Time Travel back to 70 CE (AD) Jerusalem

Nadene Goldfoot                                     

70 CE Romans Burn down Jerusalem and 2nd Temple 

The city of Rome itself had an abundance of people, and one way to survive longer was to join the army.

In the census of 70 BCE, prior to the major civil wars of the late Republic (and considerably more conquests in Gaul and the East), some have estimated the population of the 'Empire' at a more considerable 55 to 60 million people. This falls more in line with estimates at the height of imperial power in the mid 2nd century AD, and might be inflated. The census of 70 BC showed 910,000 men held citizenship.  

"73–63 BCE: The Roman Republic extends its influence into the region in the Third Mithridatic War. During the war, Armenian King Tigranes the Great takes control of Syria and prepares to invade Judea and Jerusalem but has to retreat."
                                                      

63 BCE: Roman Republic under Pompey the Great (106-48 BCE-Roman General) besieges and takes Jerusalem and the Temple from Aristobulus' supporters.  Judea was made a tributary and stripped of the territories acquired by the Hasmoneans.  Pompey ended the Jewish independence they had had since Simon the Maccabee.   

Pompey sacked Jerusalem and installed Hasmonean prince Hyrcanus II as Ethnarch and High Priest but not as king. Some years later Julius Caesar appointed Antipater the Idumaean, also known as Antipas, as the first Roman Procurator. Antipater's son Herod was designated "King of the Jews" by the Roman Senate in 40 BCE but he did not gain military control until 37 BCE. During his reign the last representatives of the Hasmoneans were eliminated, and the huge port of Caesarea Maritima was built.

Leading up to Jerusalem and the 2nd Temple's destruction, Antipater ruled Judea from the year 63 to 43 BCE.  He was the son of the ruler, Antipas of Idumea, (Edom-also called Mt. Seir) of the 1st century BCE.  The land of Edom lay South of the Dead Sea and bordered on the Red Sesa of Elath and Ezion Geber.  They were of Semitic origin, traditionally descendants of Esau, twin of Jacob,  sons of Isaac, son of Abraham,  and were hunters.  He grew rich from trade with Arabia.  He helped the Romans.  He was the father of Herod.  Esau had become his twin's enemy, and they were not identical twins.  
                                                    

 1st Emperor Augustus reigned from 31 BC to 14 CE.  He was grandnephew of Julius Caesar.  


                                                       

Herod as a young man

Herod the Great had a campaign to take the throne of Judea.  He took siege of Jerusalem in 37 BCE.  Mark Antony (Marcus Antonius) helped him by providing him with the necessary Roman forces that were successful.  Herod captured the city and got rid of Antigonus II Mattathias which brought an end to the Hasmonean rule of many years since 166 BCE. Judah hadn't had a proper king since Zedekiah who ruled from 597  to 586 BCE who had been appointed king by Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian king  to succeed the exiled Jehoiachin when he was 21.  His mistake was in conspiring with the Egyptians which brought in the Babylonians who captured Jerusalem.  
                                                

Jews were living in Rome in the year 66 and had been there since 139 BCE.  The Great Revolt began in the year 66 CE, during the twelfth year of the reign of Emperor Nero( reign from 54 to 68- the last ruler of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. He was adopted by his great-uncle Claudius, thus becoming his heir and successor. Like Claudius, Nero became emperor with the consent of the Praetorian Guard.), originating in Roman and Jewish religious tensions. The crisis escalated due to anti-taxation protests and attacks upon Roman citizens by the Jews. The Roman governor, Gessius Florus, responded by plundering the Second Temple in Jerusalem, claiming the money was for the Emperor, and the next day launching a raid on the city, arresting numerous senior Jewish figures. This prompted a wider, large-scale rebellion and the Roman military garrison of Judaea was quickly overrun by the rebels, while the pro-Roman king Herod Agrippa II(28-93-last king of the house of Herod, son of Agrippa I.   

