Bush In Israel: Standing With One Side

Air Force One is traveling back in time Tuesday, banking low near the southern Mediterranean coast and touching down on contested soil where the past is always present. In the Holy Land, the battles over historical narrative -- above all, the meaning of the founding of Israel in 1948 -- are as hard-fought as the contemporary struggles over West Bank settlers, Palestinian refugees, and negotiations for a two-state solution. For the observer, or self-described "honest broker" in a long and bitter dispute, identifying with only one side's history carries profound meaning of its own.

Yet when President Bush steps off his plane to help Israel mark its 60th birthday, he will stride firmly into the past of one side. Officials of the Jewish state will sweep the president into their own powerful and compelling narrative: The birth of Israel from the ashes of the Holocaust on May 14, 1948; the invasion of the state, a day later, from Arab armies marching from the north, south, and east; and the loss of fully one percent of the Jewish state's population, in a fierce defense that evokes Israel's unofficial motto: Never again.

What the president won't hear is the Palestinian story. He won't be told that one side's "War of Independence" is the other side's "Nakba," or Catastrophe. And no one is likely to mention that Israel's heroic survival was, to the Arabs, a dispossession in which 750,000 Palestinians fled or were driven out of their homes.

Here, then, is a brief "Nakba" primer for the President, a chronicle of the untold to accompany him on his visit to Jerusalem.

In the spring of 1948, waves of fear gripped Arab Palestine following the April 9 massacre of more than 120 unarmed Palestinians by extremist Jewish militias in the village of Deir Yassin, near Jerusalem. Thus, even before the war officially began, Arab villagers were fleeing for safer ground, fully intending to return when the fighting stopped.

Later that month in the Galilee, Yigal Allon, commander of the elite Jewish brigade known as the Palmach, implemented a plan to spread more fear among the local Arabs. Allon would write later that he gathered Jewish leaders "who had ties with the different Arab villages, and I asked them to whisper in the ears of several Arabs that giant Jewish reinforcements had reached the Galilee and were about to clean out the villages...[and] to advise them, as friends, to flee while they could...the flight encompassed tens of thousands. The stratagem fully achieved its objective."

The next month, May 1948, a similar campaign took hold in the village of Na'ani, according to local Arab and Israeli sources, when a Jewish neighbor rode into town on horseback, shouting "The Jewish army is coming! You must leave, or you will all be killed!" The villagers fled en masse, many coming a few miles north to the Arab town of Ramle. There, they hoped, it would be safe.

Two months later, on July 12, Israeli forces overwhelmed local Arab defenders and occupied the refugee-choked Ramle (now the Israeli city of Ramla) and neighboring Lydda (now Lod). The same day they began expelling the Arabs of the two towns. According to the memoirs of Yitzhak Rabin, then a young Israeli major, the orders came directly from Israel's first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion. Three days later, Ben-Gurion wrote in his diary, "there are 30,000 refugees moving along the road between Ramle and Lydda..they are demanding bread..."

The people of Ramle and Lydda had left in haste and packed little, unprepared for a long hike across stony ground of cactus and Christ's thorn in mid-summer temperatures that reached 100 degrees. Decades later, old men and women in refugee camps would recall, above all, thirst: of quenching it with stagnant water found in old wells; with the drying kernels of a leftover corn harvest; and, in some cases, with their own urine. John Bagot Glubb, the British commander of the Arab Legion, would write that "nobody will ever know how many children died."

Sixty years later, the Nakba lies at the core of Palestinians' identity, and of their view of history and justice. Official U.S. ignorance of that, passed down through generations and embodied in President Bush's visit only to the Israeli side, has, unsurprisingly, angered Palestinians.

"It's a slap in the face," said Diana Buttu, a prominent Palestinian analyst in the West Bank told the New York Times adding that the U.S. is essentially saying: "You have no history, and your past does not matter."
But more than the insult or even stupidity of such a one-sided position is the tactical bungling of an administration that wants to be seen as a fair arbiter of a long-standing dispute. That's pretty hard to do, if all you can see is one side's pain and glory.

Comments

[leehpsl]

A sorry performance. The so-called Palestinians (prior to WW2, Palestinians were Jews) and their morally bankrupt leadership are tragically first, last and always the architects of their own misfortune.

Squandering every opportunity to make peace over the past sixty years, they are also the victims of their so-called Arab "brothers' who have failed to do anything on their behalf except start calamitous wars they couldn't win.

When Arafat started the PLO in 1964 there were NO West Bank Jewish settlements, because Jordan, a country in which Jews are not allowed to live or own land, controlled the West Bank. The attack on Israel saw Jordan cede control of the West Bank to Israel; Arafat's subsequent masterstroke, to try to overthrow King Hussein got him and his pals booted out of Jordan.

