Israel's Roots HBendor A common misperception is that the Romans forced the Jews into the Diaspora after the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem in the year 70 AD and then, 1,800 years later the Jews suddenly returned to Palestine demanding their country back. In reality, the Jewish people have maintained ties to their historic homeland for more than 3,700 years. A national language and a distinct civilization have been maintained. Even after the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem and the beginning of the exile, Jewish life in Palestine continued and often flourished. Large communities were reestablished in Jerusalem and Tiberias by the ninth century. In the 11th century, Jewish communities grew in Rafah, Gaza, Ashkelon, Jaffa and Caesarea. The Crusaders massacred many Jews during the 12th century, but the community rebounded in the next two centuries as large numbers of rabbis and Jewish pilgrims immigrated to Jerusalem and the Galilee. Prominent rabbis established communities in Safed, Jerusalem and elsewhere during the next 300 years. By the early 19th century-years before the birth of the modern Zionist movement-more than 10,000 Jews lived throughout what is today Israel.' The 78 years of nation-building, beginning in 1870, culminated in the reestablishment of the Jewish State. Israel's international "birth certificate" was validated by the promise of the Bible… uninterrupted Jewish settlement from the time of Joshua onward… The Balfour Declaration of 1917… the League of Nations Mandate, which incorporated the Balfour Declaration… the UN partition resolution of 1947… Israel admission to the UN in 1949… the recognition of Israel by most other states, and most of all, the society created by Israel’s people in decades of thriving dynamic national existence. The Land of Israel does not change ownership because of the flux of illegal Arab from the surrounding countries convergence towards it i.e.(Syria, Iraq (Mesopotamia), Egypt, Bedouins, Maghreb, Metwallis, Druze, Kurds and even Bahai)… Eretz Israel would not change its name because of a majority or a minority of <Muslim fellahin> from Bosnia, Bukharra, Circassia and Turkey imported by absentee owners for the sole purpose of working the land. The Jewish people were not completely annihilated… the Jewish People is alive and well and striving to do better for humanity. Nobody does Israel any service by proclaiming its right to exist. Israel’s right to exist, like that of the United States, Arabia and 152 other states, is axiomatic and unreserved. Israel’s legitimacy is not suspended in midair awaiting acknowledgment… There is certainly no other state, big or small, young or old, that would consider mere recognition of its rights to exist a favor or negotiable concession… Abba Eban.
Most Zionist thinkers were aware of this: Yitzhak Ben Zvi, later president of Israel, and David Ben Gurion, its first prime minister, accepted it as late as 1929, the year of the great Palestinian revolt. Both stated on several occasions that the peasants of Palestine were the descendants of the inhabitants of ancient Judea (2 http://mondediplo.com/2008/09/07israel Do they censor what you are allowed to study in Israel?
sorry buddy, but following the laws of war, the Jews lost ownership of Israel in AD 135. - - - Updated - - - The Bible ALSO says that the Jews would lose their right to the Land of Israel if they sinned, disobeyed, and rebeled against God.
Arab orders to evacuate non-existent “The BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) monitored all Middle Eastern broadcasts throughout 1948. The records, and companion ones by a United States monitoring unit, can be seen at the British Museum. There was not a single order or appeal, or suggestion about evacuation from Palestine, from any Arab radio station, inside or outside Palestine, in 1948. There is a repeated monitored record of Arab appeals, even flat orders, to the civilians of Palestine to stay put.” Erskine Childers, British researcher, quoted in Sami Hadawi, “Bitter Harvest.” “During May [1948] ideas about how to consolidate and give permanence to the Palestinian exile began to crystallize, and the destruction of villages was immediately perceived as a primary means of achieving this aim...[Even earlier,] On 10 April, Haganah units took Abu Shusha... The village was destroyed that night... Khulda was leveled by Jewish bulldozers on 20 April... Abu Zureiq was completely demolished... Al Mansi and An Naghnaghiya, to the southeast, were also leveled. . .By mid-1949, the majority of [the 350 depopulated Arab villages] were either completely or partly in ruins and uninhabitable.” Benny Morris, “The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem, 1947-1949. “Moshe Dayan, the celebrated commander who, as Defense Minister in 1967, gave the order to conquer the Golan...[said] many of the firefights with the Syrians were deliberately provoked by Israel, and the kibbutz residents who pressed the Government to take the Golan Heights did so less for security than for the farmland...[Dayan stated] ‘They didn’t even try to hide their greed for the land...We would send a tractor to plow some area where it wasn’t possible to do anything, in the demilitarized area, and knew in advance that the Syrians would start to shoot. If they didn’t shoot, we would tell the tractor to advance further, until in the end the Syrians would get annoyed and shoot. And then we would use artillery and later the air force also, and that’s how it was...The Syrians, on the fourth day of the war, were not a threat to us.’” The New York Times, May 11, 1997
Excellent post. Please explain how the Jews got the land in the first place and list Jewish presidents, kings, Prime ministers and government agencies between AD 50 and AD 1945. That list and explanation will really prove me wrong. I'm a great fan of education and happy to admit my errors...if you can provide the requested information.
