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Egyptian Jihadi Leader Says: Destroy the Pyramids

Nov. 13, 2012 6:59am Sharona Schwartz

Egypt’s Great Pyramids (photo credit: Wikipedia)

An Egyptian jihadi leader is calling for the destruction of one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, that is, the Great Pyramids. Also on his target: the Great Sphinx. Those historical heritage sites are situated in Giza, just outside Cairo, Egypt’s capital.

The call was made Saturday night on a popular program on Egypt’s Dream TV by jihadist Murgan Salem al-Gohary who says he participated in the Taliban’s destruction of the Buddhas of Bamiyan in Afghanistan in 2001.

Egypt Independent reveals more about Gohary and his familiarity with the destruction of world heritage sites:

Gohary, 50, is well-known in Egypt for his advocacy of violence. He was sentenced twice under former President Hosni Mubarak, one of the two sentences being life imprisonment. He subsequently fled Egypt to Afghanistan, where he was badly injured in the American invasion. In 2007, he traveled from Pakistan to Syria, which then handed him over to Egypt. After Mubarak’s fall in early 2011, he was released from prison by a judicial ruling.

“All Muslims are charged with applying the teachings of Islam to remove such idols, as we did in Afghanistan when we destroyed the Buddha statues,” he said. […]

“God ordered Prophet Mohamed to destroy idols,” he added. “When I was with the Taliban we destroyed the statue of Buddha, something the government failed to do.”

Murgan Salem al-Gohary on Dream TV (via Al Arabiya)

The show also interviewed the vice president of Tunisia’s Islamist Ennahda Party, Sheikh Abdel Fattah Moro, who rejected the destruction call, emphasizing that the 7th century Arab commander who led the Muslim conquest of Egypt, Amr ibn al-Aas, did not destroy the statues during his military campaign.

“So who are you to do it?” Moro asked. “The Prophet destroyed the idols because people worshiped them, but the Sphinx and the Pyramids are not worshiped.”

In recent months, other hardline Muslim clerics have made similar calls to demolish those “symbols of paganism.” After the toppling of secular Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, now replaced by the Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohammed Morsi, concern has been voiced about the future of the ancient relics.

For religiously conservative Muslims, the erecting of statues and sculptures is considered prohibited. Al Arabiya spoke with Egyptian historian Ahmed Osman who explained: “The fundamental Salafis have demanded to cover Pharaonic statues, because they regard them to be idols.”

“But so far the government has done nothing to indicate what is the future of Egyptian antiquities,” he added.

The Great Sphinx (photo credit: Wikipedia)

The London-based newspaper Asharq al-Awsat quoted an Egyptian Interior Ministry source on Monday who said that authorities are taking seriously the jihadi’s call to destroy the pyramids and sphinx, “particularly as he took part in demolishing a Buddha statue in Afghanistan 10 years ago.”

Tourism to the pyramids and other historical sites is one of Egypt’s top sources of income, providing much needed jobs in a country struggling with poverty and unemployment.

Over the summer, writer Raymond Ibrahim, an Arabic speaker who follows the Egyptian media closely, reported on the earlier calls by Muslim clerics to raze the pyramids. He also referenced an unusual call by a politician from the Salafi Nour Party to conceal the pyramids by covering them in wax.

Just on Friday, some 2,000 Salafists took to the streets of Cairo to demand that Egypt’s new constitution be based on sharia, that is, Islamic law. According to AFP, one sign read “the Koran is above the constitution.”

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Comments (83)

oldincarolina
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:48am
These people are beyond idiots ! I can’t recall a single thing that they have invented to benefit mankind. Without the rest of humanlty they wouldn’t even know what a wheel is , or how to start a fire !

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- title_of_liberty
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 10:16am
  Sorry but they are responsible for the renassaince. And they are not going to blow up the pyramids.
  
  Report this comment
- DeOppressoLiber
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 10:27am
  I hope they do blow them up, like the Buddha statue, get rid of it in the name of Islam.
  
  You guys are all talk you will not do it.
  
  Report this comment
- mike_trivisonno
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 11:49am
  “…Sorry but they are responsible for the renassaince….”
  
  Wrong. Islam is not responsible for the Renaissance.
  
  Report this comment
- Contessa
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 12:39pm
  The Golden Age of Islam was a few hundred years before the renaissance. The renaissance began with the Dutch and spread south to Italy. Why wouldn’t they blow up the pyramids? If they don’t destroy their history to protect their religion, they flat out ignore it. Look up all the Saudi archaeological sites (mesopotamian) that are forbidden/restricted to visitors or the shrines recently burned out it Timbuktu (which were dedicated to their own saints).
  
