发布日期:2025-11-22 07:09 点击次数:54
上周,纽约市长候选人佐赫兰·马姆达尼(Zohran Mamdani)在洋基体育场附近的布朗克斯伊斯兰文化中心外走向麦克风时,谈及"9·11事件后因感到不安全而不再乘坐地铁的姑姑"时,他的声音哽咽了。
在他身后,一位戴着太阳镜的也门裔美国教育家黛比·阿尔蒙塔塞尔(Debbie Almontaser)点了点头。大约二十年前,也就是2007年,她因捍卫一件印有"Intifada NYC"(纽约起义)标语的T恤而被迫辞去一所公立学校校长的职务。市政官员认为这一标语煽动暴力,但她坚称其并无恶意。她的案件成为美国穆斯林活动人士的集结号,他们将黛比塑造成"伊斯兰恐惧症"的受害者。
如今,阿尔蒙塔塞尔(Almontaser)再度回归,这次她身兼双重身份——既是Emgage Action的高级顾问,也担任也门美国商人协会行动委员会的董事。这两个组织属于支持曼达尼(Mamdani)的110个政治非营利组织、社区团体和政治行动委员会之列,曼达尼声称自己遭受了"伊斯兰恐惧症"的针对。近期,当批评者质疑曼达尼与布鲁克林强硬派伊玛目西拉杰·瓦哈吉(Siraj Wahhaj)的关系时,她迅速采取行动,协助组织了一场为瓦哈吉辩护的抗议活动。
这一迅速而协调的应对举措,揭示了一个由政治操盘手和宗教人士组成的网络的行事方式——他们因共同目标紧密交织,即全力将曼达尼(Mamdani)推上市长之位。
曼达尼的背景与许多同信仰者有所不同。他在采访中表示,自己属于**霍贾什叶派**穆斯林,这一源自印度的小型教派相对开明。而他在纽约地区的许多盟友则是宗教观念严格的**逊尼派**穆斯林,他们对教义持更为保守的诠释。但双方在政治领域找到了共同立场。
“这是宗教、政治与身份认同的复杂融合,”华盛顿穆斯林政治运动与极端主义研究员曼苏尔·哈吉表示,“曾经专注于社区服务的同一批网络,如今正在动员选民并推举候选人。这便是政治伊斯兰在民主体制内的适应方式。”
马姆达尼的"上帝小队"由数十名核心成员组成,他们擅长将任何批评都描绘成对其信仰的攻击,并指责批评者患有伊斯兰恐惧症,尽管其中许多人自己也曾对美国、以色列和资本主义发表过激烈言论。
原教长称美国"肮脏且病态"
10月7日,曼达尼走进布鲁克林的阿特-塔克瓦清真寺后,发布了一张自己与清真寺伊玛目(祈祷主持人)西拉杰·瓦哈吉的合影,两人笑容满面,此举引发轩然大波。
这位伊玛目(伊斯兰教长)的复杂过往可追溯至数十年前。在1992年的一次演讲中,他声称美国穆斯林应当推选一位"埃米尔"(穆斯林统治者),而非在乔治·布什和比尔·克林顿之间做出选择。此后不久,他更作为品格证人为谢赫·奥马尔·阿卜杜勒-拉赫曼出庭作证——这位被称为"盲眼教长"的极端分子因策划1993年世贸中心爆炸案(致6人遇难)而被定罪。
“你知道这个国家是什么吗?”瓦哈吉在1995年说道,“它就是个垃圾场。肮脏。既肮脏又病态。”
2018年,瓦哈吉(Wahhaj)的三名子女在新墨西哥州一处与其家族有关的院落中被捕,此前当局在那里发现了11名营养不良的儿童;另有一名孙辈儿童在当局所称的驱魔仪式中死亡。瓦哈吉向当地媒体表示:“无论他们做错了什么——对我们来说都是不可接受的。”
青年伊玛目呼吁:“不惜一切代价抵抗”
