Malaysian leader claims that Jews 'rule the world by proxy'

Slobodan Lekic, Associated Press

Published October 17, 2003

MUSL17

PUTRAJAYA, MALAYSIA -- In a blistering attack on Israel and hectoring criticism of the Islamic world, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Muhammad told a summit of Muslim leaders Thursday that Jews ruled the world and recruited others "to fight and die for them."

"The Europeans killed 6 million Jews out of 12 million, but today the Jews rule the world by proxy," Mahathir, a widely respected statesman in Asia and the developing world, said in a speech as he became chairman of the 57-nation Organization of the Islamic Conference.

"They get others to fight and die for them," he said.

The speech drew immediate criticism from Israel and Jewish organizations, which feared it could fan violence against Jews. But Mahathir got a standing ovation from the kings, presidents, sheiks and emirs -- including key U.S. allies -- gathered in Malaysia's new capital, Putrajaya.

The Malaysian government apologized for the remarks.

"I'm sorry that they have misunderstood the whole thing," Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said. "The intention is not to create controversy. His [Mahathir's] intention is to show that if you ponder and sit down to think, you can be very powerful."

Syed said the world's Muslims were in a "quagmire" and felt marginalized. "There are no feelings against any Jews. Why should we have feelings based on ethnicity?"

Mahathir said the Islamic world had shone in science, arts and military power when Europe was in the Dark Ages.

The West pulled far ahead in the Industrial Revolution, Mahathir said, and Muslims still suffer from weak states, disputes over dogma, and a lack of scientific and technological expertise. They cannot move forward until they unite, get smarter and rethink their strategies, he said.