The letter "A new Palestinian state won't promote peace," published Sept. 15, states that there is no occupied territory in Palestine since no one can name a Palestinian king or ruler.
Palestine never had to put up a "vacancy" sign. It was conquered and governed by the many empires that rose and fell over several thousand years.
It was always populated and as a political entity was governed by chosen officials of the rulers in Rome, Constantinople and other empires.
The last empire, the Ottoman, was broken up after World War I and a mandate was given to the British to prepare Palestine for independence.
After World War II the UN was formed and because of the brutal treatment of Jews by the Nazis, support for a Jewish homeland grew. Israel declared its independence in 1948. It resulted in the expulsion of 750,000 Palestinians from their homes.
Peace activists and human rights workers have reported on the restrictions on travel to schools, hospitals and work so that life is continuously made more difficult for the Palestinians.
This occupation is misnamed. It is a plan by the Israelis for the removal of the Palestinians from their land by making life unbearable.
Sameer S. Hassan
Quaker Hill
It's amazing how many misleading assertions the writer was able to pack into such a short letter. Let's pick it apart, section by section.
The letter "A new Palestinian state won't promote peace," published Sept. 15, states that there is no occupied territory in Palestine since no one can name a Palestinian king or ruler.
Palestine never had to put up a "vacancy" sign. It was conquered and governed by the many empires that rose and fell over several thousand years.
It was always populated and as a political entity was governed by chosen officials of the rulers in Rome, Constantinople and other empires.
This is correct, but misleading. Hassan is clearly trying to make the reader believe the Palestinian Arabs have been there all this time, omitting the fact that the land was conquered and taken from the Jews, who still maintained a continuous presence in the land since Biblical times, and the Palestinian Arabs are relatively newcomers.
The last empire, the Ottoman, was broken up after World War I and a mandate was given to the British to prepare Palestine for independence.
Another misleading omission: Britain was given a mandate for Palestine as the Jewish homeland.
After World War II the UN was formed and because of the brutal treatment of Jews by the Nazis, support for a Jewish homeland grew. Israel declared its independence in 1948. It resulted in the expulsion of 750,000 Palestinians from their homes.
It was not Israel's independence which caused the Arabs, who at that time insisted they were not Palestinians, a term at that time understood to refer to the Jews, which led to hundreds of thousands of Arabs leaving their homes; it was the refusal of the Arabs to accept the United Nations Partition Plan, their invasion of the recreated Jewish state and the war they started, along with their admonitions to their brethren, which led to the creation of the Arab refugee problem. Very few Arabs were forced from their homes.
Peace activists and human rights workers have reported on the restrictions on travel to schools, hospitals and work so that life is continuously made more difficult for the Palestinians.
The terror offensive launched by the Palestinian Arabs when they rejected peace, along with the establishment of their own independent state, back in 2000 forced Israel to take measures to protect the lives of its citizens. It is that terror offensive which is the cause of all of which Hassan complains.
Hassan is also contradicted by the leader of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas/Abu Mazen, who has said things are pretty good in the disputed territories and he has no need to rush into negotiations.
Hassan is also contradicted by the leader of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas/Abu Mazen, who has said things are pretty good in the disputed territories and he has no need to rush into negotiations.
This occupation is misnamed. It is a plan by the Israelis for the removal of the Palestinians from their land by making life unbearable.
The first sentence is correct; the second is nonsense.
Legally, there never was an "occupation" by Israel, since the territory was not captured from a sovereign over it. In practical terms, any so-called occupation ended early during the Oslo Experiment, when the Palestinian Authority took over the governance of the disputed territory in which about 95 percent of the Arabs live.
Legally, there never was an "occupation" by Israel, since the territory was not captured from a sovereign over it. In practical terms, any so-called occupation ended early during the Oslo Experiment, when the Palestinian Authority took over the governance of the disputed territory in which about 95 percent of the Arabs live.
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