 Father Agrippa I (10 BCE -44 CE)  was king of Judea, son of Aristobulus and grandson of Herod.  Agrippa was educated at the court of the emperor Tiberius .  He was involved with Caligula and imprisoned by Tiberius for suspected treachery.  Freed with the title of king, he ruled over Galilee, S. Transjordan and after 41 CE by decree of the emperor Claudius, over Judea and Samaria.  He was beloved by his Jewish subjects because of his respect for the Jewish religion.  The governor of Syria was suspicious of him.  He died suddenly while attending the games in Caesarea.  After his death, his kingdom was again converted into an annex of the province of Syria.  

When his father died, Judaea reverted to the rule of the Procurators, but in the year 50, he received the principality of Chalcis and was made responsible for supervising the Temple in Jerusalem.  Emperor Claudius gave him the title of king.  he quarreled with the priests.  He had just gone to Jerusalem to restore alm from the 66 rebellion but had to flee for his life.), together with Roman officials, fled Jerusalem.
                                                    

 The Hasmonean Dynasty was started by Mattathias, a Cohen,  and his 5 sons who directed the popular revolt against the Hellenizing policy adopted by the Syrian king, Antiochus Epiphanes. We remember this history with Chanukah.  The Syrian Greeks had put statues of their gods in the holy Temple. Mattathias rebelled physically.  

  It was in 166 to 164 BCE that the Hasmoneans fought many battles, inventing guerilla tactics against the Syrians and by 164, Judah retook Jerusalem and rededicated the Temple.  This was followed by many raids to rescue the Jewish populations of Ammon, Idumea, Gilead and the Galilee.  

 Josephus, a Judean general captured by the Romans, saved his own life by becoming the Roman's scribe of this history, painting Rome in good light as that's who was keeping him alive.  He had to choose his words carefully.  

Herod the Great-a Killer b: 73 BCE d: 4 BCE

Herod became king of Judea, son of Antipater the Idumean by his Nabatean wife, Cypros.  He was appointed governor of Galilee by his father and liked to execute those breaking his laws.  The Sanhedrin called him on this.  He was spared punishment by intervention of Hyrcanus and Sextus Caesar, governor of Syria.  The Roman Senate made him king of Judea.  He married the Hasmonean Jewish princess, Marianne, granddaughter of the high priest, a Cohen, Hyrcanus II.  He murdered all those rivals to his power including his own brother in law.  One good thing he did was to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem on a magnificent scale and built 2 cities, Sebaste and Caesarea.  Herod had turned against the Nabateans and defeated them.  As a result of palace intrigues, he put to death his wife, Mariamne, their 2 sons, Alexander and Aristobulus, and even his firstborn, Antipater.

 Immediately following the deposition of King Herod Archelaus in 6 CE who had ruled from 4 BCE to 6 CE, son of Herod and Malthace the Samaritan, Judea was turned into a Roman province, during which time the Roman procurator was given authority to punish by execution. The general population also began to be taxed by Rome. The province of Judea was the scene of unrest at its founding in 6 CE during the Census of Quirinius, the Crucifixion of Jesus circa 30–33 CE, and several wars, known as the Jewish–Roman wars, were fought during its existence. Archelaus's rule was marked by such severity that he was removed from office by Emperor Augustus and he was exiled to Gaul where he died in 16 CE.  

                                                  

                        Sitting is Pontius Pilate, the Roman Procurator

There was a Joshua, born before the turn of the century, called Jesus in Greek who died in  29 CE at about the age of 35, who was the founder of Christianity.  He was said to be a Jew from Nazareth.  He was one of thousands of Jews who died on the one of the Roman crosses used for the final punishment of death. 
                                                       

 He had been arrested and was crucified by order of the Roman procurator, Pontius Pilate, Judea's 5th Roman governor, serving from 26 to 36 ."  He appears to have belonged to the well-attested Italian Pontii family of Samnite origin, but nothing is known for certain about his life before he became governor of Judaea, nor of the circumstances that led to his appointment to the governorship.  (The Samnites were an ancient Italic people who lived in Samnium in south-central Italy. They became involved in several wars with the Roman Republic until the 1st century BC. An Oscan-speaking people, the Samnites probably originated as an offshoot of the Sabines.) " A procurator was a governor of Judea and was under the Roman emperor of which 14 served between years 6 to 66.  They were subordinate to the Syrian legate who exercised his authority over the procurator if he was charged with abusing his office; as  if he was charged with being unduly extortionate in his treatment of the population or in the event of rebellion.  These procurators had the status of members of the equates class in administrative status.  They governed in place of the legate of Syria.  They really were independent governors armed with full administrative authority.  They enjoyed the "right of the sword," so had full powers to inflict punishment that included the death penalty.  This was enforced on people who were not Roman citizens.  If a Roman, they had the right to transfer their trial before the Emperor of Rome.  They lived in Caesarea, the administrative capital of Roman Judea.  
                                                       