在纽约,美国穆斯林协会近日联署了一封公开信,谴责针对马姆达尼(Mamdani)"明显带有伊斯兰恐惧症、反黑人和排外色彩"的攻击行为。联署机构包括美国-伊斯兰关系委员会全国总部(CAIR National)、纽约分会、北美伊斯兰圈纽约分会、五镇伊斯兰中心、纽约美国穆斯林协会、穆斯林社区网络、洛克威伊斯兰中心以及"赛奥西特穆斯林社区"。
长期以来,美国穆斯林协会的成员总是急于指责他人患有伊斯兰恐惧症,与此同时,他们却肆无忌惮地呼吁对其认定的敌人实施暴力。
在今年早些时候的一次开斋节庆祝活动上,美国穆斯林协会的一名神职人员将全球穆斯林描绘成受害者。该协会青年部主任穆罕默德·巴达维宣称,只有当穆斯林"在全球取得胜利"时,当地社区的喜悦才算圆满,并补充说他们将在"非法犹太复国主义占领者"——以色列被摧毁后庆祝。
他定期组织反以色列抗议活动,以反对"不公与压迫"。在一次抗议中,巴达维(Badawi)呼吁年轻人"不惜一切代价"对不公正现象"进行反击"。
阿卜杜拉·阿克勒是美国穆斯林协会青年中心一位富有魅力的组织者,他与创始人纳尔丁·基斯瓦尼共同领导了多场以"有生之年"为口号的抗议活动。曼达尼在竞选市长前加入了他们的行列。
阿克勒将街头抗议活动称为"神圣行动主义",认为这是信仰与抵抗的结合,将"解放巴勒斯坦"。自2023年10月7日哈马斯袭击以色列以来,美国穆斯林协会青年中心已在纽约证券交易所外的华尔街组织祈祷抗议活动,为"灾难日"举行街头示威——他们将以色列建国日称为"灾难",并在贝莱德集团外发起由青年主导的抗议活动。
阿克勒将地铁车厢变成抗议区,高喊口号:“让起义全球化!唯一的解决方案就是起义革命。”
当纽约警方逮捕阿克勒(Akl)及其他活动人士时,美国-伊斯兰关系委员会纽约分会发布声明要求释放他们。
在今年10月7日的反以色列抗议活动中,阿克勒高喊:"我们做得还不够!我们会以比第一次10月7日更强大的姿态出现!"面对批评,他在社交媒体上发文进一步强调:"说我们未能采取足够行动阻止对巴勒斯坦人的全面种族灭绝是煽动行为?说我们需要更大声抗议、继续为加沙发声是犯罪?犹太复国主义者再次为现代史上证据最确凿的种族灭绝流泪。"
数十年来,美国-伊斯兰关系委员会(CAIR)一直以激进且好讼的姿态,为众多穆斯林人士和事业充当监督者,常站在抗击合理偏见的最前线。但该组织也屡陷争议。联邦检察官曾在一项针对德克萨斯州非营利组织"圣地基金会"的恐怖主义融资案件中,将CAIR列为未被起诉的同谋。2008年,五名圣地基金会领导人因向哈马斯转移1240万美元资金被定罪。最终,CAIR官员均未因该案受到指控。
多年前,曼达尼(Mamdani)录制了一段说唱歌词,歌颂“圣地五人组”(Holy Land Five),并呼吁听众:“向圣地五人组致敬。你们最好去查查他们的故事。”
加州美国-伊斯兰关系委员会执行主任、新成立的501(c)(4)非营利组织"CAIR行动公司"联合创始人巴辛·埃尔卡拉,如今似乎正效仿势力强大的亲以色列政治行动委员会AIPAC的做法,寻求一种全新且完全合法的资金筹措方式。他在北美伊斯兰圈的会议上表示:"AIPAC风光了60年,但如今大势已去。"
我们要给这些人一个教训。我们来了。
...游戏规则已改变。美国以色列公共事务委员会(AIPAC)自1961年成立至今,如今他们遭遇了一个强劲的对手!
