The Incredible Story of the Son of Hamas: Ergun Caner-Step Aside

Book Review of Son of Hamas by Mosab Hassan Yousef

A New York Times and Amazon Bestseller

 

amazon link

 

 

During the Ergun Caner debacle and the NYC Mosque brouhaha, a story was brewing that was overlooked by the much of the media. I happened to be listening to Fox News one day and heard an interview with Mosab Hassan Yousef, a young man who grew up in Ramallah, in the West Bank, as the son of one of the founders of Hamas, Sheikh Hassan Yousef. Here is a link to the entire interview.

 

During the interview, it was mentioned that this former terrorist became a spy for Shin Bet, the Israeli version of the CIA, and converted to Christianity. I immediately downloaded his book, Son of Hamas, onto my Kindle and finally got around to reading it about a month ago. I couldn’t put the book down. Yousef weaves his love for his father and his family throughout his critical look at his former faith and politics, bringing a unique perspective to the complex issues of that region. 11/27/10 update:  We received some great information from Ron Brackin, the ghost writer for Son of Hamas. He said,  "the U.S. counterpart to the Shin Bet is the FBI rather than the CIA. The CIA counterpart is Mossad. We thank Ron for his input. See his comment below for links to his blog."

 

This book is a must read for anyone who is curious about an insider’s take on the Palestinian issue, Hamas, and other Arab terrorist organizations. I was surprised by certain revelations, realizing how little I truly understand about these groups. For example, he outlines the belief systems of various terrorist organizations. Hamas has a strong basis in Muslim faith. However, the PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organization) is essentially atheistic with strong allegiance to communist philosophy. However, they all play to Islamic sensibilities for support of their causes.

 

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Frankly, his perspective on Islam is unique. He carefully outlines his growing dissatisfaction with Islam, calling it a schizophrenic faith. He extols the love that his father exhibited to his family and the people that followed him. The family lived a meager lifestyle and gave much of what they had to their neighbors, earning much respect within the community. However, Yousef, who now goes by the name Joseph, could not find a way to reconcile his father’s expressions of love with his apparent condoning of terrorist violence against innocent people.

 

Joseph's stay in an Israeli prison fueled his growing frustration with violence as a solution to the region's problems. He was first arrested as a 10-year-old child for throwing rocks at Israeli troops. He later became a leader of a terrorist group at his high school and was eventually arrested by the Israelis for running weapons. Within the Israeli prison, various terrorist groups were segregated by political affiliation and were allowed to run a mini-society, complete with leaders, etc. Joseph, assigned to the Hamas section, became disgusted with the violence that Hamas leaders perpetrated on their fellow Hamas followers.

 

Wishing to ease the violence in the West Bank, Joseph became an informant for Shin Bet. Interestingly, he would tell his handlers where the terrorists were hiding and their plans for violence. But he would extract a promise from the Israelis that they would not kill those he exposed. “By1997, Yousef was considered the Shin Bet's most reliable source in the Hamas leadership, earning himself the nickname the "Green Prince" – using the color of the Islamist group's flag, and "prince" because of his pedigree as the son of one of the movement's founders. The intelligence he supplied Israel led to the exposure of a number of Hamas cells as well as the prevention of dozens of suicide bombings and assassination attempts on Israeli figures. He has claimed that he did not inform for money but rather that his motivations were ideological and religious, and that he only wanted to save lives. “(Quote from Wikipedia but corroborated by my reading of his book).

 

In 1999, he met a British missionary to Israel and was given a Bible. He was drawn by the love and peace that he saw exhibited in certain passages of the Bible, especially the Sermon on the Mount. He began to practice and espouse these values prior to his conversion. In other words, he acted like a Christian before he converted in 2000. In a particularly moving passage, he was secretly baptized in 2005. In 2007, fearing that his identity as a spy was in danger of being revealed, he left the West Bank and moved to the United States where he sought asylum.