  Report this comment
- NeilChapin
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 1:11pm
  They have been a cancer on the human race and must be removed before they kill us all. Read fresh political commentary at:http://smallcraftadvisorychronicles.blogspot.com/
  
  Report this comment
- Elena2010
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 1:51pm
  Responsible for the Renaissance only in so far as making it impossible to travel to the East for spices, etc. Muslims blocked off Africa and Asia; therefore, Europeans had to take to the seas and find new routes.
  
  Muslim gov’ts have long been a stumbling block.
  
  Report this comment
- Secret Squirrel
  Posted on November 14, 2012 at 2:35pm
  .
  Go ahead, destroy the pyramids.
  That is your legacy.
  You don’t contribute one single thing to society,
  except death and destruction.
  …..and you expect respect? Ha!
  
  Report this comment
mickgringo
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:47am
I got stadium seats from old Tigers stadium in Detroit and old Yankees Stadium… wonder if I can get a pyramid brick or a chunk of Sphinx to add to my heritage sites collection….

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dublinthewagons
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:42am
See the resemblance? His sister once said ” for the first time in my life, I’m proud to be an American”

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mike_trivisonno
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:40am
A Jihading muslim opens fire on our own people at Fort Hood…on our own soil.

Jihading muslims flew airplanes into the Twin Towers killing thousands of people. Jihading muslims slaughtered children in Beslan and paraded their tiny corpses before the shocked eyes of suffering parents.

Does anyone think they will show mercy to a pile of stones? This was predicted and predictable based on the history of Islamic Jihad and their goal of ascension over all the planet. Predictable and preventable.

Muslims out of the military. Muslims out of the government. Muslims out of the country.

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- Elena2010
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 1:52pm
  You are correct!
  
  Report this comment
- Blessed3117
  Posted on November 14, 2012 at 8:19am
  Agreed!
  
  Report this comment
Ron Staiger
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:33am
Great, do it! Then tourists from all over the world can come and look at your donkey carts and sand. Friggin morons!

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- mike_trivisonno
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:49am
  You guys still don’t get it. I would suggest spending a lot more time studying Jihad.
  
  The destruction, erasure, and replacement of the target culture is holy obligation to muslims.
  
  The muslim mind sees the destruction of the Pyramids as holy obligation. It is holy to them, a sublime expression of their culture and the will of their deity, Allah.
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:53am
  Hey Mom…. take picture of me next to the giant pile of trash the Coptic Christians used to collect before they were exterminated!
  
  Report this comment
dublinthewagons
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:33am
This sounds like the type people that would loot, burn and destroy their housing and businesses in protest here in American. Except Egypt wouldn’t build more for them. Oh B.O. will, I forgot.

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Ron Staiger
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:32am
How’s that Arab-Friggin-Spring grabbin’ ya now, Baraaaaaaack?

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- loafer4952
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 11:38am
  Obamma is right bside them…….That is waht he wants to happen here…
  
  Report this comment
Eastinfection
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:22am
Does this mean Egypt will no longer be known as “The Land of Giant Boobies”?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ9uuV2z8Gk

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Uechi
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:22am
Please include Mecca, Medina and any other symbol of the child molesting phony prophet Muhammed. These Islamists are instruments of evil not seen since the 2nd World War.

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biohazard23
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:14am
Yeah, he definitely looks like someone who can be reasoned with… (rolls eyes)

Like I’ve said before, bombing that entire region to the Stone Age would be an evolutionary quantum leap forward for them.

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- Eastinfection
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:33am
  “An Egyptian jihadi leader is calling for the destruction of one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, that is, the Great Pyramids.”
  
  It’s not just ONE of the Ancient Wonders… it’s the only one left..
  
  The Gardens of Babylon, Temple of Artemis, Statue of Zeus, Halicarnassus Mausoleum, Colossus, and The Alexandria Lighthouse were already destroyed by either men or earthquakes…..
  
  “we have to change history”…. Moochelle
  
  Report this comment
- Untameable-kate
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 9:39am
  Nuclear glass, nice.
  
  Report this comment
TROONORTH
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:09am
Just look at the man’s face. He is evil incarnate. If he wasn’t leading a bunch of evil men like himself in Egypt he would be robbing someone at gun point in any-city USA. This religion is an abomination and we will eventually have to deal with it once and for all.

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Gonzo
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:04am
Go ahead Egypt, destroy the one thing you have going for you. Considering your past was far greater than your future looks, you might weant to think about it.

