On not being Bahai: Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas

Ha-Aretz, July 15

In an interview with Ha-aretz, Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) says (after many other things) that he is still awaiting an apology by former Mossad chief Shabtai Shavit, who said in a newspaper interview that Abbas belongs to the Bahai faith. Shavit explained at length in the interview that a Bahai cannot become a Palestinian leader. That false rumor has been lately disseminated by people with ill-will toward Abbas. He is angry at The Jerusalem Post for prominently reporting that posters claiming he is Bahai are appearing in Arab countries. “This is not the first time that people spread that malicious rumor. I sued a Jordanian newspaper for publishing it. Regrettably, the person I sued passed away before the court ruled unequivocally that the report was false. I am a believing Muslim, son of a family of believers, and committed to the religion’s commandments.”

Short link: http://wp.me/pNMoJ-1oP

Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.