 

In August 2008, Joseph went public with his story, revealing for the first time his conversion to Christianity. He also renounced Hamas and the Arab leadership, thereby endangering himself and exposing his family in Ramallah to persecution. His family renounced him, his father disowned him and all claimed that he was a liar, refusing to have any further contact with him

 

Joseph has also claimed that his aim was to bring peace to the Middle East by exposing terrorists before they had a chance to commit acts of violence. He still desires to return to the West Bank when there is peace. However, due to his conversion and history of being an Israeli spy, this wish has little hope of reality.

 

As an interesting sidebar, the Obama administration was not inclined to offer him asylum and actually sought to have him deported. Does anyone else read a bit of politicking going on here? The reason had nothing to do with him being the son of a terrorist. It had everything to do with his work for the Israelis. WND reported the following: (Yousef) “had been denied his February 2009 request for asylum because the department interpreted his work as a counterterror agent with Israel's Shin Bet security agency as engagement in terrorist activity, making him a threat to U.S. security.”

 

However, cooler heads prevailed. I was moved to learn that "On June 24th 2010 the Shin Bet handler Gonen Ben-Itzhak, who for 10 years worked with Mosab Hassan Yousef, revealed his own identity in order to testify on behalf of Yousef at an immigration hearing in San Diego. Itzhak described Yousef as a "true friend" and said he "he risked his life every day in order to prevent violence.” (Quote from Wikipedia but confirmed with other sources such as WND). You can read about Ben-Itzhak's many conversations with Joseph in Son of Hamas.
 

WND reports "Judge Rico Bartolomei ruled Yousef will be granted political asylum Aug. 26 after he is fingerprinted and passes a routine background check. Yousef says he wants to become a U.S. citizen.
 

In another WND interview we learn:

 

“As the son of a Hamas co-founder who became a Christian, a spy for Israel and a consultant to the Holy Land Foundation terror-finance trial, Mosab Hassan Yousef offers a rare perspective on the Egypt-based Muslim Brotherhood – at once the spawn of nearly every major Islamic terrorist group as well as "mainstream" operatives in the U.S. such as the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

He told WND in a telephone interview Americans must understand that the ultimate goal of the highly influential Brotherhood is not terrorism but to establish a global Islamic state over the entire world.

"If they can establish this in a peaceful manner, that's fine," he said. "But they are required by the Quran to establish this global Islamic state on the rubble of every civilization, every constitution, every government."
The Holy Land Foundation trial in Dallas in 2008 – the largest terror-finance case in U.S. history – presented evidence of the Muslim Brotherhood's "100-year plan" to gradually destroy the U.S. and Western civilization from within "so that it is eliminated and Allah's religion is made victorious over all other religions."
"This is not a doctrine of some freak Muslim," Yousef observed. "It's the doctrine, the requirement, of the god of Islam himself and his prophet, whom they praise every day."

One of the Brotherhood's prime strategies to help achieve its ultimate aim is to spin off groups such as the Washington, D.C.-based Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, that attempt to give Islam a positive face, he pointed out.”

 

 

We leave you with a couple of You Tube videos to hear Jospeh in his own words. Unlike Ergun Caner, this guy is the real “al McCoy”. This is a story of a young man who grapples with the love for his father and family, the violence and hopelessness of terrorism, and the schizophrenia of Islam while finding ultimate redemption in the Gospel. Read this book!

 

Video One: Hamas Atrocities Led Me to Convert

 

 

Video Two: The God of Islam Suffers from Split Personality (being questioned by a Muslim anchor-somewhat heated)

 

 

Lydia's Corner: Exodus 12:14-13:16 Matthew 20:29-21:22 Psalm 25:16-22 Proverbs 6:12-15

 

Comments

The Incredible Story of the Son of Hamas: Ergun Caner-Step Aside — 27 Comments

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  3. Wow! Finally a real former Muslim who tells the truth about the Koran and what Islam is really about. He is so right when he says this “god” has a split personality. Islam is anything but peaceful if one seriously understands the message of the Koran.

    I do worry about this guy, though. What a target. Let us all pray for his safety and continued growing in the Lord.

