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BUENOS AIRES — For those who do not subscribe to Samuel Huntington’s theory of a clash of civilizations, an illuminating event occurred last week in Malaysia.

Speaking at the opening of the 10th session of the Islamic Summit Conference, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad delivered an impassioned speech in which he presented a plan of action for Muslim empowerment and also made references disparaging Jews, whom he accused of ruling the world by proxy, getting others to fight and die for them and of being arrogant. He called for devising a pan-Islamic strategy that can win Muslims a «final victory» over Jews and asked: «Is it true that 1.3 billion people can exert no power to save themselves from the humiliation and oppression inflicted upon them by a much smaller enemy?»

At present Jews are ruling over three million Palestinians in the disputed territories. I don’t quite understand what «humiliation and oppression» Jews are inflicting upon Muslims spread over 57 nations. No Peruvian Jews, Italian Jews or American Jews are ruling over anyone else, either. I guess Mohamad meant to say Israelis, but he was unable to distinguish between the words «Israeli» and «Jew,» thus portraying the Palestinian-Israeli conflict as a clash of religions. Or perhaps he meant what he said: that there is a confrontation between all Jews and all Muslims everywhere. In sum, a religious war.

Following a strong reaction in the West to his anti-Jewish comments, Mohamad claimed that he had been quoted out of context. This week, however, the unrepentant Malaysian premier confirmed his words.

The issue is not whether this Muslim leader is a racist. He is: In 1997 he blamed Jewish billionaire George Soros for his country’s economic crisis; during the war in Bosnia in the ’90s he welcomed thousands of Bosnian Muslim refugees but expelled Christians arriving with them. No, what is genuinely troubling is the applause he got from the emirs, sheiks and presidents in attendance who gave him a standing ovation. Not to mention denial. «No. I don’t think so,» Afghan President Hamid Karzai told the Associated Press when asked if he found the speech anti-Semitic. «I don’t think they were anti-Semitic at all,» agreed Yemen’s Foreign Minister Abubakar al-Qirbi.

I read the full text and found that the comments about the Jews were part of a wider picture. He devoted most of his time to a martial portrayal of current Muslim reality vis–vis the West. Though he did say that «not all non-Muslims are against us» and condemn suicide bombings, he seemed to imply that he advocates a change in method but not in goal. Thus his calls for enhancing scientific education in Muslim countries and adopting new approaches — as well as all the talk about «final victory» and concerted and coordinated action.»

Muslims ‘will triumph’

In Mohamad’s view, Muslims are treated with «contempt and dishonor,» their religion «denigrated,» their countries «occupied» and their people «starved and killed.» He stated that «our detractors and enemies . . . will attack and kill us, invade our lands, bring down our governments.» So «we need guns and rockets, bombs and warplanes, tanks and warships for our defense.» But «we will triumph in the end» because «we have the biggest oil reserve in the world. We have great wealth . . . We control 57 out of 180 [sic] countries in the world. Our votes can make or break international organizations.» (So much for the claim that Jews control the world).

While Mohamad’s anti-Semitic diatribe captured considerable media attention and diplomatic vituperation, it seems that the real story — the confrontation between Islam and the Jews in particular, and Islam and the West in general — went virtually unnoticed. If you do not want to see that speech and the positive reception it got by that central Muslim body as a vindication of the theory of a clash of civilizations, then don’t. But you can’t ignore the fact that most leaders in the Muslim world today seem to disagree with you.

Julián Schvindlerman is a writer and journalist in Buenos Aires.