By Iqbal Jassat – Johannesburg

True to form, South Africa’s controversial Israeli-linked and self-styled “Islamist Terror Expert” Hussein Solomon, has made a shameless re-entry to claim his “I told you so” moment in the wake of Kenya’s tragedy.

Opportunist and expediently exploitative, Solomons is being courted by a few sympathetic media allies to create a renewed frenzy on the emotive subject of “Islamic terrorism” without regard for facts and accuracy.

Thus far his remarks have been no more than a regurgitation of stale unverified allegations. Despite this glaring weakness, these repetitive claims seek to position himself as an authority on what he derogatively describes as “Islamo-fascism”.  Not only does he yet again fail to back his false claims with evidence, he naively believes that South Africa and its government will embrace his alarmist theories by Palestinian activism.

After all, he makes no attempt to conceal his links to Israel. His latest offering is sensationally titled “Jihad – A South African Perspective”. Not surprisingly, the only endorsements are from Israeli-linked right wing “think tanks” such as Global Research in International Affairs [GLORIA] Centre and FRGS, Institute for National Security Studies, Tel-Aviv.

As the author, Solomons is identified as a Senior Research Associate with Research for the Study of Islam and Muslims in Africa [RIMA] based in Israel. Moshe Terdiman, the founder and director of RIMA glorifies Solomon’s book as a must-read for “experts in terrorism and radical Islam in South Africa”.

Terdiman’s alarmist fear-mongering urges readers as follows: “What role has South Africa played within global Jihad? How have the South African government and security apparatus perceived the terrorism threat facing the country? And, what can be done in order to better respond to the terrorism threat?”

Such rhetoric is in keeping with RIMA’s anti-Muslim propagandist role. Belonging as it does to a cluster of Israel’s well-resourced “Hasbara” outfits, it is expected that Terdiman and GLORIA’s Barry Rubin will team up with Solomon.

Unfortunately for Rubin who claims that Solomon’s latest drivel will be “totally new”, it will be a complete let down. Though being a current publication [2013], all the “research” he unpacks can best be described as “info-laundering” or “info-recycling”.

For example he dips back to the 80’s to the era of Qibla and jumps to PAGAD during the 90’s in support of his ridiculous thesis. In displaying his naïve reliance on questionable media reports and sources, he cites a 2002 Wall Street Journal piece on “concerns” over Al-Qaeda “presence” in South Africa. And a 2003 declaration by the Israeli Security Service that there is “recognizable Hamas activity” in South Africa.

He goes on to repeat unverified allegations against Muslim individuals and families. These include Dr Feroz Ganchi, Zuber Ismail and the Dockrat cousins. With scant regard to the corrective action undertaken by the editor of the Daily Maverick to apologize and retract a slanderous report by De Wet Potgieter, Solomon unashamedly revives his questionable probes on so-called “military training camps”.

To my amazement but not surprise he throws in the arrest of Sheryl Cwele during 2010 claiming that she’s linked to Nigerian drug cartel. What’s her connection to Jihad many will wonder? Indeed what is the relevance of her mention except to confound and conflate criminal operations with legitimate Muslim aspirations for restoration of justice in Palestine and elsewhere where the “War on Terror” has unleashed horrible pain and suffering!

Solomon’s penchant for sensationalist reports is neatly embodied in all his writings and utterances directed against “Islamism” which he claims to be “proving altogether more lethal than a Hitler or Mussolini…”

To illustrate how outdated his “totally new” pack of info is, he cites Mo Shaikh as “the current head of the South African Secret Service [SASS]…”! Not only does it point to a shoddy cut and paste job, it also reflects his deep-seated antagonism towards Muslims in South Africa.

– Iqbal Jassat is an Exec Member of the Media Review Network – Johannesburg – South Africa. Visit: www.mediareviewnet.com.