Handing the Sinai back to Egypt got the Israelis rewarded by watching the Egyptians turn a blind eye to arms smuggling into Gaza. Evicting Jewish settlers from Gaza has earned Israel the privilege of getting bombed every single day since then. While most Israelis would like nothing better to leave most of the West Bank, there is no reason to believe that the territory would not revert to the status quo ante. The West Bank would be Gaza all over again.

And I want to know when the US is giving Texas and California back to Mexico. We stole it. We should give it back.

[vote4kucinich]

It seems to me that it was 'Palestine' that was 'wiped off the map' by the founding of Israel. There will be no real peace without justice.

[Bettysdad]

Is there any significance to the fact that most of the posts condemning Israel refer to "Jews" and not "Israelis?"

[bluecurl3]

Yes, there is significance. If it were not for "Jews" in America, whom are not necessarily "Israeli's", Israel would not have the strangle hold on America's foreign policy in the middle-east, especially with respect to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

[HARMONIAMUNDI]

IN MY OPINION IT WOULD BE VALUABLE TO BEGIN A DISCUSSION FOR THE POSSIBILTY OF MOVING THE STATE OF ISRAEL TO SOUTH TEXAS- S. OF SAN ANTONIO, WEST OF CORPUS CHRISTIE. IF YOU HAPPEN TO AGREE WITH THIS NOTION, THEN P-L-E-A-S-E POST YOUR OWN (NEW) COMMENT AS YOUR VOTE THAT SUCH A PROPOSAL SHOULD SERIOUSLY BE CONSIDERED AS A TOPIC OF DEBATE IN THE UNITED STATES.
THE EXISTENCE OF ISRAEL AS OCCUPIED PALESTINE IS, IN MY ESTIMATION, THE SINGLE GREATEST THREAT TO PEACE ON THE PLANET. IT IS TIME TO BEGIN THINIKNG OUTSIDE THE BOX ...

[JanP]

Where should we move the non-maoris of New Zealand, the non-Aborigines of Australia and the non-native Americans (would that include you) from the Americas?

What makes you think:

1. that Israelis want to leave Israel

2. that anyone ahs the power to make them move?

By the way, typing in all-caps is considered screaming. Is there a reason you are screaming at us?

[JanP]

OK: here is some discussion:

1. Why do you think that Israel would acquiesce to such a move?

2. What makes you think anyone has the power to do this?

3. Jews have a continued presence and historic connections to Israel. What historic connections do non-Native Americans have to the Americas (from the Northern Slope of Alaska to Tierra del fuego)?

4. What do you think of the colonization of Australia and New Zealand?

[Bettysdad]

Someone needs to explain why people are much more concerned about how Arabs are treated by Israel than they are about our black citizens being routinely murdered by cops. I thought Americans hated blacks more than Jews. I guess I was wrong.

[flagwaver]

My ideas of Israel have changed drastically in the last 20 years and I am very tired of the "poor me" mentality that is always in our papers and on TV when anything Jewish is mentioned.
The only comment I have is to make Israel and Iraq the 51st and 52nd state. This way they won't get anymore of our taxpayer money. We don't have the money to take care of crisis in this country, we saw that with Katrina.
Just think of all the money we would save! Maybe we could work on the infrastructor in our own country.
Israel gets plenty of money from us in the USA. Some numbers show 15000usd per capita goes to Israel.
Meanwhile they have National Health care in Israel and get very generous vacation days. We Americans have to work more than any other 1st world country and lucky to get a week or two in vacations days. Our pensions are going by the wayside and we have a debt our great grandchildren will be paying for.
This just makes so much sense.

[JanP]

Can you give me some examples of a "poor me" attitude from Israelis? I don't ever recall any.

Israel, as part of the Egyptian-Israeli-American peace pact gets about $2 billion for weapons (increasing to $3 billion to offset increased capabilities being sold to Wahabi Saudi Arabia).. $2 billion divided by 7 million Israelis is about $285 per person. $3 billion is $428 per person. Not much considering the 1 billion or so Muslims who hate them, particularly the Palestinians, Saudis, Lebanese, Syrians and Iran.

More important is how much this aid cost you. At $2 billion spread amongst 300 million americans, it costs you $6.67 or about 2 gallons of gas (which is aid to OPEC).

So, when you make a claim of $15,000 per Israeli, you should really check your numbers. At $15,000 per Israeli per year that comes $105 billion per year.

While your are thinking, remember that Arabs and women have the same rights in Israel that Jewish men do.

[Bettysdad]

As soon as you're ready to give the US back to the Native Americans, I'll listen to your opinion about the Palestinians.

