JEWS - VICTIMS OF ISLAM'S ANTISEMITISM
JEWS - VICTIMS OF ISLAM'S ANTISEMITISM BRIEF BACKGROUND Muhammad was born and lived in Mecca for the first 52 years of his life from 570 to 622 AD. He proclaimed prophethood at 40; spending 12 years of his early prophetic career in his place of birth, Mecca. The earliest verses of the REVELATION (Quran) were sympathetic to Jews as he took JEWS as natural allies to his monotheistic faith. Islam was modelled in a way to appeal to the Jewish faith; e.g., midday prayer, Friday prayers, Ramadan fasting and most famously the fact that until 623 AD (a year after leaving Mecca) Muslims prayed facing towards Jerusalem, not Mecca. In MEDINA, they first made a pact with the existing communities of Christians and 3 Jewish tribes for a peaceful coexistence. ANTAGONISM AGAINST JEWS FROM 624 AD Jews refused to convert to Islam as in essence for them there was nothing new in it. This caused Mohammad frustration and quickly led to a break with all three jewish tribes. Muhammad decided to move