The British had wrestled Palestine away from the
Ottoman Turks in 1917, and they occupied Palestine
until 1947, and shortly thereafter, the United Nations
voted to divide western Palestine into separate Jewish
and Arab areas. The Jews accepted this plan, and the
Arabs rejected it. Not only did they reject the UN
partition plan, but 7 Arab nations decided to attack
the fledgeling Jewish microstate with public
proclamations of Jewish extermination. It was
surrounding these events that the Palestinian Arab
refugee problem was born:
"According to official records of the League of
Nations and Arab census figure 539,000 Arabs left
Israel at the urging of 7 converging Arab armies so
that they would not be in the way of their attack.
They promised the fleeing Arabs they would return and
move into the Jews' houses after the anticipated
successful annihilation of the Jews.
"We know that 850,000 Jews were ejected from the Arab
countries where they had lived for hundreds of years.
This included successful people whose property and
assets, including community assets were immediately
confiscated. 750,000 penniless Jews from Arab
countries fled to Israel.
"This was a virtual exchange of population. The Jewish
refugees were immediately accepted by the new State of
Israel. They were provided with shelter (albeit
temporary tents) food and clothing.
"The Arab refugees who had migrated to various Arab
nations were not similarly well received. They were
regarded not as Arab brothers but as unwelcome
migrants who were not to be trusted. Squalid refugee
camps were set up as showpieces to induce the West's
sympathy and kept that way. The UN through UNRWA (UN
Relief Agency) provided assistance to the camps when
the host country could not or would not. These camps
became a training ground for terrorist youth to be
targeted at Israel. The host country, like Syria,
would provide training, weapons and explosives, but
refused to absorb the Arab refugees as equal citizens.
Keeping them in misery made them valuable and
irreplaceable as angry front line terrorists attacking
Israel as proxies for the Arab armies who lost to the
Jews on the field of battle in declared wars. The Twin
Pillars supporting Arab Muslim society are "Pride and
Shame". Losing to the Jews on the battlefield time and
again in 6 wars shattered the self perception of the
Macho Man.
-By Emanuel A. Winston, Middle East analyst &
commentator
--- Gruss Gott <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> You know, I'm not sure who's land that area is. I
> haven't read enough
> to come to any definitive conclusion on a historical
> claim. My guess
> is, though, any historical claims are out the
> window. I would also
> guess that both parties would gladly give a little
> for peace.
>
> I once heard a Palestinian and an Israeli arguing
> about that. The
> Palestinian women said that she wanted her house
> back (It turned out
> that her family had been evicted by the Israelis and
> she was living in
> a refugee camp). The Israeli that was living there
> said she would
> gladly give it back if only the Palestinian woman
> would get her
> family's house back that the Germans took during
> WWII.
>
> I'm guessing these disputes go in circles. It
> doesn't surprise me
> that the either side would say they'll only accept
> the elimination of
> the other - that's basic negotiating.
>
> I don't know what the answer is, but I think the
> current war the fault
> of both. The solution will only happen when both of
> them take
> responsibility for that.
>
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