if things keep going as they are going, Arabs will number the same as Jews in Israel in 50 years. thats when Israel becomes a true democracy.
I noticed that you are an avid reader and you like to get involved in history with a need of uncovering the truth. It would be very easy to debunk the article in question if realistically there is/was something to debunk... Apparently your demands are readily available in books, in the internet etc., I simply do not have the time and I am not interested to put you on the defensive. Just remember that Spain was under the Muslim yoke for 800 years, where are the Muslims now? The Muslim conquests of the Seventh Century were coined irreversible...I agree... in the case of Mesopotamia, Assyria, the ancient Egyptians, North Africa et all for these people were forcefully converted and their origin thrown to the winds... OTH The people of Israel are alive and well and returning to their ancestral home with the world's blessings or without them.
What determines who owns a land on this historically changing earth? It's pretty much been thru out history conquer and inhabit---i.e. the present squatters own it as is said, 'possession is 9/10's of the Law." According to the OT, the Israelites were 'given' the Promised land but had to 'take it!' But they disobeyed their contract with God by not putting ALL of the present inhabitants to the sword (even their livestock) and intermingled with the women of those lands even adopting their idols. So God gave them over to their enemies from then on. And so, modern Israel has 'retaken' their lands, but as in the time of Joshua, have to possess them with the adversity of the native inhabitants. Again, modern day 'squatters rights' rule regardless of the official ancient covenants, etc. And so Israel will have to do what they feel that they need to do to 'possess' the land they now occupy.....not necessarily 'right nor wrong,' just "is!"
Since you like avoiding questions, I'll answer for you. The Israelis of about 3,000 years ago attacked, invaded and occupied the land but lost it after about 1,000 years. The next 2,000 years saw no Jewish influence of any degree over the area. Quite how that makes it Jewish land; I'm unsure.
Israel was only a sovereign city state in Syria Palestine for 73 years.. The rest of their history they were under foreign control.
There is NO evidence for forced conversion. - - - Updated - - - Not in the modern world......... Colonialism is a thing of the past.
Like YOUR ancestors did in FL with the Seminole Indians?! So when are you vacating your house and giving your land back to them??
to be honest, Israelis aren't being "transfered" to the West Bank. Low interest mortgages are being offered for settlements and individual Israelis are choosing to buy homes. doesn't really count as a true "transfer". nevertheless, confiscating private property for military purposes and then allowing civilian settlements to be built there without any sale or rent to the original owners, is terribly immoral and illegal. - - - Updated - - - stop derailing. this thread is about Israel.
Ronstar, et al, Yes, this is often brought-up and discussed as either in terms of the Geneva Convention (Article 49) or the Rome Statute - ICC Article 8 war crime. (COMMENT) This is one of those legal things that needs adjudication and the presentation of both sides of the issue. It really needs litigated. If the overall action is one of those catalysts that brings Palestinian Negotiations to the forefront, then it is a legitimate means of bring peace by the application of the least non-violent pressures. Most Respectfully, R
[MENTION=50906]RoccoR[/MENTION] you seem to be very knowledgable on this subject. which is the international law that states an occupying power can only confiscate occupied land for security purposes? thanks in advance.
Ronstar, et al, Thanks for the kind words. (COMMENT) There are two (2) such references. The one most people are referring to - comes from the GCIV, while the second it more contemporary law: Most Respectfully, R
and there we have it. clearly, confiscation of private property by Israel is clearly illegal, unless it is for pure military & security reasons. confiscating land so that you can build civilian settlements for your own peeps?? that's hardly military or security neccessity.
