Religious freedom in Muslim-dominated areas.

Writing in Canada's National Post (Feb. 20, 2007), columnist Father Raymond de Souza commented on the Fatah-Hamas summit held earlier in February in the holy city of Mecca (Makkah), hosted by Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah. Fr. de Souza noted that, "Mecca is an odd choice for a summit site, because non-Muslims are not permitted to enter the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medinah." Signs along the highway to Mecca caution non-Muslim travellers that they must go into a vehicular lane that bypasses the city. It is to be assumed, therefore, that Christian Arabs had no input in the Summit. The question now is whether Christians have any future in Palestine at all.

King Abdullah spoke of the "Arab-Islamic nation." In his mind this excludes, most likely, all Christians, because in Saudi Arabia there is no freedom of religion for Christians; they are not even allowed to pray in private, or possess Bibles, rosaries, or other religious articles. Yet, no country in the West has insisted on reciprocity thus far, that is, making the building of mosques in the West, all paid for by Saudi Arabia, dependent on freedom of religion in Saudi Arabia.

Needless to say, there is no tolerance for Jews in the "Arab Islam" nation.