JERUSALEM (AP) — The Palestinians’ top Muslim cleric is facing harsh Israeli criticism for quoting a religious text that includes passages about killing Jews.
Mufti Mohammed Hussein said his remarks at a rally for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah movement last week were taken out of context and that he didn’t incite people to kill Jews.
The comments from the rally were posted to YouTube by an Israeli watchdog group tracking incitement.
In the video, the mufti cited a hadith, or saying attributed to the Prophet Muhammad, that the Earth’s end of days will not happen until Muslims kill Jews in a religious battle.
Israeli Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday condemned the comments as “heinous.”