   What Jesus had been preaching was closely akin to that of the Pharisaic preachers.  The Pharisees were a Jewish religious and political party during the 2nd Temple period who opposed the Sadducees.They were two groups who interpreted their Mosaic laws in slightly different ways.  I see their differences being a matter of teaching-style much more than content, for our laws from Moses were pretty concrete.  Many striking parallels exist between the sayings of Jesus and those of the rabbis.  They both had made use of parables.  Jesus put greater stress on the imminent end of the age and expected their present  social order to disappear swiftly.  It didn't take but about 300 years afterwards for Christianity to view Jews as competitors of their new faith and outlawed the practice of Judaism. 

 The Jews had been living since 63 BCE, over 70 years under occupation of Romans and were surrounded by these foreigners who were ruthless with a different morality than they who had been trying to change their beliefs ever since the Syrian-Greek days when then Hasmoneans fought against them and regained control.  The Jewish leaders feared for their very lives as well as losing their young people to these monsters.  Their religion was already over 1,000 years old.  They could not allow it to end, and were fighting hard to keep it going under these occupied conditions where they had no freedom.  

                                                 

                            1st Emperor Augustus  (born Dec. 30, BCE —died Sept. 13, 81 CE), Roman emperor (31 BCE to 14 CE), 

The Imperial Roman army was the land-traveling armed forces deployed by the Roman Empire from about 30 BC to 476 AD.  During this period, Augustus was the Emperor who ruled from 31 BCE to 14 CE.  His attitude toward the Jews of Jerusalem and Judea and the Diaspora was not a friendly one.  He was he one who confirmed the kingship of Herod and returned to him the areas which had been taken away through the influence of Cleopatra.   He converted Judea into a region governed by a procurator living in Caesarea.  

Under Augustus, the European borders of the empire he inherited from his grand-uncle Julius Caesar were considerably expanded. During the first half of his sole rule (30 BCE–9CE), Augustus' central strategic objective was to advance the Roman border from Illyricum and Macedonia to the line of the Danube, Europe's greatest river, in order both to increase strategic depth between the border and Italy and to provide a major fluvial supply route for the Roman armies in the region.

Rioting had been going on since the year 66 that was led by Judean rebel factions, when the Judean provisional government was formed in Jerusalem.  Jerusalem was occupied by the Roman army.  

                                  Emperor Titus and Emperor Tiberius           
                                                           

Here Titus leads his army with Jewish captives who carry loot from
the Temple back to Rome as is show on the Arch of Titus in Rome.  

The Roman army was led by the Roman's future Emperor, General Titus (79-81 CE) and his 2nd in command, Tiberius Julius Alexander. 
Tiberias became the 2nd emperor from the year 14 to 37 and was the stepson of the 1st, Augustus.  Titus would become the 10th  emperor from 79 to 81.  It was Tiberius who expelled the Jews from Rome in 19 because of a fraud perpetrated on a Roman matron sympathetic to Judaism.  4,000 young Jews were sent to Sardinia to fight the brigands.  Palestine was hardly administered under his rule when the crucifixion of Jesus happened.  

 Titus  started the siege 3 days before the holiday of Passover on April 14, 70 CE.  It lasted for 4 months, ending in August with the burning and destruction of the 2nd Temple.  That day is now remembered as Tisha B'Av.  People were starved to death.   Titus was the son of  the 9 th Emperor Vespasian (69-79).  Titus took over the command of the Roman army in Judea from his father in 70 CE when he destroyed Jerusalem after a 5 month siege.  The Romans deliberately destroyed the Temple with the object of eliminating the national religious center of the Jews.  