今年夏天,卡塔尔半岛电视台前主持人梅迪·哈桑(Mehdi Hasan)与马姆达尼(Mamdani)进行了一次充满共鸣的访谈。随着舆论热度攀升,哈桑在社交媒体上化身为全职辩护者,不仅回击批评者,更将马姆达尼塑造为理想的挑衅者形象,称其为"一代难遇的政治奇才"。
哈桑本人的过往记录显示,他曾发表布道演说,将非穆斯林比作"畜生",并将同性恋者称为"性变态者"。不过他表示,自那以后自己的观点已变得更加开明。
今年早些时候发生一系列飞机坠毁事故后,哈桑在社交媒体上发文称:“让美国飞机再次坠毁。”
他在批评声中删除了这条消息,并表示:“我删除了这条讽刺的引用推文,因为MAGA(让美国再次伟大)支持者和仇视伊斯兰教的人断章取义,荒谬地暗示我在煽动暴力。我显然是在嘲讽MAGA的‘让美国再次伟大’口号,并强调特朗普执政期间飞机坠毁数量惊人以及联邦航空局预算削减的问题。但这条推文品味低劣、措辞不当,让一些不怀好意的人称我为恐怖分子。”
亚西尔·卡迪(Yasir Qadhi)是美国知名伊玛目,也是AlMaghrib研究所和MuslimMatters.com网站的创始人,他致力于传播萨拉菲派(Salafi)对伊斯兰教的清教徒式解读,并撰写了《理解萨拉菲主义》一书。近日,他在X平台发布了一篇分为两部分的推文,将曼达尼(Mamdani)的胜利誉为"文明的胜利"。
他敦促美国穆斯林群体摒弃对政客们"天真"的宗教批判,这些政客的社会进步立场令他们感到不适。
与此同时,卡迪曾嘲讽欧洲犹太人是"白皮肤、鹰钩鼻、金发",并称他们"并非闪米特人种"。在同一场讲座中,他还推荐了《大屠杀的骗局》一书。
近日,他公开支持达拉斯郊外颇具争议的穆斯林住宅区开发项目"EPIC City"。他在Instagram发文中特别注明:"也向非美国公民开放"。
他列举了部分特色设施:"伊斯兰学校、学院以及清真寺。"
伊玛目哈立德·拉蒂夫是纽约市伊斯兰中心颇受欢迎的教长,该中心是一个耗资2200万美元的项目,旨在第六大道为年轻的穆斯林专业人士打造一个枢纽和"我们自己的空间"。他于今年早些时候公开支持马姆达尼,并一直是一位热忱的支持者。他称马姆达尼是"在这个极度缺乏同情心的时代里,传递慈悲的使者"。
2012年,拉蒂夫曾带领包括奥马尔·马丁在内的朝圣者前往沙特阿拉伯。马丁后来在奥兰多脉冲夜店枪击案中杀害49人,这起事件是美国历史上针对LGBTQ群体最致命的袭击。拉蒂夫否认自己曾激化马丁的极端思想,也未面临其他伊玛目所遭遇的同类指控。
在曼达尼与瓦哈吉会面引发争议后,他在社交媒体上发文称:"祝我的兄弟佐兰生日快乐——继续用你的本色向世人展示我们的本色。"
他祈求神明保佑曼达尼的使命,揭示了曼达尼神之小队中宗教与政治的融合:"愿你的第34年充满明晰、勇气与亲近——亲近你的目标、你的人民和你的造物主,"最后以阿拉伯语的阿敏("Ameen")作结。
周一,拉蒂夫通过纽约穆斯林民主俱乐部发布了一段俏皮视频,旁白说道:"名字是马姆达尼,M-a-m-d-a-n-i。"视频中拉蒂夫对口型配合旁白说出后半句:"你该学会怎么念这个名字。"
当日,拉蒂夫发表演讲支持马姆达尼,转而指控马姆达尼如今成为"反黑人种族主义"的受害者,并称"反穆斯林情绪始终是""反黑人种族主义"的象征。
《纽约时报》在一篇热情洋溢的人物特写中,将巴勒斯坦裔美国政治活动家琳达·萨苏尔称为"戴着希贾布的布鲁克林本地姑娘"。近十年来,她一直是曼达尼的政治引路人,不仅邀请他加入自己共同创立的纽约穆斯林民主俱乐部,还支持他竞选纽约州议会席位并最终胜选。
长期以来,她一直是个颇具争议的人物。她曾针对两位批评者——作家、前穆斯林阿亚安·希尔西·阿里和活动家布里吉特·加布里埃尔——发表过这样的言论:“我真希望能夺走她们的阴道——她们不配做女人。”阿里曾遭受过女性割礼的伤害,这种陋习通过切除女童的阴蒂来抑制其性行为。
作为“女性大游行”的联合创始人,萨尔苏尔因被指控反犹主义以及不欢迎支持以色列的犹太女权主义者(即“犹太复国主义者”)而在一片批评声中辞职。
在周日晚上与参议员伯尼·桑德斯(Bernie Sanders)和众议员亚历山德里娅·奥卡西奥-科尔特斯(Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez)共同举行的集会上,伊玛目拉蒂夫(Imam Latif)向1.3万人宣告:“这是我们的城市,这是我们的时刻。”
一些穆斯林教徒对此持有异议。
阿尔-哈吉表示:“这不是我们的。”
他说道:“从斯塔滕岛到布鲁克林、曼哈顿、皇后区和长岛,曼达尼‘上帝小队’在各个行政区不断敲响不满的鼓点。在这座城市的穆斯林机构中,你也能听到同样的节奏:他们诋毁我们,他们让我们沉默,他们惧怕我们。”
他补充道:"在这种日益高涨的声浪中,有些东西正在消失:穆斯林的多元性。'上帝小队'并不能代表纽约每一位穆斯林的立场——无论是什叶派、逊尼派、移民家庭,还是试图在信仰与自由间寻找平衡的第二代移民子女。他们所代表的联盟致力于非自由主义目标,一方面试图以社会主义手段掌控城市政治,另一方面又鼓吹清教徒式的宗教言论。他们坚称反对者就是背叛群体,实际上却在推行自身的专制统治。"
阿尔-哈吉表示,无论下周胜负如何,曼达尼上帝小队都已将多年前让阿尔蒙塔瑟陷入巨大麻烦的口号付诸实践——"纽约起义"。
When New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani stepped to the microphone outside the Islamic Cultural Center of the Bronx last week near Yankee Stadium, his voice broke as he spoke about "the memory of my aunt who stopped taking the subway after Sept. 11 because she did not feel safe."
