Revisionist History and Truth in the Middle East

On Tuesday, in an Op-Ed piece for the "New York Times", Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas outlined not only his plans of the unilateral declaration of a Palestinian State but also described the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. To be brutally honest, his view of the history of the conflict is certainly seen through the eyes of a revisionist. Abbas made this statement, "The last time the question of Palestinian statehood took center stage at the General Assembly, the question posed to the international community was whether our homeland should be partitioned into two states. In November 1947, the General Assembly made its recommendation and answered in the affirmative. Shortly thereafter, the Zionist forces expelled Palestinian Arabs to ensure a decisive Jewish majority in the future state of Israel, and Arab armies intervened. War and further expulsions ensued."

Let's examine that statement. First, Chairman Abbas is correct when he states that the last time the United Nations General Assembly considered the question of the Middle East - the actual vote came on November 29, 1947 - the land was partitioned into two states: one Arab and one Jewish. But that is the only truth in his statement. When, on May 14, 1948, Israel's first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, declared that Israel was a new sovereign nation born within the partitions agreed by the UN General Assembly, war was declared by five neighboring Arab states on May 15. The Arab world rejected the two state solution in 1948 just as they had in 1936 when the British Foreign Secretary Lord Robert Peel made his report outlining a two state solution to end the hostilities between the Jews and Arabs. Israel did not declare war in 1948; they were forced into defending that portion of land which had been granted to them by the United Nations. It was not the Jews who left, but the Arabs who left their homes behind, not because of war, but because of the urging of their leadership that the war would soon be over and to the victor would go the spoils - of course, they felt they would be the victors.

Now the Palestinian leader wants the United Nations in September to declare unilaterally that a Palestinian state exists within the borders of the 1948 ceasefire agreement. Furthermore, he wants the United Nations to agree that the descendants of those Arabs who fled their homes in 1948 be given the right to return - a number conservatively estimated to be around six million Arabs. Of course he has already gone on record as saying that not one single Jew will be found in the new Palestinian state.

On Thursday, President Obama gives a major speech on the Middle East, outlining his strategy for the creation of two states. My guess is that it will be the same old worn out ideas. Then on Friday he will be meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu at the White House. One can only hope that this meeting will go better than previous ones have.

Meanwhile Hamas and Fatah leaders continue their work in Cairo hammering out the details of their newly created unity government. According to reports, Fatah leaders have agreed with the principles of Hamas, namely that Israel must be destroyed. The Hamas charter puts its this way: "The hour of judgment shall not come until the Muslims fight the Jews and kill them. Peace initiatives, so-called peaceful solutions, and the international conferences to resolve the Palestinian problem, are all contrary to the beliefs of the Islamic Resistance Movement." so much for peace.

May I recommend an excellent resource if you would like to read a very well written and yet unbiased report of the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The book is titled, "War without End" and was written by Anton La Guardia. I think you will find it a most helpful read. Or, if you are more into historical fiction, I would recommend the "Zion Chronicles" series by Bodie Thoene. Makes for some great summer reading.