News Brief

(IsraelNN.com) Prof. Mordechai Keidar said Sunday that the Islamic Movement in Israel shares much in common with the Hamas terror organization.

Keidar, a lecturer at Bar Ilan University's Department of Arabic Studies, said statements by Islamic Movement leader Sheikh Raed Salah closely match those of Hamas leaders, and said that many Arab leaders use religious images to gain an image of legitimacy on the Arab street. Salah has called for the creation of an Arab leader like Salah a-Din to fight "infidels."

Earlier this year, Keidar made headlines by telling the Arabic news station Al Jazeera that Jerusalem "has been our capital for 3,000 years. We have been there since the time your forefathers used to drink wine, bury their daughters alive, and pray to multiple gods." He added that "Jerusalem is ours for eternity."