 3rd Emperor Caligula  reigned from 37 to 41.  He was the grandnephew of Tiberius.  He gave Agrippa, grandson of Herod, the tetrarchy of NE Judea and the title of king.  He insisted on being worshipped as a divinity and this caused a big problem among the Jews and was used as an excuse for anti-Jewish disturbances in Alexandria on the occasion of Agrippa's visit in 38.  Philo headed the Jewish delegation sent to intercede with Caligula, and has recorded a graphic impression of his court.  Caligula was assassinated which prevented serious consequences in the Jewish world.

4th Emperor Claudius reigned from 41 to 54 and was the uncle of Caligula.  He became emperor due to the help of his friend, Herod Agripia I, whom he approved as king, adding Judea to his Kingdom and uniting under him the whole area ruled by Herod.  Claudius issued edicts at once reaffirming Jewish religious autonomy in Alexandria.  When Agrippa I died in 44, Claudius put Judea under a procurator, but in 49 gave Agrippa's son, Agrippa II, regions of Judea to rule.  In 49 and 50 he expelled a number of Jews from Rome because of a Jewish-Christian conflict.  

5th Emperor Nero reigned from 54 to 65 or 68 and was the stepson of Claudius.  His reign coincided with a period of turmoil in Judea culminating in the outbreak of the war against Rome.  HIs wife, Poppaea, was sympathetic to Judaism.  Nero is not unfavorably represented in talmudical legend.  

6th Emperor Galba reigned from 68 to 69.
7th Emperor Otho reigned from January to April of 69.
8th Emperor Aulus Vitellius reigned from July to December of 69.  
                                                             

Roman Empire by 100 CE after Jerusalem's Destruction
They surrounded the Mediterranean Sea 

RESOURCE https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antipater_the_Idumaean
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Titus
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontius_Pilate
The New Standard Jewish Encyclopedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontius_Pilate
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Jewish%E2%80%93Roman_War
https://www.britannica.com/topic/list-of-Roman-emperors-2043294

French Courts Find That Israeli Occupation Is Not Illegal

Nadene Goldfoot
France is full of Muslim immigrants today.  It also holds the largest population of Jews other than Israel and the USA.  The court of Appeal of Versailles concluded that Israeli occupation is not illegal.  This judgement comes out of a country that is not a neutral one, so this judgment of the Court is very important.

The PLO charges that Israeli illegally occupies Palestinian territory and that their settlements are illegal.  Israel is building a tram and the Arabs think that this is illegal.  The companies of Veolia and Alstom built the Jerusalem tramway through the city to the east into the territories of Judea and Samaria claimed by the PLO and the Palestinian Authority to be the "Palestine" belonging and settled only by them without any Jews; Judenrein.  Since 1967, the Palestinian Arabs have refused to recognize or make peace with Israel.  Without this, there will continue to be no Palestine.

Some of the facts that the court concluded was that PLO  propaganda does not replace the law.  They also concluded that an irritated anything can't be based solely on the discretion of a political or social situation as the PLO is trying to use as reason.  Israel has not violated any humanitarian law, either.

The Court of Appeal sentenced the Association of France-Palestine Solidarity (AFPS) and the PLO to pay 30,000 euros to Alstom, 30,000 euros from Alstom Transport, and 30,000  to Veolia Transport.  These are firms involved in building the Jerusalem tram line.  Court costs added up to 90,000 euros.

Resource:  http://translate.google.co.il/translate?hl=iw&sl=fr&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fdocstalk.blogspot.co.il%2F2013%2F04%2Fla-cour-dappel-de-versailles-olp-c.html

Romney Spoke In Israel: Palestinians' Excuse for Not Being Productive

Nadene Goldfoot
It seems that the Palestinians took offense when Romney spoke in Israel pointing out the differences in economic vitality between Israel and the Palestinians.  He mentioned that as he looked at the city and thought of the accomplishments of the people of Israel, he recognized the power of at least culture and a few other things.  He cited the innovative business climate and the Jewish history of thriving in difficult circumstances.