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  5. Lydia

    His story is truly moving. His book was fascinating. I agree, his life is in danger. I am hoping that his father’s influence may protect him even though he has been disowned. He deeply loves his father and I pray that the love is still alive in his father’s heart. I had a feeling you would like this story.

  6. I read the World Net Daily site a few times and was shocked at how dishonest, false and generally rotten the stories in the site was. I’m even more shocked that someone here not only reads it, but recommends its articles.
    Goodbye Wartburg Watch, you were worth reading there for a while.

  7. I suppose Ken wants Dan Rather back? Of course, he was caught lying on the national news. I was shocked that guys like him and now Rachal Maddow and Keith Oberman are given credibility by the media. But they are.

    What is even more interesting is that during our founding and for many many years, ALL newspapers (the media source for the time) were dedicated to a particular political view. Everyone knew that because they were honest about it.

    Now, the game is to pretend to be neutral but NOT report anything that could hurt certain people but report any tidbit that could hurt the other side. All the time pretending to be objective.

  8. Ken

    I was trying to tell the story of Joseph. His book, Son of Hamas, stands as his testimony to his life. I reported much of my information as found in his book.

    WND merely reported on the information of his granting of political asylum and his testimony in the terrorism funding trial in Dallas. All of this information is available on other sources. Would you have been more comfortable with NPR or MSNBC? If so, i would be happy to refer you to those sources as well. This story is well known. It even made the New York Times so I guess that I don’t fully get it.

    Instead of fussing at the sources, I would be very interested in your take on Joseph’s story. Your criticism seems aimed at a news source rather than the story itself. Also, I included some you tube videos from other sources. What did you think of them?

  9. Nice piece. Thanks for spreading the word. One tiny thing . . . the U.S. counterpart to the Shin Bet is the FBI rather than the CIA. The CIA counterpart is Mossad. You might also be interested to learn that Son of Hamas is also a bestseller in Israel and Germany. We’re pretty excited about that. You can find out more about Mosab on his blog at http://www.sonofhamas.com. And more about me–except who cares about ghostwriters?–at ronbrackin2.wordpress.com.

    Ron Brackin, writer of “Son of Hamas”

  10. Ron

    Well done! That was a story that needed to be told and you did it well. If I ever do anything that is worth writing about, I will contact you! 🙂 I will incorporate your informative comment about Shin bet into the article above by making a correction and will include your name as well. Thank you so much for your comments!

  11. I don’t know, Hamas to Israel to Christian to the US … I’m definitely suspicious. We’ll see.

  12. “I don’t know, Hamas to Israel to Christian to the US … I’m definitely suspicious. We’ll see.”

    I am sure he is used to this sort of thing. It is not as if he had any control over being born into Hamas. Or perhaps you are suspicious of what the Holy Spirit can do.

  13. Anonymous 7:42pm

    Then there was this guy…born in a cave, headed off to and lived in Egypt, lived in a backwater town filled with zealots who advocated throwing over the occupying government, caused a brouhaha and was hung on a cross amongst a bunch of thieves….

  14. I would be doubtful of making too many generalizations about Muslims from this man’s story…. don’t forget that there are valid suspicions that Israel’s intelligence supported the creation of Hamas as a counterbalance/foe to the PLO. The amoral/immoral practices of most intelligence agencies(our own included) should give anyone pause…

  15. I tend to agree with you doubtful, it is too easy to cast all Muslims in a bad light because of the hatred and actions of a small minority. My dentist is an Egyptian Muslim. I have known him for 25 yrs. and I also consider him a friend. Am I supposed to denounce him now because the right-wing of Christian fundamentalism and Glenn Beck say that I must in so many words from their rabid mouthings? I think not. I refuse to be hijacked and dehumanized by any religion or ideology.

