Nadene Goldfoot
I remember what propaganda is from WWII. That is exactly what's happening right now about Israel. The big lie that young people are swallowing is that the Arabs were forced to leave Israel in 1948 at the creation of our state. This is a huge lie.
Shmuel Katz, or rather, Samuel Katz, is the author of Battleground; fact and fantasy in Palestine. I read this book ages ago to be knowledgable about the actual events. Shmuel was a member of the first knesset and died in May 2008. He was a biographer and essayist.
The period of 1948 was well documented by many reporters. No one spoke about Arabs being forced to leave by Jews. Neither did any Arab spokesmen comment about such a thing. Why did they leave? George Hakim, Greek bishop of the Galilee told a Beirut newspaper that the refugees would return in a week or two because their leaders promised them that the Arab armies woud crush the "Zionist gangs" very quickly and there was no need for panic or fear of a long exile. Iraq's prime minister, Nuri Said said, "We will smash the country with our guns and obliterate every place the Jews seek shelter in. The Arabs should conduct their wives and children to safe areas until the fighting has died down." An Arab commented in the Jordanian newspaper Al-Difaa, "The Arab governments told us, get out so that we can get in. So we got out, but they didn't get in."
No one expected the ragtag group of Jews to win, but they did! The fact that there are these refugees is the consequence of the action of the Arab states in opposing partition and the state of Israel. The Arab states must share in the solution of this situation and they never have. Instead they have used it as a ploy against Israel. The only state that has taken in refugees has been Jordan, and that was not an easy feat for them.
There were two bad incidents; at Ramle and Lod where Arab civilians were driven out of their homes by Israeli soldiers. At the village of Deir Yassin, we had a massacre created by novice Israelis fighting for their lives, also. That was it during the whole period.
Arabs evacuated numbered 420,000, confirmed by the UN and Arab sources as well as by Jews. The UN provided them with food, shelter, clothing and medical assistance. Because of this, Arabs from all over the area arrived for the handout. The UN had no way to identify people. Everyone signed as refugees to get the free aid. By December 1948 the relief agency was feeding 750,000 and by July 1949 they were feeding a million. Then the Red Cross International Committee joined the group and recognized any destitute Arab in Palestine as a refugee, so 100,000 were added to the list. Now we have a 3rd generation of Arabs all together as "victims of Israeli aggression" and demanding the right of return."
The Arab invasion of Israel at its creation of May 1948 was a crime. It was unprovoked except by its creation by the U.N. 6,000 Israeli citizens were killed then. Thousands were injured. Arabs have not taken any responsibility. Asking Israel to discuss or pay for the refugee problem is Hutzpa.
Resource: The Great Refugee Scam by Shmuel Katz
Battleground Fact and Fantasy in Palestine by Samuel Katz
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