Two Tales of One City

Classic Israeli vs Palestinian narratives

Disclaimer:

1. I might be wrong about some things.

2. I am unavoidably biased, but I’m trying really really hard to be neutral.

“facts”

Ancient Times

● Israelites lived here from 1000-500ish BCE● The Jewish people have a right to the land

religiously, legally, and historically● Jews have always prayed toward Zion

(Jerusalem)

Ancient Times● Palestinians have lived on the land since before Israelites● Israelite presence was short in the 12,000+ year history of Palestine● Judaism is a religion of revelation, and has no tie to a particular land

1900ish - rise in Zionism● Palestine was 86% Muslim, 10% Christian, 4% Jewish - all living in peace under

the British Mandate● 1900ish: rise in Zionism → increased Jewish immigration● Britain backed the Zionists, and punished Palestinians harshly

○ Led to riots against the British/Zionist alliance and immigration

1900ish - rise in Zionism● Zionist economic success attracted Arab immigrants as well● “Palestinian” population was just Arabs from neighboring countries

○ “There were no such thing as Palestinians” - Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir

● Riots were instigated by Arab leaders

Holocaust● Culmination of centuries of persecution● 6 million Jews died● Jewish refugees had nowhere to go...

→ need for a homeland

1947: UN Partition Plan● British Mandate was about to expire● Recommended independent Arab and Jewish states,

with a special zone for Jerusalem● Civil war broke out immediately after adoption of the

plan

1947: UN Partition Plan● Plan gave 55% of Palestine to a

Jewish state, even though Jews were only 30% of the total population and only owned 7% of the land

● Illegitimate plan because of “self-determination”

1947: UN Partition Plan● Israel accepted the resolution - it was the Arab

community that rejected this effort towards peace● War was forced onto the Yishuv (Jewish community)

1948 Arab-Israeli War● Palestinian guerillas started a civil war by attacking Jewish settlements and

neighborhoods● After the Israeli Declaration of Independence (May 15, 1948), Egypt, Jordan,

Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq invaded Israel● Israel fought 7 Arab armies - it’s a miracle they survived at all!

1948 Arab-Israeli War● The Yishuv planned for the war and had a strict

advantage the whole time● Arab armies had:

○ half as many people

○ very little infrastructure

○ very little military training

○ very little cooperation

● Left Israel with 78% of Palestine - more than the UN plan had given them

Palestinian refugees - Nakba (catastrophe)

● Ethnic cleansing systematically conducted by Israeli forces

● 10-70 massacres were committed● Israeli forces forced entire villages to

leave their homes● 750,000 Palestinian refugees in

neighboring Arab countries, who are still barred from their homes

Palestinian refugees● Palestinians generally fled on their own, b/c rumors and Arab leaders● Israel only decided to prevent refugees from returning, so that it would not be

destroyed by a hostile Arab internal majority

“A land without a people for a people without a land”

Today● Continued refusal by Arab states to recognize Israel as a Jewish state● Constant struggle for survival → necessary security measures● Israel has tried to make peace:

○ offered new homes to refugees

○ peace resolutions rejected by Arab nations, not by Israel

Today● Occupation of Palestinian territories is oppressive● Gaza is an “open-air prison” - a humanitarian crisis● Israel is building illegal settlements in the West Bank● Separation barrier ignores the 1949 Armistice Line, and has severe economic

consequences

tl;dr

This is historically our land, and we need a homeland.

We’ve always wanted to make peace. It’s the Arabs who don’t.

We live here now, and we are now a bastion of democracy in a sea of Arab countries.

This is our land.

The Jews took over, with Western backing, and violently pushed us out of our homes.

We are now subject to an oppressive Israeli regime.