Behind him, a Yemeni-American educator in sunglasses named Debbie Almontaser nodded. Almost two decades ago, in 2007, she was forced to resign as principal of a city school after defending a T-shirt with the slogan "Intifada NYC." City officials viewed it as a call to violence. She said it was benign. Her case became a rallying cry for Muslim American activists who cast her as a victim of "Islamophobia."
Now, Almontaser was back, this time as a senior advisor to Emgage Action and a board member of Yemeni American Merchants Association Action, two of 110 political nonprofits, community groups and political action committees backing Mamdani as he alleges "islamophobia" against him. Recently, when critics questioned Mamdanis ties to hardline Brooklyn Imam Siraj Wahhaj, she sprang to action, helping to organize a protest to defend Wahhaj.
That rapid, coordinated response captured the modus operandi of a network of political operatives and clerics intertwined with the shared mission of catapulting Mamdani into the mayors office.
Mamdanis background diverges from many of his co-religionists. In an interview, he said he is a Khoja Shia Muslim, part of a small, relatively liberal sect with roots in India. Many of his New York-area allies are religiously strict Sunni Muslims who practice more conservative interpretations of the faith. But they find common ground in politics.
"Its a sophisticated fusion of religion, politics and identity," said Mansour Al-Hadj, a Washington-based researcher on Muslim political movements and extremism. "The same networks that once focused on community services are now mobilizing voters and producing candidates. This is how political Islam adapts inside democracy."
Mamdanis God Squad includes about a few dozen key players who specialize in painting any critique as an attack on their faith, accusing critics of Islamophobia even as many of them have engaged in strident rhetoric against the U.S., Israel and capitalism.
The Original Imam: America is "filthy and sick"
Mamdani set off a firestorm on Oct. 7 when he walked into Masjid At-Taqwa in Brooklyn and later posted a photo of himself beaming beside the mosques imam, or prayer leader, Siraj Wahhaj.
The imams checkered past goes back decades. In a 1992 talk , he said American Muslims should elect an "emir" rather than choose between George Bush and Bill Clinton. Soon after, he served as a character witness in the trial of Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman, the so-called "Blind Sheikh" convicted for plotting the 1993 World Trade Center bombing that killed six people.
"You know what this country is?" Wahhaj said in 1995 . "Its a garbage can. Filthy. Filthy and sick."
