Sweden: Palestinian Imam celebrated by Church of Sweden: "The Jews are behind the Islamic State!"

Ingrid Carlqvist @ The Gatestone Institute:

• "There are reliable sources from Egypt, showing that the Saudi royal family is really a Jewish family that came from Iraq to the Arabian Peninsula sometime in the 1700s. They built an army with the aid of British officers fighting the Ottoman sultanate." — Imam Awad Olwan, with whom a priest, Henrik Larsson, is cooperating in an interfaith project.

The Church of Sweden has departed from being a strong and stern state church. In the past, Swedes were born into it and, until 1951, no one was allowed to leave the church. These days, however, it is an institution that has very little to do with Christianity or Jesus. Sweden now, according to the World Values Survey, is one of the world's most secular countries; every year a large number of Swedes leave the church.  [...]

Gatestone called Henrik Larsson, a priest and one of the founders of the House of God project.  [...]

Henrik Larsson celebrates the imam with whom he is cooperating in the "House of God." His name is Awad Olwan, a Palestinian who came to Sweden in the 1960s. According to Henrik Larsson, Olwan is a modern Muslim, who became an imam late in life and likes democracy.

But when Gatestone called Olwan, to ask why he supported the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) in the 1970s and refused to denounce the Munich massacre at the 1972 Olympic Games, he at first pretended not to know what the PFLP was. The BBC has described it as "Combining Arab nationalism with Marxist-Leninist ideology, the PFLP saw the destruction of Israel as integral to its struggle to remove Western capitalism from the Middle East."

Olwan: "Oh, well, yes, we had a lot of different organizations back then, but forget that -- that is history now. It meant Palestine Liberation something. I really do not remember to be quite honest."
Gatestone: You refused to denounce the attack on the Jewish Olympians in Munich?
Olwan: "Yes, that's right, but that was in the 70s! I don't remember what I said then."
Gatestone: Is your attitude different now?
Olwan: "Yes, of course. It was murder and nothing else."

During our first conversation, Awad Olwan claimed to be very positive towards Jews. He said that there are no Jews in the House of God is simply because there is no Jewish congregation in Fisksätra, but that the organizers have invited a Jewish choir and are cooperating very well with them.

During our second talk, however, other thoughts emerged. When Olwan was asked some questions about the Quran and the hadith, he began cursing and saying that everything was the fault of "those f**king Mecca-Arabs."

Gatestone: Are you saying Islam is not the problem; that it is the Saudi interpretation of Islam that messes everything up?
Olwan: "Exactly! And their religion [Wahhabism] was invented by a British imperialist 200 years ago. I cannot say anything more, because then I am an anti-Semite and whatnot."
Gatestone: What is the truth about the Jews?
Olwan: "Okay, there are reliable sources from Egypt, showing that the Saudi royal family is really a Jewish family that came from Iraq to the Arabian Peninsula sometime in the 1700s. They built an army with the aid of British officers fighting the Ottoman sultanate. After that, they created the Jordanian army and so on and so on."
Gatestone: Are you saying this is the reason the Jews are so quiet?
Olwan: "Yes. I wrote in my book that the purpose of ISIS/Daesh is to shift the focus from the Arab-Israeli conflict, and make this a conflict between Sunni and Shia -- and they have succeeded. And now, they will erase the entire Middle East. You will see! It is Catholic land, Muslim land and a lot of other crap countries just to justify the existence of a Jewish state."
Gatestone: I read online that many believe it was Mossad and the Jews who started ISIS?
Olwan: "Yes, that is a common theory in the Middle East, but if you say that in the West, you are told that you are a conspiracy nut and that you have no evidence. But here's the deal: You cannot wage war against strong forces without having weapons delivered every day, you need planning and logistics. These are not f**king terrorists who have learned how to wage war on the internet, these are highly trained, highly skilled people. I have to go now."
Gatestone: Are you referring to the Jews?
Olwan: "Exactly, exactly."

Olwan is most likely a typical example of an imam who shows a conciliatory and friendly attitude towards naïve Swedish priests, but with a bit of encouragement, admits his hatred of Jews. 

read more