Mosab Hassan Yousef rejected his Islamist upbringing to help Israel
Mosab Hassan Yousef has a knack for controversy. The son of Hamas
founder Sheikh Hassan Yousef, he has already broken every taboo in the
Palestinian book. He has worked for Israeli intelligence and converted to
Christianity. Now he is developing a new film which is sure to be no less
sensational: a biography of the life of Muhammad, the prophet of Islam.
Yousef, 33, broke ranks with Hamas in 1997 and began working for
the Israeli internal intelligence service Shin Bet. Ten years later,
after helping Israel thwart
dozens of terror attacks and arrest many members of his former movement, Yousef
left for the United States
Today, he says, he is back in Israel for the first time on a personal visit “to inspire a new
generation of Palestinians.”
‘I love Israel
because I love democracy,’ Yousef told journalists in Jerusalem
“I love Israel
because I love democracy,” he told journalists in Jerusalem
Standing next to his retired Shin Bet handler, Gonen Ben-Itzhak,
Yousef refused to answer questions in Arabic. He said he was on a mission to
educate the public about the true nature of his former religion.
“Islam is not a religion of peace. It’s a religion of war,” he
said. “Muslims don’t even know the true nature of their own religion.”
To that end, Yousef decided to produce a film about the touchiest
subject of all: the revered prophet of Islam, Muhammad. He says the film is
based on a traditional biography of Muhammad written by the
eighth-century Muslim historian Ibn Ishaq.
He said the film is unique in that it will be produced by Muslims,
“or people of Muslim background,” unlike recent European attempts to tackle the
complex historiography of Muhammad. With a written screenplay, guaranteed
funding, and a celebrity actor (whose name he would not divulge) in the
lead role as Muhammad, Yousef said he hoped filming will commence next year.
“Muhammad is still untouchable,” Yousef said, noting
that controversial as it was, Mel Gibson’s 2004 film “The Passion of
Christ” touched many people worldwide.
Another film, expected to be produced before “Muhammad,” is a
cinematic adaptation of Yousef’s 2010 autobiography “Son of Hamas,” in which he
recounts the tale of his cooperation with Israeli intelligence. Yousef said the
book was already translated into 25 languages and is available for free
download in Arabic on his personal website.
.
When asked what he would tell his father if he were in the room,
Yousef said only: “Leave Hamas. You have created a monster.”
Gonen Ben-Itzhak, Yousef’s handler who appears in the book under
his operational pseudonym “Captain Luay,” said he considers Yousef “his
brother” and has become his close friend after their professional paths parted
in 2004.
“He saved many lives and stopped many attacks,” Ben-Itzhak told
The Times of Israel. “I think that we, as Israelis, must show our gratitude to
people like him. Even while working for us he was always against bloodshed, on
both sides.”
Ben-Itzhak noted that Israeli officials voiced their concern about
Yousef’s arrival in Israel as his life is still under threat, but added that
Yousef was allowed into the country with neither visa nor passport.
“His story is very unusual,” Ben-Itzhak added. “I can’t recall the
last time an ‘asset’ came out like this.”
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