Palestinian Labor Minister Ahmed Majdalani called the statement "a clear racist spirit."  He felt insulted.  The Palestinians noted that Romney wasn't addressing the stifling effect of Israel's occupation and used that as an excuse as to why they were not a productive group of people.  What kind of spirit do the Muslim Religious Leaders display by putting fatwas on all Jews everywhere to be killed?  How racist can they get?

I would reply that if they put their energy into work instead of bombing Israel with missiles, mortars and rockets constantly, they could become a different productive culture as well, but right now their culture is all wrapped up in doing in Israel!  How dare he use "occupation" as a crutch.  The only reason restrictions have come about is because of their murderous behavior towards all Israelis.  Saeb Erekat, senior Palestinian official is now blaming Romney's comments as hurting the US efforts to restore Washington's standing in the Muslim and Arab world.  Well, what was it getting the USA?  Were the Palestinians coming to the peace table with Netanyahu?  No!  Nothing Hillary was saying induced them to respond in a positive way.

Israel does not want to have to deal with war, contrary to other's beliefs.  "As Golda Meier had said, "We hate war. We do not rejoice in victories. We rejoice when a new kind of cotton is grown, and when strawberries bloom in Israel."  This is a far different culture than what the Palestinian Arabs have developed.

The Palestinians interestingly reminded readers that there are 57 Muslim and Arab countries while US diplomats are exerting every effort to explain their position.  I think Romney has far more knowledge of the region  than Obama ever has had, so they are in for a surprise, which they just realized.  57 Muslim countries exist and they want to add one more-Palestine.  I'm behind times;  I only had listed 48 Muslim majority countries.  Who else are they counting?  Are they including England and France already?

Israel withdrew all Jewish people from Gaza in 2005 in the offer of peace, and what they got instead was the slap in the face of bombings.  Their homes became the grounds from which death-harboring rockets were fired from.  Any restriction of trade and movement there is due to their bringing in these weapons to use on Israel.  They refuse to have any peace pact with Israel or live in any sort of peaceful life such as Mexico, the USA and Canada enjoy, or England and France, etc.  It's a state of war.  The same goes for Judea and Samaria.  Fatah and Hamas have joined together in their desire to destroy Israel.  What do they expect?  They are receiving far better treatment than they ever gave to Jews who had lived in Muslim lands.  Their people are existing by being on the dole with the United Nations!

They speak of Occupation.  It was Jordan who occupied Transjordan and took it over when it was originally planned by Britain who held the Mandate to be part of the Jewish National Home, and then Britain gave in to them because of their demanding nature and Britain wanting to keep a hand in the Middle East.  Then Jordan occupied Judea and Samaria illegally, as that certainly was to be part of the Jewish National Home as well, having been the original Judah.  Jews had lived in Gaza since the beginning of Jewish history and that was given up for a peace we didn't receive as well.

Jews have treated Palestinians like people, but it hasn't been reciprocated.  What they teach their children in schools is disgusting.    In Muslim countries like Syria, Jews were less than 3rd rate non-citizens.  They were called "dhimmis" and had to pay special taxes.  Testimony against Muslims didn't count in courts.  They were forbidden to ride a horse to town; forbidden to wear Muslim clothing; forbidden to carry arms; prohibited to build or repair places of worship.  They were oppressed, suffered from extortion and violence by local authorities and the whole Muslim population.

In Aleppo in the 19th century, money was extorted by officials on every pretext, petty bullying was a commonplace thing, and if a Jew walked in the market, people would throw stones at him, trying to kill him.  Others might try to pull his beard or his ear locks, spit on his face and just be an abused person.  By 1831, Christians had full equality but not Jews.  1840 saw an economic slump in Syria so that they pulled out the Damascus blood libel.  In the 1850's Christians were treated with violence again.  1936 saw anti-Jewish riots on Jews in Damascus and again in the late 30's.  Jews were stabbed by activist Muslims.  By now a Nazi delegation visited Damascus so that propaganda grew and German and Arab youth organizations developed and were against Jews.  As it turned out, Jews were held prisoners in Syria and not allowed to leave, and if they tried, were killed.

