Israel Matzav

Lies, lies and more lies

The 'Palestinian' representative to the United States, Maen Areikat, has an op-ed in the Washington Post. It starts with the lie that the 'Palestinians' lived in Israel under occupation before the Cananites(!) and it goes downhill from there.

We lived under the rule of a plethora of empires: the Canaanites, Egyptians, Philistines, Israelites, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Crusaders, Mongols, Ottomans and, finally, the British. This has made our region rich in history, culture and heritage. Indeed, if our olive trees could speak — some are centuries old — they would have a lot to say.

This makes us very proud and appreciative of our special place in this world. That is why we are so attached to our land and to our identity. I can’t think of a place that is quite like it. Yes, it is tumultuous, incomprehensible and, at times, very dangerous, but for us it is home. Centuries of rule by an eclectic assortment have taught us that empires come and go but legacies and values remain. We proudly carry those values today. Family is sacred, education is indispensable, and religious tolerance is innate. The fact that we outlived these empires is a testament to our resilience and strength.

Notice how he doesn't count Jordan as an occupying power (which they clearly were under international law), and therefore he speaks of their 'religious tolerance' without mentioning the facts that every Jewish synagogue in the Old City of Jerusalem was destroyed by the Jordanians,that the gravestones of the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives were used as latrines and paving for a hotel by the Jordanians, and that Jews were denied access to our Holy sites during the 19 years that the Jordanians controlled the Old City of Jerusalem. Some 'religious tolerance.' And that's without even considering the steep decline in the Christian population in Judea and Samaria since the 'Palestinian Authority' came to power there in 1994.

Before World War II, Palestinians and Jews living in Palestine enjoyed times of great harmony. My grandfather shared a bakery shop with a Jewish partner, Aaron, in Jerusalem’s Bak’a Tahta neighborhood. My mother told me stories of the period of peace and tranquillity they enjoyed with Jews during this time. That period ended in 1948, however, and a conflict began. The result was our subjugation to the rule of others and more than half of our people being dispossessed. It was a traumatic experience. It triggered our characteristic defense mechanism, which has stood the test of time — stout perseverance and a faith in the manifest destiny of those who uphold their values in the face of oppression.

Great harmony. Especially during the Hebron massacre in 1929, the riots in Jerusalem in 1936-39, the war on the Jews that five Arab countries declared as soon as the nascent Jewish state was born. The conflict didn't begin in 1948 and it didn't just begin by itself.

I won't bother with the rest of his drivel. Shame on the Washington Post for allowing an opinion writer to reinvent facts.

Labels: 1929 Hebron massacre, 1930's, Jerusalem, Palestinian people, War of Independence

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 9:44 AM