Malaysia apologizes for 'misunderstanding'

Malaysia apologizes for 'misunderstanding'

Agencies, Putrajaya, Malaysia/Jerusalem

Faced with furious criticism from the United States and Europe
over Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's assertion that Jews rule
the world, Malaysia apologized on Friday for any misunderstanding
and claimed that no offense was intended.

Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar struggled to contain the
damage wrought by his blunt-spoken boss, who told a summit of
Islamic leaders on Thursday that "Jews rule the world by proxy.
They get others to fight and die for them."

The speech drew immediate international criticism and raised
fears that it could fan violence against Jews. But it also got a
standing ovation from the kings, presidents, sheiks and emirs -
including key U.S. allies -- gathered at Malaysia's sparkling new
capital, Putrajaya.

Mahathir used assertions of Jewish dominance to buttress his
chief point to the summit of Organization of the Islamic
Conference (OIC) -- the world's biggest Muslim organization --
that Muslims needed to embrace modern knowledge and technology
and overcome divisions over religious dogma that have left them
weakened on the world stage.

But the statements about Jews stood out, and condemnations
were swift and unambiguous from the United States, the European
Union, Australia and Germany, which summoned Malaysia's charge
d'affaires in Berlin to protest the comments as "totally
unacceptable."

Mahathir, who retires on Oct. 31 after 22 years in power, told
the Islamic summit on Thursday Muslims should start using brains
rather than brawn to defeat Israel, accused the Jewish people of
increasing arrogance and said this could be exploited to promote
the cause of the Muslim peoples of the world.

"The Europeans killed six million Jews out of 12 million. But
today the Jews rule this world by proxy," he said.

Italy, speaking for Europe, described Mahathir's remarks as
strongly anti-Semitic.

"Europe profoundly deplores statements by the Malaysian prime
minister in his opening speech to the Islamic conference in
Malaysia," Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini told a news
conference at the EU summit on Thursday.

"I'm sorry that they have misunderstood the whole thing," Syed
Hamid told The Associated Press. "The intention is not to create
controversy. His intention is to show that if you ponder and sit
down to think, you can be very powerful."

Israel on Friday condemned the "anti-Semitic" remarks made by
Mahathir.

"Israel reacts with disgust to these anti-Semitic remarks
which are an insult to the victims of the Shoah", or Nazi
genocide against the Jews during World War II, an Israeli foreign
ministry official told AFP.

"We hope that all enlightened countries in the world concerned
with peace and democracy will protest against these heinous
declarations," Levy Neno said.

Another foreign ministry official, Nimrod Barkan told army
radio that Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom would "launch a
worldwide campaign against such remarks" but did not elaborate.

Israeli ambassador to Singapore Itzhak Shoham had earlier told
AFP: "We don't remember such expressions since the days of
Hitler."

Syed Hamid said the world's Muslims were in a "quagmire" and
feeling "sidelined or marginalized," reflecting a widespread
perception in the Islamic world as the war on terrorism has
evolved into U.S. wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and Israeli has
increased repression of the Palestinians.

"Islam has never advocated being anti anybody including the
Jews," Syed Hamid told reporters in Putrajaya, where the OIC
summit ended on Friday.

"The only problem with the Jews is when the State of Israel
was created," Syed Hamid said, adding that Jews worked in
Malaysia and were welcomed there.

Syed Hamid noted that Malaysia has a policy of religious
harmony, in which the ethnic Malay Muslim majority lives
alongside large non-Muslim Chinese and Indian minorities. The
country is one of Southeast Asia's most modern and wealthy, and
has jailed terror suspects without qualms.