One of the differences in cultures is another comment that Golda Meier said that is quite deep.  "When peace comes, we will perhaps in time be able to forgive the Arabs for killing our sons, but it will be harder for us to forgive them for having forced us to kill their sons."  I think Romney recognizes this difference quite easily.

Resource:  http://www.boston.com/news/world/middleeast/articles/2012/07/30/romney_angers_palestinians_with_pro_israel_comment/?page=2
Book:  From Time Immemorial by Joan Peters, page 60-65 on Syria
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Golda_Meir

Are Jewish Towns and Cities Eating Away Palestinian Lands?

Nadene Goldfoot
What are the Palestinian lands that are being settled by Jews?  The Palestinian leadership had been offered their own state back in 1947 when Israel was offered theirs.  In fact, Israel was promised their own homeland way before that which was including the “West Bank” (Judea and Samaria) which had originally been the Jewish Homeland, but the Palestinians rejected their offer, and kept rejecting it in years thereafter.  The English had cut off 80% of what was to become Israel and it was instead offered to the Arabs.

The Jews did not come into the West Bank again until the 1967 Six Day War when Israel was attacked by Jordan, Egypt and Syria,  and surprising everyone, won the battle.  That meant that Israel had the opportunity to take back East Jerusalem and unite it with the rest of the city under one mayor.  They did not move anyone out in doing so.

No Palestinians were moved out of Judea and Samaria.  Jews did move there.  It so happens that many families had been living there before 1948, like in Hebron,  and were attacked, killed and forced to flee for their lives, so now Jews have moved back again.  If Palestine is ever created, they plan to have no Jews living there at all.

Israel does patrol Judea and Samaria to keep people safe, as the Palestinians are known to attack Jewish communities.

The Arabs refused to take their land   every time it was offered, therefore there is no Palestinian land as yet, or may never come about at this rate.  They refuse to sit down and discuss terms with Israel.  For 64 years the land has remained "Occupied Territory" of Judea and Samaria.    There is no reason why Jews cannot build homes there except that the world community refuses to accept this fact..  

For the sake of peace with the Arabs,Israel left the Sinai in 1979 and disbanded 18 settlements.  Israel left Gaza in 2005 and disbanded 21 settlements.  Israel left the area in Judea and Samaria in 2005 disbanding 4 settlements we deemed illegal.  Israel  turned over the area to the Palestinian Authority to govern all civil situations but maintains the right of security enforcement  there.

The position of successive Israeli governments is that all authorized settlements are entirely legal and consistent with international law.In practice, Israel does not accept that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies de jure, but has stated that on humanitarian issues it will govern itself de facto by its provisions, without specifying which these are. The scholar and jurist Eugene Rostow has disputed the illegality of authorized settlements.

Under Israeli law, West Bank (Judea Samaria) settlements must meet specific criteria to be legal. In 2009, there were approximately 100 small communities that did not meet these criteria and are referred to as illegal outposts.

According to the Oslo accords of the 4th Geneva convention, both Israel and the Palestinian Arabs were barred from changing their status quo but both have built.  International law is listened to, but is not THE law of the land.

While 164 nations call the West Bank- Occupied Palestinian Territory, “the government of Israel holds that only territories captured in war from “an established and recognized sovereign” should be considered occupied territories.”  In my opinion, this would act as a deterrent for further attacks on a country.  They cannot just attack and get away with it without  paying the price.  This is what these 164 nations are trying to allow:  no penalty for attacking Israel in the 1967 War.

Resource: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Bank
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_settlement

International Law on Occupation

Nadene Goldfoot

In 1922 the League of Nations had a "Mandate for Palestine". It declared that "the Land of Israel will be designated for the re-establishment of the Jewish national home." This gave Jews working on their return definite hope that they would soon have their much needed country once again.

True: Jordan gained a state on May 25, 1946 by insistance that they wanted their own state and got their independence from the League of Nations Mandate under the British administration, whose Transjordan mandate ended May 22, 1946. The Hashemites renamed it Jordan in 1950. Jordan had illegally occupied the areas of Judea and Samaria in 1948. They were internationally unrecognized. Jordan controlled the area without the right to do so. They attacked Israel at its birth of May 1948. They kept Israel out of Jerusalem.

