The founder of Islam had a lot of problems with Jews. They would not accept his claim to be a prophet, and they would most certainly not convert to his new religion. This was particularly true in the city of Medina, where many Jews lived. It is, today, regarded as the second most holy city of Islam after Mecca.

In 622 AD, Medina was home to several Jewish tribes, the most important of which were the Banu ‘l-Nadir, the Banu Qurayza, and the Banu Qaynuqa. While Mohammed wanted others to see him as a prophet, his contemporaries more realistically saw him as the head of a community of thieves. He built his personal treasury by attacking both Medina and Mecca, and raiding caravans traversing Arabia. Those doubters and rivals not eliminated in war were assassinated on a regular basis.

The current cease-fire brokered between Israel and the Palestinians by the United States is yet another Islamic deception. The religion that claims to have Judaism and Christianity (while denying the divinity of Jesus) as its roots has waged war on both since its inception in the seventh century AD. That is not going to change and, until the Bush administration understands this fundamental aspect of Islam, no roadmap or other diplomatic effort has any chance of success.

I suspect the Palestinians will announce the end of the "hudna," or cease-fire, with a series of suicide-murder bombings and rocket attacks. They may even coordinate their efforts with others, such as Hezbollah in Lebanon, the terror group underwritten by the Iranians and accommodated by the Syrians. Don’t be surprised when it comes. The Israelis won’t be.

The latest bone of contention is the fence that Israel is building in order to reduce the number of suicide bombings, and other attacks, on its citizens from its sole source, the Palestinians. If you had been under constant attack for several years, suffering the outright murder of your citizens, you might be tempted to put up a fence as well. The U.S., in fact, has put up a number of fences between itself and Mexico in a vain attempt to stem the tide of illegal immigrants, but when it comes to making it difficult for stone cold killers to get into Israel, the U.S. foreign policy is against it.

As the World Tribune recently reported, the Palestinians have been threatening to suspend the cease-fire, claiming numerous Israeli violations, but people whose government still asserts that its sole aim in life is to kill every Jew in Israel is probably not the best source of information on that subject.

What has been occurring? Numerous violations of the cease-fire by Hezbollah, a terror group that is sworn to the destruction of Israel. Prior to 9-11, Hezbollah had been responsible for having killed more Americans than any other terrorist organization. It has spent the last three years firing Katyusha rockets into northern Israel from its safe harbor in Lebanon, a nation under the control of Syria. It has kidnapped and killed Israeli soldiers, and one of its leaders has called for more abductions. Since the cease-fire went into effect on June 29^th, al Aqsa Martyr’s Brigade and the Tanzim organization have continued their attacks as well. In short, the cease-fire is a total farce.

What remains astonishing is the belief among Israelis that a peaceful resolution can be achieved. A Pew Research Center poll in Israel revealed that two-thirds of Israelis (66%) believed they could co-exist with Palestinians. A bare 17% of Palestinians shared this view. During the cease-fire, the Israelis continue to negotiate with the Palestinians, turning over millions of dollars and releasing 300 or more jailed Palestinians, members of Fatah, Hamas, and other terror groups.

History should have taught the Israelis that you cannot negotiate with people who intend to kill you, no matter what they say. Six million dead European Jews learned that the hard way in World War II.

History demonstrates that Mohammed gave no quarter to the Jews who resisted him. He used deception and he used war. He slaughtered the men, and he sold the women and children into slavery. Nothing has changed. The Koran is the only roadmap the Palestinians and other Muslims will use.

Alan Caruba writes "Warning Signs," a weekly column posted at the Internet site of
The National Anxiety Center.