Dr. Abdel Wahab El-Messiri , a great thinker whom I doubt that a single post can give him the respect he deserves. This man is world known academically but I do not think that he was well publicly like Fukuyama , yeah I believe that he is like him and even better and greater.
Dr. Abdel Wahab public fame came with the publishing of his controversial book/ encyclopedia that he spent 20 years in writing it “The encyclopedia of Jews,Judaism and Zionism”.
This encyclopedia caused him a lot fame and a lot trouble as we will see later
Dr. Abdel Wahab El-Messiri was born in 1938 in Damanhur , North Delta. He was graduated from Alexandria University in the faculty of Arts in the English section in year 1955. He travelled to the U.S in 1963 and took his master degree from Columbia University , then he took the PhD from Rutgers University in year 1969. When he turned to Egypt he began to teach in several universities like in Ain Shams in Cairo and king Soud in Saudi Arabia . He also was a visiting professor in several Universities and academies like Nasser Military academy. From 1975 till 1979 he worked as the Cultural councillor for the Arab league delegation in the UN .
As I said the most famous work for Dr. Abdel Wahab was his controversial encyclopedia of Jews , Judaism and Zionism , the work that cost him 
20 years from his life and also false of accusation of anti-Semitism and even sometimes his own personal safety. This book I believe is the most comprehensive encyclopedia written about Judaism and Zionism since I do not know when.
Already that some of you will think that because the author and researcher is a Muslim Egyptian ,he would be biased against the Jewish people , well think again because this encyclopedia is the most objective in my opinion about the Jews because he did not consider them the enemy. I mean you do not spend 20 years from your life writing such important reference in 8 big volumes with more than 3239 pages in an academic scientific way to promote a specific idea. Dr. Abdel Wahab wrote that book to find the truth and believe I read parts from this big reference I felt that this clear many myths about Jews , Judaism and Zionism . Every thing you can imagine about Jews is in this encyclopedia .
You want a proof , ok what about if I told you that he did not believe 
in the Protocols of elders of Zion” !!?? Dr. Abdel Wahab said in his book “The secret Hand : A Study in the violent and secret Jewish movements “ that it was based upon a brochure published in France in 1864 under the name of The Dialogue in Hell Between Machiavelli and Montesquieu “You can read the original text whether in French or English here “
Dr. Abdel Wahab wrote also for Children nice Arabic stories. He began to write them in 1960s for his daughter.
He was a leftist still he defended Islam and Arab Nationalism like no other , in fact I believe he was more Islamist in his thinking in the last years.
Dr. Abdel Wahab was not only a researcher and expert in Israeli and Jewish stuff , he was also a great patriot man who fought dictatorship as much as he can.
He was from the people who stood against the regime in that last 
couple of year and when he died he was already the coordinator of Kafya , the famous Egyptian movement. It was enough to see him in the protests despite his old age and his illness. It was very sad scene to see the anti-riots officers surrounding him in the protests as if he were thug !!
This is a short bio for Dr. Al Messiri.
Here are something interesting short facts about him :
- He hates Barbie dolls and love chubby childish cotton dolls.
- The state refused to treat him on the expenses of the state in the U.S and he was treated on a Saudi Prince Expenses !!??
- He died at 5 AM Cairo local in Cairo at “Palestine Hospital”
I want to say in the end something that a person can die but his thoughts can live forever
Links :
- The official Website of Dr. Abdel Wahab Al Messiri
- His biography from the Arabic Wikipedia
- His article in Al Jazeera “The end of Israel” in year 2006
- His article in Al Ahram Weekly “Arabs, Muslims and the Nazi genocides of Jews” in 1998.
I am desperately looking for Nur Elmessiri. Do you have any idea how I can find her? El messiri and my father were great friends at Rutgers and since his death we have lost contact with Nur. How can we find her?
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