In 2018, three of Wahhajs children were arrested after authorities found 11 malnourished children in a New Mexico compound tied to his family; a grandchild had died in what authorities described as an attempted exorcism. He told local news reporters, "Whatever they did wrongit's not acceptable to us."
The Youth Imam: Resist "by any means necessary"
In New York, the Muslim American Society recently signed onto a letter to challenge "unmistakably Islamophobic, anti-Black, and xenophobic" attacks on Mamdani. Signatories included CAIR National, the Council on American-Islamic Relations New York chapter, Islamic Circle of North Americas New York chapter, the Islamic Center of Five Towns, Muslim American Society of New York, Muslim Community Network, Rockaway Islamic Center, and a "Syosset Muslim Community."
Members of the Muslim American Society have long been quick to accuse others of Islamophobia even as they unabashedly call for violence against their perceived enemies.
At an Eid celebration earlier this year, a cleric at the Muslim American Society, cast Muslims as victims worldwide. Mohammad Badawi, youth director at the Muslim American Society, declared the local communitys joy would only be complete when Muslims are "victorious worldwide," adding they would celebrate "after the destruction of the illegitimate Zionist occupiers," Israel.
He regularly organizes anti-Israel protests in a campaign against "injustice and oppression." At one protest, Badawi urged youth to " fight back " against injustices "by any means necessary."
Abdullah Akl, a charismatic organizer with the Muslim American Society Youth Center, leads many protests under the banner of "Within Our Lifetime," with founder Nerdeen Kiswani. Mamdani joined them before his run for mayor.
Akl calls the street protests "sacred activism," a mix of faith and resistance that will "free Palestine." Since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, the Muslim American Society Youth Center has organized prayer protests on Wall Street outside the New York Stock Exchange, street protests for "Nakba Day," calling the day Israel was created a "catastrophe" and youth-led demonstrations outside BlackRock.
Akl turned a subway car into a protest zone with chants: "Globalize the intifada There is only one solution: intifada revolution."
When the New York Police Department arrested Akl and other activists, the Council on American-Islamic Relations New York chapter sent out a press release demanding their release.
On Oct. 7 protests this year against Israel, Akl shouted , "We did not act enough! We will show up, stronger than we did the first October 7th!" In response to criticism, he posted a message on social media, doubling down and saying, "Saying we didnt act enough to stop a full blown genocide against palestinians [sic] is incitement?? Saying we need to be louder and protest more and continue to speak up for gaza [sic] is a crime? Zionist tears once again for the most documented genocide in modern history."
For decades, Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has served as an aggressive and litigious watchdog for a host of Muslim figures and causes, often at the forefront of fighting legitimate bigotry. But CAIR has also courted controversy. Federal prosecutors named CAIR an unindicted co-conspirator in a federal terrorism-financing case against the Holy Land Foundation, a nonprofit based in Texas. In 2008, five Holy Land leaders were convicted of funneling $12.4 million to Hamas. Ultimately, no CAIR officials were charged in connection with the case.
Years ago, Mamdani recorded rap lyrics celebrating the "Holy Land Five," urging listeners, "My love to the Holy Land Five. You better look em up."
Basim Elkarra, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations California chapter and one of the founders of a new 501(c)(4) nonprofit, CAIR Action Inc . now seems to be pursuing a new and entirely legal means of financing causes, taking a page from the powerful pro-Israel political action committee AIPAC. He told a meeting of the Islamic Circle of North America: "AIPAC had its run for 60 years, but it is over now."
"We will teach these folks a lesson. We are coming."
"...The game has changed. AIPAC has been around since 1961and now they have a formidable foe!"
This summer, Mehdi Hasan, a former host at Qatars Al Jazeera TV network, sat down with Mamdani for a sympathetic interview. As the campaign heated up, Hasan became a full-time defender on social media, swatting at critics and framing Mamdani as the right kind of provocateur, a "once in a generation political talent."
Hasans own record includes sermons likening non-Muslims to "animals" and comparing gay people to "sexual deviants." He has said his views have become more progressive since then.
After a series of plane crashes earlier this year, Hasan wrote on social media, "Make American Planes Crash Again."