[Gringa77]

Bettysdad, you have the analogy all wrong, it is actually the other way around. It used to be a Jewish territory many many years ago until the Arabs took over. Then in 1948 the Jews returned to reclaim their land. So you see, it's as if today, the Native Americans entered your town, drove you and your family out of your house and fields where you have lived your entire life and moved right into your house. You wouldn't like that very much would you?

[Bettysdad]

It was NEVER a Jewish terrirtory. Jews lived in that area with Arabs forever, being routinely killed by Arabs long before there was an Israel to use as an excuse.. After WW2 MORE Jews came to the area, and there was a civil war. Jews 1, Arabs 0. You know, sorta like the colonists that wanted to get rid of King George versus those they lived beside that wanted to keep British rule. One side won. Why don't you demand that Cuba be given back to the right-wing loons in Miami? Or go back a few maps and give Russia back to the Romanoff family. Or China to the people living on Taiwan. Wars and civil wars happen. Maps change. Peoples lives change. Except where the so-called Palestinians are concerned.

[Garvagh]

Many observers would say that Native Americans now have rights that exceed those of the general population in the US.

Is it a better idea for the Palestinians to seek total annexation of the territories, by Israel, and Israeli citizenship?

[michiganfan]

Thank you for posting this article. It is the side of the story that is never heard in the US. If more people knew the Palestinian side of the story, I believe there would be a lot more pressure on our government to settle the Israeli-Palestinian conflict once and for all.

You are a brave man for posting this. I can only imagine the hate mail that is flooding your inbox.

[rollingdivision]

Sometimes, you lose a war, it's unjust and unfair. But why not move on and make the best of your current situation and make some progress instead of fighting the same losing battle again and again.

[ppennypacker]

If you want the truth about the Palestinians read Nonie Darwish's post on this site entitled "The Gaza Prison Camp." Tolan get's it wrong on this issue. Darwish states the root cause to the problem below. End of story.

"60 years of Arab policy aimed at maintaining Palestinians as stateless refugees in order to pressure Israel."

[beachbob]

EXACTLY!

In 1948, Israel integrated (with mixed success) over one million African and Asian Jews who feared for their lives at the hands of the residents of the Arab countries they lived in. These people -- along with approximately one million Arabs who stayed -- became full-fledged Israeli citizens.

By contrast, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, etc. put their "brother Arabs" in concentration camps where the majority stil languish today. They WERE NOT allowed to become citizens.

The "Catastrophe" was self-inflicted. Unfortunately, as always, it is the innocent men, women and children who suffered and still do. But any analysis of the roots of the current conflict that ignores this basic dichotomy is ipso facto anti-Semitic rather than anti-Zionist, because it obviously starts with the assumption that "the Jews" are responsible for the "plight of the Arabs." They are not: repressive Arab regimes were and are. Recognition of this fact is the start of reconciliation. Rejection is the continuation of the status quo.

End of rant...

[NicoleAnonymous]

You really need to stop claiming criticism of Israeli policies is anti-semitic. You're only making Jews look really bad and you're not helping anything.

This is anti-semitism:

people in France vandalizing Jewish cemeteries
making Jews wear a yellow star in public
telling people they can't shop at Jewish owned businesses
the people in France who kidnapped, torturted and murdered a Jewish man
bombing or destroying temples
telling people Jews killed Jesus
denying a Jewish person a job or promotion just because they're Jewish

This is not anti-semitism

criticizing Israel or their policies
telling people the occupation is immoral and inhumane

Please learn the difference.

[MrJoyboy]

If you assume Israelis have a conscience, Palestinians could put a lot more pressure on Israel to come to some kind of acceptable agreement if they would stop the rocket attacks and suicide bombings. Such acts allow the Israelis to maintain the status quo without guilt.

[NicoleAnonymous]

There haven't been that many suicide bombings since the "wall" was built. As Sharon said "walls make good neighbors!" except Israel decided to determine the borders of that wall on their own.

But what has happened to the West Bank in that last year or so when there haven't been that many suicide bombing? What always happens - Israel continues to take more land and build more settlements. So obviously even if there weren't any suicide bombings there wouldn't be peace because Israel wants their land.

They have always wanted the land - right from the beginning. And most Jews know this but I apologize for even mentioning it - just like some families prefer to never talk about secrets because they're easier to accept that way, many Jews don't want to talk about what we all know is true.

[hnealehcn]

This article is 1000% accurate. I am 77 years old and I know what happened and it is exactly as stated in this article. Moreover not a single Jew was thrown out of any Arab country. They all travelled, by plane, to cyprus and to Israel by boats carrying hundred of thousands of their country's currency. I had lot of Jewish friends who went to Israel using the same travel method.

[courtb]

That may be true for your friends, but I happen to have a lot of Persian and Arab Jewish friends whose families had to leave Iran, Iraq, Syria, etc...and left behind everything. Especially my Persian friends-many of their families had to completely start from scratch. And they all came to the US. I don't know how many were "thrown out" but pogroms, riots, bombs, seizing of businesses, etc. all led to massive exoduses of Jews from Arab, Persian, and Muslim countries.

