‎"Only force and jihad work with those aggressors," said Qaradawi

Additional Reporting By Mohammad Sadiq, IOL Staff 

CAIRO, March 22 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – A host of prominent Muslim scholars exhorted on Monday, March 22, Arab and Muslim rulers to support the Palestinian resistance in the face of the unabated Israeli aggressions culminated in the daybreak assassination of Hamas spiritual leader Sheikh Ahmad Yassin.

Renowned scholar Sheikh Youssef Al-Qaradawi urged all Muslim leaders and peoples to rally behind the Palestinian resistance.

"Only force and jihad work with those aggressors," Sheikh Qaradawi told IslamOnline.net over the phone.

"The assassination of Sheikh Yassin proved that the [moribund] peace talks with the Israelis are nothing but lies. This is the true face of Zionism, which pays no attention to any humanitarian value."

"My heart breaks for Yassin and I offer my heartfelt condolences to my brothers in Hamas, Palestine and Muslims worldwide," said the veteran scholar.

Under the supervision of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, an Israeli helicopter assassinated in the small hours of Monday the 66-year-old wheelchair-bound Yassin.

Qaradawi said the resistance leader was not only a symbol for Palestinians but also to all Muslims.

"He was assassinated by bloodied hands as he was returning from dawn prayers. He met his Creator satisfied and pleased [with his decades of resistance and struggle]. Truly, dying a martyr is the best death a Muslim can get," he said.

He continued: "His martyrdom will not bring in security and peace to Israel as Sharon thinks. The assassination of Sheikh Yassin will rather put a curse on Israel and ushers in its end".

Qaradawi also urged the Palestinians, whether resistance factions or the Palestinian Authority, to act in unison.

"All Palestinians should now unify ranks and heal rifts to avenge the killing of Yassin and his companions."

'Expel The Zionists'

Muslims leaders "should have the guts to expel all Zionists," said Akef ‎

Muslim Brotherhood Guide-General Mahdi Akef denounced the Israeli crime, urging all Arab and Muslim rulers to stand united in the face of Israeli provocations.

"They [the Arab and Muslim rulers] should have the guts to expel all Zionists and sever relations with them," Akef, who was elected January 14 as the new leader of the group, told Aljazeera over phone.

"It is indeed a decisive moment for all [Arab and Muslim] politicians and rulers. The assassination of Yassin is part of an ongoing series of Israeli aggressions."

Liberation Of Palestine

Sheikh Hamid Al-Bitawi, the Imam of Al-Aqsa mosque and head of the Palestinian scholars league, said it is high time for all Muslim and Arab leader to liberate occupied Palestine.

"Stop negotiations, all kinds of normalization and fear God," he said, addressing Muslim leaders.

"It is your national and religious duty to liberate [occupied] Palestine," Bitawi said in statements to Aljazeera.

He urged the Palestinian Authority in particular to cut off all peace talks with the Israelis.

"Today, they assassinated Sheikh Yassin, and tomorrow they would, God forbid, assassinate Abu Ammar [Yasser Arafat]," he warned.

Sharon’s advisor Amos Gilad earlier said described President Arafat as "much more dangerous that Yassin."

"The assassination of Yassin is not only a message to Hamas but to Fatah, the Islamic Jihad and all resistance factions," Bitawi said.

"We the Palestinians will not throw in the towel for the Zionists. We will not give up…We are the natives of this homeland."

Al-Quds Mufti Sheikh Ekrema Sabri also called on Arab rulers to stop "shrinking from their responsibilities".

"If the Arab rulers took a unified stance, the Israeli occupation would not dare to commit such crimes against the Palestinians," he told the Doha-based broadcaster.

‎"It really amazes me how some Arab states still hold meetings with ‎Zionist officials," said Fadlalah

Lebanon's top Shiite scholar Hussein Fadlalah agreed that Arabs and Muslims should now face up to their responsibilities.

"It really amazes me how some Arab states still hold meetings with Zionist officials and they are fully aware that the so-called peace process is aimed at breaking the staunch will of the Palestinians."

Sheikh Yassin was born in the village of Al-Joura south of the Gaza Strip in 1938.

Yassin's emblematic image is ubiquitous throughout the Gaza Strip, and adorns Israeli prison cells of many Palestinians.

He frequently said Hamas was willing to stop its operations if Israel ended the occupation of Palestinian territories and stopped killing Palestinian women, children and innocent civilians.

His assassination has drawn fire from all Palestinian factions, who declared an "open war" against the Israeli occupation.