- (AFP) -- Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad today
renewed his attack on "arrogant" Jews, saying reaction to his
recent controversial comments confirms "they do control the world".
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- The veteran leader, who retires later this month, also
criticised Western media, who he said took his comments at last week's
summit of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) in Malaysia
out of context.
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- "In my speech I condemned all violence, even the
suicide bombings, and I told all Muslims it's about time we stopped all
these things and paused to think and do something that is much more productive,"
he told the Bangkok Post.
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- "That was the whole tone of my speech, but they
picked up one sentence where I said that the Jews control the world.
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- "Well, the reaction of the world shows they control
the world."
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- The comments attracted a volley of international criticism,
led by US President George W Bush, who yesterday pulled Mahathir aside
at the APEC summit to denounce his "wrong and divisive" charge.
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- Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon yesterday slammed
the remarks as "slanderous".
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- However, Mahathir was unrepentant and launched a fresh
broadside today.
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- "Israel is a small country. There are not many Jews
in the world," he said in the interview.
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- "But they are so arrogant that they defy the whole
world. Even if the United Nations say no, they go ahead. Why? Because they
have the backing of all these people."
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- Mahathir is stepping down later this month after more
than two decades in power.
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- Brute force won't work, US told
- In the Bangkok Post interview, Dr Mahathir also told
the United States that it must learn conflicts will never by won by using
brute force.
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- Asked whether Washington was capable of resolving the
campaigns it had started, he replied: ``Not in the way they are approaching
conflicts.''
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- ``They must learn ... it is sad to see that American
embassies all around the world have to be protected.
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- ``That's a measure of the bad feelings against the Americans
now. That's because they changed in attitude. They have become so powerful.
They are the only power in the world and they don't care any more whether
we like them or not.
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- ``They can force us to submit to them and that is the
basis of their foreign policy: using force. If you are not a democratic
country, I will apply sanctions against you.'' ``Using force to make people
democratic, I think is wrong,'' he said.
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- ``People must accept democracy because it is a good system.
You preach democracy, you don't go around saying 'Now you must be democratic'.
I think the wrong things are being done.''
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- Mahathir, who cited Malaysia's extensive experience of
dealing with terrorism, said Washington should instead look at the root
cause of why people crashed airliners into skyscrapers, referring to the
September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States.
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- ``The way we deal with it is to find what is bugging
them,'' he said. ``Why are they doing this? We then tackle the problem.
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- ``Yes, you can apply military pressure but find the root
cause, the political cause, and we have conveyed this to everyone.
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- ``But there are some who believe massive retaliation
is the answer. You kill one of my people, I will kill 100 of your people.
This is not going to work.''
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- The Malaysian government fiercely opposed the US-led
strike on Iraq. Since US President George W Bush declared major hostilities
were over on May 1, more than 100 US soldiers have been killed in what
has become a guerilla campaign.
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- http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/21/1066631399980.html
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