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- Chromo200
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:40am
  Gonzo …We sure seem to be on the same track… This also will reduce all those tourists traveling and warming up the earth. Win WIn …
  
  Report this comment
- GrayPanther
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 10:32am
  Right GONZO. I as a kid dreamed of this ancient culture and as a retiree visited Egypt in 2006. A wonderful history that has been trashed by a man who raped children and robbed camel caravans for a living. That was Mohammad who recorded his alleged dreams that became the Koran. Now,militant Islam rules the North African and all the Middle East. If the artifacts of the Pharisees are destroyed they will be forever lost and so will their lucrative tourist industry.
  
  Report this comment
- RedManBlueState
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 11:49am
  @ GrayPanther,
  
  “artifacts of the Pharisees…”
  I think you mean the “Pharaohs.”
  The Pharisees were Jewish rabbis and scholars.
  
  I think you had a “Gray” moment. I get them too.
  
  Report this comment
Apple Bite
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:03am
This is Obama’s great wonderful gift to the world. All we can do is watch helplessly.

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- The_Pointy_End
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 2:22pm
  yea….He got the Nobel Peace Prize.
  
  And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand – Daniel 8:25
  
  Report this comment
jackact
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:02am
Why, because Jewish slaves built them?
Isn’t the ignorance of these 1st century savages obvious?
Yes, savages indeed.

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- Elena2010
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 2:03pm
  The pyramids were not built by slaves. They were built by Egyptian craftsmen w/some labor during the off-season. They were built long before the Hebrews came to Egypt by a couple of thousand years anyhow.
  
  Report this comment
RayOne
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:58am
When they need a distraction, they find one.

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Tickdog
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:53am
That would be absolutely awful!!!!!!!!!

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okicnow
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:47am
As someone who has been to the pyramids and have seen this wonder, I will say that it would be a sad day for the world when these “righteous jihadists” destroy them. I say when because one thing that we all have learned is that these quacks don’t make empty threats.

However, the people of Egypt couldn’t give a damn less about this site. You wouldn’t believe the amount of trash blowing around at that site. You also never get to see the view of the ghetto surrounding the site either.

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123456beatriz
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:44am
We the americans are paying them. We are sending our money to help them. America voted for this madness again and again. Liberals I don’t like you guys you are evil people. So

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barber2
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:27am
In the interest of humanity , its past , its present , and its future , I think we need to destroy all ” hard- line Muslim clerics.” Or is this entire hard-line Muslim movement, Mother Nature’s answer to the over-population problems ? All they do is spread hate , division and destruction.

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- 123456beatriz
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:41am
  I am agree.
  
  Report this comment
spfoam1
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:26am
When men spend their lives lining up in rows, on their knees, looking at the arse of the man in front of them, repeatedly banging their foreheads on the floor, they become destructive ho-mos.

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- politicianssuck
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:44am
  hehehe I like it. thats funny
  
  Report this comment
chershaw8
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:25am
Just look in this a..holes eyes…nothing but pure evil.

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- RedHarley
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:39am
  Sort of like these…..
  http://nicedeb.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/obamaevileye.jpg?w=399&h=240
  
  Report this comment
ZAP
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:15am
They worship satan,their father

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- frednerk
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:58am
  ‘I just hate em’ ALL with a passion !!
  ……. ‘funny how it’s always just muzslum men (muslim) that do the praying? I dont get that?, why are there not any sheilas’ ( muzslum women/sex objects’ if ya can call em that?) bent over in the musks’ bum sniffing too?
  
  Report this comment
- The_Pointy_End
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:58am
  Woman are not allowed to go to the mosque. They have to pray their 5 prayers at home or in a separate area from men. Just an FYI – woman are also not allowed to pray during their periods because they are considered to be unclean.
  
  Report this comment
azcowboy1
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:11am
Mecca FIrst!!!

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RightUnite
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:09am
Yeah, go for it. See how well that goes over….

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paulusmaximus
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 7:08am
Go with it!! Their going to end up nuking themselves and half of us along with it anyway! The artifacts of history are of no use if we can never learn from them what destroyed the societies of the past.

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- Elena2010
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 2:21pm
  As a reminder, the builders of the pyramids collapsed because of overextending their finances. They ushered in the first intermediate period in which famine, yes famine, was widespread.
  
  While the tombs of their rulers ruined the economy, it’s more important to know that it was spending too much money on useless things that ruined them. The pyramids stand as a stark reminder of fiscal irresponsibility.
  
  Take note world, esp America! Watch closely what you spend!
  
  Report this comment

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