True: The territories of Judea and Samaria are not occupied because Jordan did not have a recognized sovereignty there prior to 1967.

True: International law does bar an occupying state from settling civilians in areas that have been occupied . As you can see, this is not the case in Judea and Samaria. Therefore, Israel has every right to build and live in Judea and Samaria.

What Happened: Jordan occupied the area of Cisjordan (Judaea/Samaria) now typically referred to as "West Bank". That's another political move to erase the Jewish connection. It continued to control the area in accordance with the 1949 Armistice Agreements and a political union formed in December 1948. While recognizing Jordanian administration over the West Bank, the United States maintained the position that ultimate sovereignty was subject to future agreement. Israel was created on May 14, 1948. The 2nd Arab-Palestinian Conference held in Jericho on December 1, 1948, proclaimed Abdullah King of Palestine and called for a union of Arab Palestine with the Hashemite Kingdom of Transjordan. Jordan is a constitutional monarchy. His son, Hussein reigned from 1953-1999. Now his son, Abdullah II, is king.

Jordan withdrew its forces from their posts overlooking the Plain of Sharon. In return, Israel agreed to allow Jordanian forces to take over positions in the West Bank previously held by Iraqi forces.

In 1970 the Palestinians almost overthrew Jordan itself. They had some bloody battles. By 1994 Jordan signed a peace treaty with Israel.

As of July 2010 there are 6,267,285 people in Jordan of which 98% are Arabs with 92 % of the people being Sunni Muslims. Many of the people living there are refugees from Palestine and Iraq.

Resource: Wikipedia: Jordan
Jewish Review 9/4/2010 from Yisrael Hayom newspaper, page A-16.
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3464.htm

Judea and Samaria Under Attack by NY Times Comumnist

Nadene Goldfoot

A disliked term for ancient Judea and Samaria, taken to erase the memory of who it belonged to, is West Bank, used by most Americans. Nicholas Kristof just wrote a scathing article about the area that needs an intervention of understanding history.

First, he calls Israel's living in much of the area, "occupation," which is inaccurate and distasteful. Israel took control in 1967 in a war of self-defense. Arabs continued to reject peace offers. The future of this area is still under negotiations and Israel has a claim to the territory as valid as that of the Palestinians, maybe better.

This is a territory in dispute, not an occupied territory. Under international law, true occupation happens when land has been taken from a recognized sovereign. The last one to fit that bill was the Ottoman Empire, not these Palestinians. Jordan and Egypt control was never recognized by the international community. There never has been a sovereign state of Palestine anywhere.

His sarcastic comments belie facts of history. Israel bought land, they didn't steal it. Israel was created by the United Nations, so it's real. Nobody gave Israel a rose garden for starters. They had to fight mosquitoes and swamps to make a state. What are the Palestinians doing?

Resource: The two sides of a barbed-wire fence by Nicholas Kristof at nytimes.com

http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Facts+About+Israel/Israel+in+Maps/Judea+and+Samaria.htm

Comment: Shaul Bloom 7/3/10-He writes that the Bedouin village of Umm-al-Khain is denied building permits and is off the grid…

Ummm… does he realize that this is how most Bedouin’s CHOOSE to live? In most cases, they do NOT own the land on which they place their “ramshackle tents and huts”. They are squatters! (referring to Kristof's first example).

We're Not to Forget Jerusalem

Nadene Goldfoot

In 70 AD, on this very day, a Roman army under General Titus occupied and plundered Jerusalem.

Are we going to lose it again after regaining it in 1967 AD? That is about two thousand years that it took us to regain it. We've always had Jews living there, but had lost it to Rome. So many were carted away to be slaves in Rome, and many were killed.

Today it is a thriving and beautiful city, thanks to the endeavors of Israel. The world now has access to this amazing center of civilization. It's not in the same disrepair we found it to be in in 1967 when no one could visit. Is that what the world wants to happen, now?

What we need today is for the terrorists to stop their coveting, plundering and killing and decide to live in peace. They'll gain far more than a piece of someone else's land. They'll gain some respect. Isn't this implied in one of our ten commandments?