JORDANIANS: IT WAS THE JOOOOZZZZ!!!!

Many in Jordan See Old Enemy in Attack: Israel

By MICHAEL SLACKMAN (NYT)

While most Jordanians seem to accept that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was involved in this week's suicide bombings, there is little criticism for those who scapegoat Israel.

ZARQA, Jordan, Nov. 11 - The Maktoum Mosque was crowded with worshipers for Friday Prayer as the imam sharply criticized the suicide attacks on three hotels in Amman, saying those who committed the crimes were not Muslims, no matter what they called themselves. Afterward, on the street, people agreed that whoever committed such an act could not be a Muslim. But many meant this literally, that the attack must have been carried out by outsiders, namely Israeli agents. "Who said it is them?" asked Ahmed al-Zawahrah, referring to claims that members of a radical Islamic group were behind the blasts. "It could be Israel."...

While most Arabs have long viewed Israel as their enemy, the extent to which Israel weighs on the regional psyche and diverts attention away from social, political, religious and economic issues that cannot be ignored, many social and political analysts say. Blaming Israel is not just a knee jerk, they say; for many Arabs, it is their reality....

The suspicion of some here over the hotel killings mirrors the unfounded rumor that thousands of Jews did not show up for work at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, because Israel was behind those attacks. In Egypt, Israel was also widely blamed for the bombing attacks in Taba and Sharm el Sheik over the last year, and for the recent sectarian violence between Coptic Christians and Muslims in Alexandria. In Syria, officials at the highest levels of the government have blamed Israel for killing Rafik Hariri, the former Lebanese prime minister. While it appears that most Jordanians have accepted that Mr. Zarqawi was involved - with many saying they are sickened by his actions - there is little criticism for those who scapegoat Israel. ...

The second factor routinely pointed to as proof of Israel's involvement is the idea that Egyptians, Syrians or other Arabs are not clever enough to have carried out such an effective attack.

BUT HAVE HEART. NOT EVERYONE BLAMES THE JEWS:

In Zarqa, Munder Moomeni , a 38-year-old former soldier who lives next to Zarqawi’s house, 13 Ramzi Street, described his former neighbour as “a bastard”. “By killing Jordanians here in Jordan, civilian Jordanians going to a wedding, they did something that not even a Jew would do,” he said.