I discovered my latest Substack subscription, 'Guerre and Shalom' (War and Peace), through my LinkedIn feed. Daniel Clarke-Serret describes his blog, 'Guerre and Shalom,' as offering an alternative perspective on major geopolitical issues, with emphasis on Middle Eastern conflicts, diplomacy, peacemaking, and dialogue.

This man is proof that Zionism IS sexy. Much like Gal Gadot, who epitomizes charm and intelligence on the global stage, Daniel brings allure and intellectual rigor to discussions.

I wasn’t sure whether to post one of his poems, an all too familiar ‘theory of antisemitism,’ or another work. I decided to stick with the post that caught my attention, partially because it affirmed what I had also noticed: amid war with H@mas, Jerusalem seems safer than Ramadans past.

Here’s the original post which I’m copying below. I got permission for this repost. Sign up for Daniel’s substack!

Note 1: This is my 2nd repost about Ramadan Violence: https://kingchill.com/jude/repost-ramadan-violence
Note 2: Jacob Magid at TOI shares our view: https://www.timesofisrael.com/despite-hamass-hopes-and-bidens-fears-ramadan-didnt-spread-gaza-war-to-jerusalem/

Happy Ramadan: An outbreak of peace in Jerusalem

A welcome miracle in the City of Peace

Daniel Clarke-Serret; April 10, 2024

There are three certainties in life: Death, taxes and disruption on the Temple Mount during Ramadan. Or so I thought. Because this festive season, a miracle happened. The festivities during the Muslim Holy Month went off without a hitch. Who would have thought it?!

For years, the gullible Western world has been fed a lie. That Israel is preventing Muslim prayer at the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Even that the mosque inself in under threat. Each year the Hamas mob has incited riots at Judaism’s holiest sight, soldiers have been attacked, stones have been stockpiled and thrown from within the mosque, Western Wall worshippers have had rocks launched upon their heads from above and the IDF has been send up upon Mount Moriah to bring order. Sometimes this has be used as a tool to bring war to the Gaza Strip.

Inevitably, pictures of the rioters being arrested have been shared far and wide by “progressives” and the State of Israel has been blood-libeled. Of course Muslim worshippers have had full freedom of worship throughout all these years, and rightly so, but many armchair observers would sooner believe Hamas claims over Israeli spokespeople.

2022:

The inevitability of these “spontaneous” Temple Mount riots - and the inevitably schewed interpretation of them - has angered me for years. Here’s me satirising on LinkedIn during Ramadan 2022:

HAMAS STUDIOS RELEASE A NEW FILM: Al-Aqsa XII: The Desecration of Ramadan

Critics say that this film franchise is becoming extremely tedious and repetitive and that these film producers need to think outside of the box. FILM magazine has suggested possible subjects they could consider for new movies including:
a) Peace: The Final Frontier
b) Ramadan: How to honour the holy month of peace. [Netflix 10 part documentary]

Hamas have replied saying that their current franchise is such a cash cow that bringing it to an end would cripple their studio. Also they would likely lose loyal viewers from around the world with Jean-Luc Mélenchon, Jeremy Corbyn, Ihlan Omar and Podemos in Spain who have said that their support is dependent on continuing the war indefinitely.

In this light, Hamas have announced a new film for next Ramadan called.....

Al-Aqsa XIII: This is getting boring now

In it, there will be all the elements of the predictable formula including:
a) A "spontaneous" riot before Friday prayers.
b) The rioters will put up Hamas posters, damage the mosque itself with stones and desecrate it with shoes.
c) The Jordanian authorities will do nothing to stop it.
d) The Israeli forces will then ascend the Temple Mount to restore law and order.
e) Hamas will fire rockets from Gaza.
f) Then the tension! Will the Israelis be able to maintain calm or will there be another war with the unecessary and unfortunate deaths of civilians?

In all seriousness, this predictable, manufactured cycle must end now and Jordan we are looking to you to stop allowing this every single year. Do you duty!

By the way, the first instalment of the Al-Asqa film franchise was released in 1929 before the State of Israel even existed. Here are the details courtesy of Emily Shrader (#jpost):

"NEARLY 100 years ago in 1929, Muslims in Jerusalem, Amin al-Husseini, the grand mufti of Jerusalem (a Hitler supporter) and his supporters spread the lie that the Jews were plotting to destroy al-Aqsa Mosque. This ignited violent riots in the city, which resulted in the burning of Jewish prayer books at the Western Wall, along with the pillaging of Jewish shops and violence against Jews.

