Response to Juan Cienaguas "Israel's Mistake is the Settlements"

Submitted by Mike Nargizian (United States), May 27, 2002 at 17:32

Comment submitted by Juan Cienaguas on May 23, 2002 at 14:32
Daniel -
Israel's BIG mistake is building those settlements in the West Bank and Gaza!

How on earth could they have been so misguided and remain so arrogant to continue building these settlements which are now stark concrete barbed wire forts among the occupied natives and think that they, the natives will get used to them?!?
JC


RESPONSE TO JUAN........
Dear Juan,
On its face your comment would appear simple and correct. However, the history is quite a bit different than that.

1) Jews have lived in Judea & Samaria (West Bank), Gaza and
Jordan as well for thousands of years continuously.
This is all part of ancient Palestine or Eretz Israel.
2) Old City Jerusalem or the "Real" Jerusalem was almost
2/3 Jewish in 1850.
This is the holiest site in the world to Jews and
mentioned hundreds of times in The Old Testament
and Torah.
3) Hebron is the 2nd most holy city to Jews and evidence
suggests it had a Jewish majority as well in the 1800's.
It as well has had a continuous Jewish presence for
thousands of years.
4) In 1948 the Arabs rejected the UN Partition Plan though
it only gave the Jews 18% of what
They were promised by the League Of Nations. Instead
they gathered up their Superior Armies and Tanks and
invaded Israel. They failed and although Israel won some
additional Territories mainly desert the Jordanese won
and annexed the West Bank and Egypt the Gaza Strip.
Jordan then officially "KICKED OUT" or "Judenreined"
every Jew from that territory including what became
Jordan, all part of ancient Palestine. However, the
Arabs who remained in Israel became citizens with full
rights.
5) Most of the Arabs that left Israel in 48 left prior to 1
bullet being fired. The Arab states
Forcefully "persuaded" them to leave as to not be
sellouts legitimizing the new state and to not be in the
way when they would scorch the earth of the Jews. The
Arab States who "occupy" 99.99% of Middle East lands told
them after they drove the Jews into the Mediterranean
they could go back to not only their homes but the Jews'
homes, towns, farms and lands.
6) Initial estimates of displaced Arabs from Israel were
closer to 300-350,000 via statements of Arab leaders
themselves!! However, after the Arabs realized they
could become a valuable weapon they hoarded them into
special areas to subsist for the time being, "Refugee
Camps" until they could soon militarily defeat Israel.
Additionally, the UN then passed a special Resolution
that anyone who had lived there just 2 years even if
they didn't own land would be considered a "Refugee".
They then created a special organization for these
specific "Refugees" UNWRA. Note there were MILLIONS of
Germans, Hindus and Indians that were displaced in the
same decade and no organization was created and they were
quickly resettled!
7) About 600,000-900,000 Syrian, Egyptian, Iraqi, Iranian,
Moroccan, Lebanese, Yemenis etc… Jews were persecuted,
tortured, murdered, publicly hung, and driven out of
their these countries with just the shirt on their back
in the next 30 years. Not one UN Resolution was passed
for these people, no special UN Organization was set up
for them and ALL were resettled in Europe, Israel and the
United States. Instead of being newcomers to Palestine
as most Arabs in Palestine were they had lived in these
countries for hundreds or thousands of years. Their
Assets, family heirlooms, property and the like were all
confiscated by these Arab states and estimated to be in
the BILLIONS!!
8) Despite the popular myth almost all Jewish "Settlements"
in the West Bank are on land a distance from any Arab
towns or cities, on previously empty barren land.
Additionally, since 1967 there have been far more
Arab "settlements" on these lands than Jewish, again on
land previously barren. Often these "settlements' are
due to the jobs created from the Jewish presence there.
9) When Jordan "occupied" the West Bank the economy and
standard of life were extremely depressed, yet there was
no movement for "independent" Palestinian State, though
Jordan is an Independent Palestinian State on 80% of
ancient Palestine and is 4x larger than Israel with 1
million less people living in it. Under Israeli
sovereignty the standard of living rose and Health Care
was provided to the Arab inhabitants there, now called
Palestinians, previously called Jordanians or Arabs.
10) Jerusalem is not mentioned nor Palestine or Israel once
in the Koran. There is 1 passage that refers to
Mohammed's night journey to a distant mosque in a
dream. However, there is substantial evidence that at
Mohammed's death Jerusalem was under Christian
sovereignty and there was only a Church on the Temple
Mount in Jerusalem. 70- years after Mohammed's death
Palestine was conquered by the Arabians. The Dome of
the Rock was then built and later the Al Asqua (The
Distant) Mosque was built on the Temple Mount. Syria
tried to compete with the Arabians Mecca and Medina by
elevating Jerusalem, however later Jerusalem quickly
fell from importance and was even sold to the Christians.
11) Israel is less than 10 miles wide in many areas
especially in promimity to its largest cities. It is
indefensible in these areas. In 1967 when Arab Armies
lined up to exterminate Israel the world, UN nor Europe
stepped in to help them. The fallacy that the UN can
save any country is a fallacy. These settlements
provide crucial distance in Israel's vulnerable middle
and provide cover from invading Arab Tanks coming from
Iraq for instance.

So when you ask how can the Jews settle the West Bank especially around Jerusalem you may now have a little bit better of an idea. This is the holiest ground in the world to Jews and land on which they have lived on continuously for thousands of years. Under Jordanian rule Jews were prevented from visiting all Holy Sites in Jerusalem, Hebron and throughout Judea and Samaria. The Temple Mount and Western Wall were used as urinals, all Temples in Jerusalem were destroyed, ancient cemeteries were desecrated and/or destroyed. Under Jewish sovereignty all faiths have been able to come to Jerusalem and worship freely. Guess who the Church called when under PLO sovereignty the Muslims wanted to build a Mosque on a holy site of Christendom, Israel. Like Afghanistan and Lebanon Muslims don't seek to live with other's faiths only to overcome them, destroy their symbols of faith and build Mosques on their sites.
SEE AFGHANISTAN BUDDHIST STATUES.

Mike Nargizian

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