Beyond ‘Apes and Pigs’: Ten Morsi Quotes That Tell All

Is Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi’s recently revealed statement that Zionists are “descendants of apes and pigs” cause for concern? At least one Jewish leader believes that “actions and words both matter.”

“So far, President Morsi’s actions have been positive, probably due to Egypt’s need for continued American economic and military support,” Roz Rothstein, CEO of the pro-Israel education group StandWithUs, told JNS.org. “He brokered a truce for Operation Pillar of Defense in November, 2012 and he is keeping the Sinai relatively calm. However, his anti-Semitic views, which are pervasive in the Arab world and especially among Palestinians, threaten existing peace treaties and threaten hopes for long lasting peace in the region.”

Morsi’s “descendants of apes and pigs” quote “comes as no surprise, but fits into a long record of his own and of Muslim Brotherhood statements,” Middle East Forum President Daniel Pipes told JNS.org.

Below, JNS.org reviews that record with a compilation of 10 statements Morsi made between January 2010 and November 2012.

NOVEMBER 2012

On the Israel Defense Forces’ Operation Pillar of Defense in Gaza, which was a response to a barrage of Hamas rockets:

“Israelis must realize that this aggression is unacceptable and would only lead to instability in the region and would negatively and greatly impact the security of the region.”

“We are in contact with the people of Gaza and with Palestinians and we stand by them until we stop the aggression and we do not accept under any circumstances the continuation of this aggression on the Strip.”

NOVEMBER 2012

In a decree, on new Pharaoh-like powers exempting Morsi from judicial review:

“The President may take the necessary actions and measures to protect the country and the goals of the revolution,” the decree read in part.

OCTOBER 2012

During a sermon in which the cleric asked God to “destroy the Jews and their supporters and disperse them, rend them asunder”:

“Amen.”

SEPTEMBER 2012

On Palestinian statehood at the United Nations General Assembly:

“It is shameful that the free world accepts, regardless of the justifications provided, that a member of the international community (Israel) continues to deny the rights of a [Palestinian] nation that has been longing for decades for independence.”

SEPTEMBER 2012

On the film “Innocence of Muslims,” which was said to have sparked protests throughout the Muslim world, most notably the murder of U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens in Libya, before it was later revealed the murder of Stevens was a premeditated terrorist attack:

“The Islamic sanctities and prophet Mohamed is a red line for all Muslims… We do not accept and we consider an enemy anyone who assaults our prophet through words or deeds. I represent all the Egyptian people, I deprecate and I stand against whoever tries to abuse or exercise abuse of any kind against our prophet or any of the Islamic holy sites.”

JUNE 2012

On the Egyptian-born Muslim terrorist who, following the 1993 World Trade Center attack, was convicted of plotting to bomb several New York City landmarks:

“I see signs for Omar Abdel Rahman and detainees’ pictures. It is my duty and I will make all efforts to have them free, including Omar Abdel Rahman.”

JUNE 2012

On women’s rights in Egypt, during the presidential campaign trail:

“We don’t have the notion of child abuse. No woman beats her child in Egypt. That concept does not exist here.”

“Marital relations here adhere to social norms, even more than legal or religious norms: Husband, wife, family, and stability. In other countries it’s not like that.”

“We don’t have the notion of separated [couples], or the notion of ‘living together’ out of wedlock.”

MAY 2012

On jihad, during the presidential campaign trail:

“Jihad is our path.”

“And death for the sake of Allah is our most lofty aspiration.”

SEPTEMBER 2010

On Zionists:

“Either [you accept] the Zionists and everything they want, or else there is war. This is what the occupiers of the land of Palestine know—these blood suckers who attack the Palestinians, these warmongers, these descendants of apes and pigs.”

JANUARY 2010

On President Barack Obama:

“One American president after another—and most recently, that Obama—talks about American guarantees for the safety of the Zionists in Palestine… He uttered many lies…”

“Dear brothers, we must not forget to nurse our children and grandchildren on hatred towards those Zionists and Jews.”