Instead of calming the riots, Husseini used the opportunity to enrage the mob further, leading an angry group of Arabs to mass murder the Jewish community in Hebron, effectively ethnically cleansing the city. This has come to be known as the Hebron massacre, which notably occurred long before the State of Israel was declared in 1948 and of course before the “occupation” in 1967. "

I repeat:
Ramadan is a holy month of peace.
Al-Aqsa is a holy site of prayer.
Show some respect.”

Here's me again satirising on the same topic in 2022:

BRITISH IRONY ALERT: JEWISH RESIDENT VISITS CATHOLIC SHRINE WITHOUT A HITCH

“Happy belated Easter to all Christian readers.

Thrilled to announce to my readers that I managed to visit the Catholic holy sites of Zaragoza - the Jerusalem of the Hispanic world - without a problem.

At the huge esplanade of Plaza del Pilar, I entered the holy shrine The Dome of the Rock - sorry the Basilica of the (stone) Pilar - upon which the Virgin Mary is said to have appeared whilst still living in Judea. I also saw from afar the accompanying cathedral Al Asqa…. sorry, I mean La Seo.

Happily:

a) No stones were thrown at me by rioting, fanatical Catholics.
b) The police maintained law and order.
c) Women were allowed to dress as they wished.
d) Non-Catholics were allowed to pray and/or visit .
e) I didn't cause an international incident.
f) The UN Security Council has not been called into session.
g) The only damage caused to the shrine were two unexploded civil war bombs which miraculously didn't explode.

Wait a minute. News just in. A member of the far-right Vox party has called for La Seo to be protected with blood from Jews and Muslims. Spanish coalition crisis in progress!”

2023:

During Ramadan 2023, Hamas were still at their old riot-inducing, propaganda-spreading, holy site-desecrating tricks. Here’s me quoting the Australian Muslim Times on LinkedIn one year later: (https://www.amust.com.au/2020/05/objectives-of-fasting-in-fasting-month/)

A REMINDER TO HAMAS ABOUT THE PEACEFUL OBJECTIVES OF RAMADAN

"Fasting is a divine prescription with great objectives. Muslims fast to achieve those objectives to become RIGHTEOUS PEOPLE because righteousness is the solutions for problems in our lives.

[Objectives include...]
1) to learn Taqwa. Taqwa is the fear of accountability in the court of Allah on the Day of Judgment in next life.... After one-month practice, we use the same fear in all actions in our lives to avoid selfishness, greed, corruption, unfairness, abuse, VIOLENCE, stealing, robbing etc.
2) To learn self-control. During the fast, we avoid ANGRY OUTBURST, abuse, QUARREL, FIGHT and wrong actions because Allah prohibited them. As a result, we can control our anger, greed, dishonesty, and all negative traits for Allah’s sake. Self-control makes us winner in our inner battle between right and wrong tendency in us.
3) To learn to love Allah very much.... Then for His love, we become loving people, PEACEFUL PEOPLE and we enjoy peace in our hearts in good or in difficult time, because our Loving Allah never forsakes us.
4) To clean ourselves from sins with repents, and with amending our wrongs.
5) To learn to be the people with best character by following the teachings of fasting such as giving up LYING, cheating, DECEIVING, dishonesty and unfairness etc."

Hamas: On a scale of 1 to 10, how are you doing this year?”

2024:

But this year, a miraculous change. There has been prayer after peaceful prayer upon the Temple Mount. There has been Iftar after peaceful Iftar meal upon the Temple Mount. Peace has reigned in the Holy City. And the reason is clear. With a war already in Gaza, there is no need to provoke a war. With the Western world already blood-libeling Israel with “genocide”, there is no need to use the Temple Mount to provoke a blood libel. And with murder and terrorism already having been used against Israelis on 7th October, there is no need to provoke an Intifada as per 2000. Not to mention that Hamas is rather occupied at the moment. So we can all have a year off the Ramadam riots.

Isn’t it ironic that this calm is happening is the most tense year in the Middle East for years? Isn't it amazing that the “angry” Palestinians are far less angry during these hostilities than during calm 2022?

Could it just be that the previous Ramadan riots weren’t spontaneous after all? Could it just be that Hamas has used this Holy site to provoke war for year after year? Could it be that 2nd Intifada was a planned incitement by people with murder on their mind?

But on a positive note, at least we now know that the majority of Palestinian Muslims are peaceful and want to celebrate Ramadan in peace. For without Hamas incitement and hate, they just decided to have a nice family party in a beautiful city. Just as it should be.