In an incident indicative of the general practices of the Israeli soldiers operating at the gates surrounding Qalqilia, two soldiers would not allow a farmer to pass without them knowing the name of his donkey.
Farmer Kamal Awad from the West Bank village of Beit Amin near Qalqilia attempted to pass by his donkey-pulled-cart to his farm land through the wall gate, yet he was stopped the soldiers there and, not only insisted to know the name of the donkey to grant him access, but also insulted Profit Mohammad of Islam.
“I went in the morning to the gate of Azzun Atma to enter into my farm. I had my donkey cart with me. When I tried to enter the gate at 7:00 in the morning, two Israeli women working at the gate asked me, ‘What is the name of this animal?’”
The farmer continued, “They told me that Mohammad was not the Prophet, but rather a donkey. I was so offended that they would speak of my religion in such a way, that I began to scream at them. I was not allowed to pass.”
In a similar incident at the gate just an hour later, driver Fawzi Saleh Hossam told Palestine News Network (PNN), “In the morning I went to the gate for entry and travel cargo. I was driving a new car. They wanted to let the dog inside the car, but I refused as it was a brand new car. The soldiers told me that the dog was better than the Prophet Mohammad. I began fighting with them after this insult.”
Another farmer told PNN, “These incidents of verbal abuse and insults are repeated daily at the gate. However, there is never any press nearby to report them so I am telling you, that we cannot withstand insults against the Prophet and our religion which are hurled by Israeli soldiers. There are dozens of these gates where insults fly. No one has lifted a finger to stop the assault against Islam, unlike if this insult was against Israel."
Palestinian farmers need to go through these gates on daily basis. Israel has always said, that the wall is mean only for security and the farmers and residents who live close to the wall will be granted access to their land as if there is no obstacle.
Apparently those who will need to pass the gates through the wall to make their living will have to be subject for insults and abuse when they do so.
Few months ago, a Danish newspaper published cartoons that were very offensive to Muslims around the world about Prophit Mohammad, which created uproar among Muslims and led to attacks against the Danish offices in several Islamic Countries.
The Danish government failed to meet a demand by Muslims to apologize for the insult and was satisfied with an explanation made by the newspaper.
