Jehan Downs Deborah

From Jehan Sadat's interview with Deborah Solomon:

Why can’t the Palestinians, your fellow Muslims, be part of your country?

Because they are not Egyptian. Gaza is their land, and they have the right to have their own state.

I’ve heard the Palestinians characterized as being very smart and fond of argument, not unlike Israelis.

Believe me, they are more like the Jews than us. By the way, most of the Palestinians are very well educated. Because they are a minority, they are like the Jews. They are intellectuals.

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Why is Islam so hard on gays, particularly in Saudi Arabia, where homosexuality remains illegal and punishable by flogging or prison?

Homosexuality is against Islam. Here in Egypt, there are not many homosexuals, not like the United States. There are some. We’ve had them since the Pharaohs.

You mean some of the Pharaohs were gay?

No, no, no. There were gays at that time. Now, it’s more or less closet gay. I have a friend who is a lesbian. She doesn’t say it, and I pretend as if I don’t know it. But I know that she is. I respect her because she’s very clever in her work and it’s none of my business.

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Do you belong to a mosque in Washington?

No. Neither in Egypt.

Why is that? Is the mosque a men’s club?

Some women go to the mosque. They have a certain place behind the men or a separate room. Myself, I prefer to pray at home. I pray in my room, and I believe God is everywhere.

Two observations:

1. Jehan seems to be smarter than Deborah.

2. Deborah doesn't seem like a smart Jew. I'd hate to read her interview with a senior Hamasnik.


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UPDATE


My good gal pal Suzanne left a comment below but since I should have thought of it first, she gets bumped to first class to here:

"Why can’t the Palestinians, your fellow Muslims, be part of your country?"

She should ask Queen Rania of Jordan the same question...after all, she identifies herself as "palestinian" and something like 70% of residents of Jordan call themselves "palestinian"... hummmm, wonder if "Jordan" is really "Palestine"...