He deleted the message amid criticism and said, "I deleted this sarcastic quote-tweet because MAGA and Islamophobic folks are clipping it out of context and trying to ridiculously suggest Im inciting violence. I was obviously mocking the MAGA slogan Make America Again slogan and highlighting the shocking number of plane crashes under Trump and the FAA cuts. But this tweet was in poor taste, poorly worded, and has allowed people in bad faith to call me a terrorist"
Yasir Qadhi, a high-profile American imam and founder of the AlMaghrib Institute and MuslimMatters.com, selling the puritanical Salafi interpretation of Islam, literally wrote the book on "Understanding Salafism." Recently, he posted a two-part thread on X endorsing the idea of Mamdanis win as a "civilizational victory."
He urged Muslim Americans to move beyond "naive" religious critiques of politicians who are more socially progressive than they are comfortable.
Meanwhile, Qadhi once mocked European Jews as "white, crooked nose, blonde hairs" and "not a Semitic people." In the same lecture, he recommended a book, "The Hoax of the Holocaust."
Most recently, he has backed the controversial Muslim housing development outside Dallas, called "EPIC City." He noted in his Instagram post: "open to non-Americans as well."
He touted some of its features: "Islamic schools, college, masjid."
Imam Khalid Latif is a popular chaplain at the Islamic Center of New York City , a $22 million project to build a hub and "our own space" on Sixth Avenue for young Muslim professionals. He endorsed Mamdani earlier this year and has been an ardent supporter. He has called him "a bearer of compassion in a time where it is far too rare."
In 2012, Latif led a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia that included Omar Mateen , who would later murder 49 people at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, the deadliest anti-LGBTQ attack in U.S. history. He has denied radicalizing Mateen and he hasnt faced the same type of allegations that surround other imams.
After the backlash to Mamdanis meeting with Wahhaj, he posted : "Happy birthday to my brother Zohran Keep showing them who we are by showing them who you are."
He invoked the divine to bless Mamdanis mission, revealing the fusion of religion and politics for the Mamdani God Squad: "May your 34th year be one of clarity, courage, and closeness to your purpose, your people, and your Creator," ending with the Arabic word for amen, "Ameen."
On Monday, Latif posted a sassy video from the Muslim Democratic Club of New York with a narration, "The name is Mamdani, M-a-m-d-a-n-i," with Latif mouthing the part where the narration turns to, "You should learn how to say it."
That day, Latif delivered a speech to support Mamdani, pivoting to allege Mamdani was now a victim of "anti-Black racism," saying, "Anti-Muslim sentiment is always" a symbol of "anti-Black racism."
In a glowing portrait , The New York Times called Palestinian American political organizer Linda Sarsour a "Brooklyn home girl in a hijab." Over almost a decade, she has been a political mentor to Mamdani, inviting him into the Muslim Democratic Club of New York, which she cofounded. She later endorsed his race for the New York General Assembly, which he won.
All the while, she has been a polarizing figure, once saying about two critics, author and ex-Muslim Ayaan Hirsi Ali and activist Brigitte Gabriel, "I wish I could take their vagina away - they dont deserve to be women." Ali is a survivor of female genital mutilation, a practice that involves cutting the clitoris of a young girl with the idea that it will inhibit sexual promiscuity.
As a co-founder of the Womens March, Sarsour stepped down amid criticism for alleged ant-semitism and not welcoming Jewish feminists who support the state of Israel, or "Zionists."
At a rally on Sunday night with Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Imam Latif told 13,000 people: "This is our city. This is our moment."
Some Muslims beg to differ.
"Its not our moment," said Al-Hadj.
"Across the boroughs, the Mamdani God Squad is banging a drumbeat of grievance after grievance, from Staten Island to Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens and Long Island," he said. "Across the citys Muslim institutions, you hear the same drumbeat: They smeared us. They silenced us. They fear us.".
He added, "In that rising volume, something is lost: Muslim pluralism. The God Squad does not speak for every Muslim in New Yorknor for every Shia, every Sunni, every immigrant family, or every second-generation kid trying to thread faith and freedom. It speaks for a coalition committed to illiberal ends, with socialist capture of city politics on the one hand and puritanical religious rhetoric on the other. They insist that to oppose them is to betray the community, so they actually push their own tyranny."
Win or lose next week, Al-Hadj said, the Mamdani God Squad had actualized the words that had gotten Almontaser into so much trouble years ago: "Intifada NYC."