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  17. The other side of the strange coin: A Palestinian doctor who practiced in a small town in my state for 20 years, very loved by many including his staff who could not contain his glee on Sept 11 and danced around his practice in celebration. His staff was stunned. the patients were stunned. they all walked out. Soon, it was found he had helped funnel money through a local Mosque he had helped to build there (small town about 50,000 people has a Mosque!) to other mosques that were found to be helping terrorism.

    why was he so happy about the Twin Towers being attacked after living here and prospering here for 20 years?

  18. Lydia-

    That’s just the point…should we be judging a whole religon and it’s followers by the individual actions of a few? If I remember right, over 1 million people marched in solidarity with the US and to condemn the attacks of 9/11. The country where this took place, only days after the attacks…Iran.

    The flip side is this, would you want Muslims to make a judgment on Christianity based on the actions or statements of CJ Mahaney, Doug Wilson, or Pat Robertson? Wouldn’t you plead that these men do not always represent the mainstream or average Christian?

    I smell a double standard….I don’t deny that Muslim terrorist groups exist, but so do Christian Terrorist groups. The KKK and the Northern Ireland factions come to mind. I would condemn terrorism without implying that all Muslims and Christians are terrorists.

    Do you see my point?

  19. Doubtful

    I wanted to post the thoughts of this young man who grew up in terrorist based family. It is also fascinating to see what drove him to the faith.We may all have disagreements on how we view Islam but this young man gives us an insight that few will have.It is a story that is worth being told.Whether or not Israel supported the creation of Hamas is beside the point.

    I believe that all views and insights need to be aired to help all of us to better understand the complexities of the politics of that region. This is a wonderful story of redemption in the midst of terrorism that is told with a son’s love for his father in spite of his terrorist ties.God invaded this young man’s life in a most unexpected way and there is cause for rejoicing in that.

  20. Dee-

    And in fairness, I was more responding to Lydia’s comments, not your article, which is not broad sweeping.

    Lydia, Dan Rather was not caught “lying”, he was found to have reported on an issue and his sources did not completely check out. He was guilty of a journalistic error and was run out of town. If he is the standard, then Dee is guilty of “lying” for originally reporting that Shin Bet is Israel’s version of the CIA, when in fact, they are not.

    Will you be calling for Dee to resign because she did not research her article fully?

  21. Dee-

    Well….I for one do not want you to resign. I’m thankful for sites like these where serious issues and differences can be discussed.

  22. “The flip side is this, would you want Muslims to make a judgment on Christianity based on the actions or statements of CJ Mahaney, Doug Wilson, or Pat Robertson? Wouldn’t you plead that these men do not always represent the mainstream or average Christian?

    I smell a double standard….I don’t deny that Muslim terrorist groups exist, but so do Christian Terrorist groups. The KKK and the Northern Ireland factions come to mind. I would condemn terrorism without implying that all Muslims and Christians are terrorists.

    Do you see my point?”

    Yes, and it would fine except it starts with a wrong premise so has to end witha wrong conclusion. It is not about what individual people believe. It is about what the holy writings say. Lots of Christians believe wrong things. I should not simply rely on what paid Christians tell me Christianity is. I go to our Holy Word.

    The same with Islam except their holy writings are from a madman. But, if I want to know Islam, that is where I go. Not an individual Muslims.

    Islam is an ideology that comes complete with it’s own civil laws. There is no way around that. You cannot be true to Islam without that. bin Laden lamented that more Muslims should know the Koran (most don’t) so they could do their duty.

  23. “Lydia, Dan Rather was not caught “lying”, he was found to have reported on an issue and his sources did not completely check out. He was guilty of a journalistic error and was run out of town.”

    Problem is, Dan Rather refused to admit he was wrong on the same national TV where he spread the misinformation and clear it up. The bloggers got him, though.

    So, to me it was a lie. If it was not intentional, wouldn’t his reputation require he clean it up?

  24. Lydia-

    Thanks for your responses, the Dan Rather story is interesting, because I think he was set up to made to look sloppy or like a liar. Russel Baker of Salon has covered this story pretty well, and I think his reporting shows that Dan Rather was a victim of improper vetting. Very different than lying…..but not too many folks have bothered to look into his side of the story.