netherlands-bans-isis-flag-after-anti-semitism-surge

Robert Spencer Aug 4, 2014 at 11:44am Islamic antisemitism, Netherlands 24 Comments

It is good that they did this if it heralds genuine action against Islamic anti-Semitism in the Netherlands, but it again shows how clueless European authorities really are about Islam and jihad. The flag says, “There is no god but Allah, Muhammad is the prophet of Allah.”

That is the shahadah, the Islamic profession of faith. Every Muslim believes in it, or he or she is not a Muslim. It is not the property of the Islamic State — and in fact, last March in Britain it caused consternation as the “al-Qaeda flag.” Both the Islamic State and al-Qaeda use it, of course, because of a fact that Dutch and British authorities determinedly ignore, deny, and downplay: they use it because they are Muslims fighting for Islam and because of Islam, energized and motivated by Islamic teachings and principles.

If Dutch authorities start investigating on suspicion of terrorism every Muslim who holds up a banner saying that there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his prophet, they’ll have to investigate every Muslim in the country. This ban is likely to entangle the Dutch in their own contradictions and willful denial of the reality of Islamic jihad.

“Netherlands Bans ISIS Flag After Anti-Semitism Surge,” by Frances Martel, Breitbart News, August 3, 2014 (thanks to Block Ness):

In anticipation of an anti-Israel rally organized for Sunday in Amsterdam, the government of the Netherlands added the flag of the terrorist group Islamic State to its list of banned political hate paraphernalia. Flying the flag in the nation will be considered a crime.
The Irish Times reports that a police spokesman announced that individuals protesting Israel’s Operation Protective Edge against the terrorist group Hamas will be prohibited from displaying the black flag of the jihadist group, which has made significant gains in conquering land in Syria and Iraq. “Nazi symbols, Hitler salutes and burning flags will not be tolerated,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “The same applies to the ISIS flag. Demonstrators may not carry it.”
Supporters of the Islamic State has been particularly problematic in the Netherlands after an ostensibly “pro-Palestine” rally in The Hague prominently featured the group’s distinctive black flag. The crowd displaying a number of Islamic State flags also reportedly chanted “Death to the Jews” and promoted jihad.
The Dutch residents of The Hague started a petition calling for their mayor, Jozias van Aartsen, to resign following the rally, as it was sanctioned by his government and he later insisted the group did not break any laws. The Irish Times clarifies that, upon reviewing video evidence, two individuals were indeed arrested for violating the nation’s hate speech laws and inciting violence against an ethnic group.
The rise of the Islamic State’s profile in the Netherlands has occurred in tandem with a rise in anti-Semitic hate speech and crimes in Western Europe generally. In the Netherlands, a woman was beaten in her home for publicly displaying an Israeli flag in her home, and incidents of public hate speech have increased in quantity. While Jewish people living throughout Europe have reported a rise in anti-Semitism, France and Germany are battling an especially violent wave of anti-Jewish sentiment.
The Netherlands appears especially concerned about the potential presence of Islamic State supporters at Sunday’s Amsterdam rally because of the group’s public overtures to Palestinians. While previously remaining relatively silent on the war between Israel and Hamas, Islamic State spokesmen released a statement this week promising that they would aid Palestinians in the fight against the Jewish state, describing Jews as “barbaric” and vowing to “continue striking down every apostate who stands as an obstacle on [the Islamic State's] paths towards Palestine.” The Islamic State has made clear its intentions to expand beyond Syria and Iraq to establish a “global Caliphate” over lands in which large populations of Muslims live, including nations as distant as Spain and Indonesia.