curly and his eyes flash fire. He pretends to do good deeds, drawing people to him and making them blindly follow him.
According to the tradition, the False Messiah sows disaster around the world, marking the stage before redemption. The Qur'an says, "You may love something that is bad for you and hate something that is good for you," a convenient way of cajoling people into doing things they might find distasteful, such as blowing themselves up.
When U.S. President Barack Obama began his presidency and bowed down before the Islamists at Al-Azhar University in Cairo, we thought he would bring redemption to the Arab world. But his meddling in the Middle East has led to the final dissolution of most of the Arab states. The United States has muscled through a "nuclear deal" that the Iranians will not sign. How could one even expect Iran to sign anything with a country they call "the Great Satan?" Would you?
 U.S. President Barack Obama speaks at Al-Azhar University in Cairo, on June 4, 2009. (Image source: White House) |
As an additional advantage, since Iran has not actually signed anything, they cannot be accused of cheating -- not that it would matter to them if they were, given their track record of breaking the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). The expected infusion of astronomical amounts cash will enable Iran to complete its nuclear weapons program and intercontinental ballistic missiles along with it; arm Hezbollah even more; spread greater terror and further the Shi'ite takeover of the Sunni regions.
The delusions of the Carter administration resulted in the overthrow of Iran's Shah. This experience should have taught the Americans not to allow the overthrow of Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak. The man was undone by Obama's comic-book fantasies and unworkable, starry-eyed demands. The rise and survival of Egypt's current President, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi -- despite the attempt of the U.S. administration to reinstate Mohamed Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood's regime -- is only due to the will of Allah.
By withdrawing prematurely from a stable, if imperfect, Iraq, Obama caused much chaos in the Middle East. His wishful thinking and rambling concepts -- from America's great followership to resolving conflicts by surrendering -- have stripped America of all deterrence and sucked the Middle East into an ocean of blood. His adolescent worldview, idealizing Islam, is nothing more than nostalgia for the days of his youth. His daydream of a peace-seeking "political Islam," divorced from violence, has brought the Middle East devastation, wretchedness and death.
As Palestinians, our reactions are sorrow and frustration. We have to tell the truth and say that nothing is left of our dreams that the Arab armies would conquer Israel. Those of us who once thought that Islamist terrorist organizations would save us have now realized that this is not going to happen.
The Arab leaders who used to blame the miseries of our people on Jews and Zionists are now left with nothing but their empty words. Their hearts are full of envy, hatred and frustration as they look at the blossoming of Israel, the land Allah promised the Jews in the Qur'an, a flower in a burning field of weeds.
The Muslim clerics who claimed it was forbidden for Muslims to live under the shadow of infidel European Christianity sent our young people to blow themselves up to kill Jews and Christians, to frighten and conquer Europe. They now have to watch as Muslims grovel at Europe's feet and beg the infidel Christians for a safe haven and shelter from... other Muslims.
The leaders of the wealthy Arab states are apathetic and have no solution, or even advice, for the millions of Syrian Muslim refugees who have lost their homes and families; yet the European "Crusaders" have opened their gates to thousands of desperate Muslims who reach their shores. There will always be Muslim sheikhs who will claim that the wave of Muslims seeking salvation in Europe will eventually join those mujahidin [jihad warriors] who for years have been organizing in the European ghettos.
The prophecies of the Qur'an are coming to pass: the Noble Qur'an prophesies that the Jews will return to Beit Almakdis (Jerusalem) and the land around it from the four corners of the world to live there, and it gives the Jews the Blessed Land and Jerusalem.
The Iranians promised us they would liberate Al-Aqsa Mosque, but all they really want is to lull us into a false sense of security, then take over the Arabian Peninsula. They have infiltrated and subverted Yemen and Bahrain, and taken control of the Straits of Bab al Mandeb, Hormuz and countries between Tehran, Baghdad, Damascus and Beirut.
While the Arabs are weak and divided -- thanks to America's policy of divide and conquer -- the Iranians keep on getting stronger. In light of the catastrophe Obama has caused the Arab world -- with millions of refugees flooding the Middle East and invading Europe from Africa and the Arab countries -- the dream of returning to Palestine has vanished.
It has long been obvious that there is no connection whatsoever between the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the chaos in the Middle East. Every Arab regime has, at one time or another, used the conflict as an excuse to oppress its people by telling them they were fighting a common enemy. We have been betrayed by them as much as by the Europeans.
Our fellow Muslims have been happy to use us as a pretext, to have something to point at and complain about: We are waging war; it is because of the Palestinians. We refuse to fight; it is because of the Palestinians. We cannot do what you want; it is because of the Palestinians. At no time did they ever seriously seek to resolve the conflict, nor did they ever want to.
The great benefit we have is that the Israelis no longer rule us. We now have an autonomy. If the Americans and Europeans continue meddling and pressuring one side or the other in our conflict with the Israelis, eventually the stable but still fragile Palestinian social fabric in the West Bank will tear, and at the first sign of weakness Hamas and ISIS will rush in -- as they have long been planning -- to take over.
All we can do is comfort ourselves with the thought that given all the signs, the redemption of the world is coming and the Mahdi everyone is waiting for will soon be here.
Bassam Tawil is a scholar based in the Middle East.
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