[MicahBrwn]

They may not have been EXPELLED, true... but they were certainly hounded out of their native countries. Being faced with a choice to leave of one's own free will or be killed is hardly a choice at all.

[JanP]

I lived in Israel in the early 1970's. My boss in Israel was an Egyptian who was evicted from Egypt. I knew others evicted from Morocco and Iraq.

About as many Jews were evicted from Arab countries as Palestinians were evicted or fled (both things happened) from Israel.

[mightbesane]

A retelling of the events surrounding the birth of Israel and the trials of the Palestinian Arabs is doomed from the beginning. A chronicalling of events as viewed from one perspective is juxtaposed with the opposite viewpoint, we argue about the details, and progress toward a solution is sacrificed in the process.

Be aware, there will NEVER be a solution that all parties agree is ideal. And the more often we are subjected to a detailed, scholarly, chronological and ultimately biased recounting of the woes of one side or the other, the farther off the accomplishment of a utilitarian, if not universally accepted, agreement becomes. I have spent a good portion of my life trying to point this out to people, to no avail.

The Israeli Jews simply will not go back to 1948 borders that they consider to be unsustainable and the Palestinian Arabs will forever consider themselves aggrieved if they don't receive in return all that they perceive that they have lost. It's that simple and that complicated. To pick at the scabs rather than to put forward meaningful proposals for solutions that are reasonably fair and have a chance to be implemented is worse than useless. It impedes the process. Let's leave history alone and concentrate on the future, for all of our sakes.

[ChiMan1]

The other side is DeJaVu all over again, an endless "Groundhog Day" of Lies. Lies Lies.
I think I'll go to the street and Burn a Tire!!! . . Whoppie!

[stephan1947]

I read this article with a mixture of bemusement and disbelief. As a Jew raised by a Dachau survivor, my father's sister, I was raised with a never-ending awareness of the Kingdom of Night, that millions of my people (and hundreds of relatives I never met after the Shoah, their names lost in the sparks over the killing centres and in the shadows of post-Shoah Allied lying and revisionist history) never had a chance to breathe. Now, in 2008, we have Sandy Tolan. In the late 1800s, Rabbi Solomon Schechter spoke of the 'higher antisemitism', and Mr Tolan seems intent on embracing it. He speaks of 'extremist Jewish militias'...oh, really? He knows nothing of the years 1900-1948, it seems. The slaughters of Jews by Arabs in 'Palestine'...the pleas of the Jews to their Arab neighbours to stay and help rebuild a country...we Jews had no army, no air force, only literacy. In case, Mr Tolan forgets, Israel existed through the centuries, regardless of the fact the Romans plundered our country, the crucifictionists murdered us in Europe. We had no 'militias', and there were no militias in Israel during the period he writes of. We had endured centuries of Arab exterminationist racism. During those centuries, NOT ONE historical record exists of any Arab scholar mentioning a distinct 'Palestinian people'. Why, Mr Tolan. I don't need pseudohistorical lectures about a myth. As a Jew, am I not a 'Palestinian'?
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham

[NicoleAnonymous]

I know this is a very emotional topic for Jews but it's time for us to stop using the Holocaust as an excuse and reminding everyone we were victims and anyone who criticizes Israel is anti-semitic.

There were Jews who murdered innocent Arabs in villages - this is a fact and Israeli scholars have admitted it. Talking about that doesn't make someone anti-semitic.

The Holocaust was horrible - it happened and we shouldn't forget it but it's over. It won't ever happen to us again and it's time to stop exploting the tragedy. The reality is Jews are not the only people in the world who have suffered.

[JanP]

The Palestinians should stop using the Nakhba as an excuse to not make peace.

[Baltotoast]

A spectacular example of why this is such an intractable problem. The mindset of - if the facts today don't fit the argument, go back in time until you find some that do, select liberally, and then proceed to spray indiscriminately. The Arabs had nothing to do with the holocaust....why should they pay for it....or if you do bring it up, shouldn't you also mention that Israel participated in an act of genocide (according to the UN General Assembly) by assisting in the massacres in Sabra and Shatila?

[PaulUK]

Well it is good that you know about Sabra and Shatila, it seems that Americans have collective amnesia to those events. I was looking up the BBC Panorama website and it had a discussion on the making of a programme about those events. An Israeli official told the producer "why was he intrested in reporting old news?" Could you imagine the outrage if the holocast was discribed as old news?

[messy]

Notice that Baltoast said "according to the UN General Assembly" which passes at least one anti-Israel resolution a day whether they need to or not. Remember UNSC Res 250.