Letters to the Editor
aVulcan
Published Letters: 161
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What Israel is about from the point of view of Palestinians (Part IV)
[Read the article: On armies, war and an aging Israel]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]From interview with Benny Morris (cont.)
Note how he sets the stage for the next phase of ethnic cleansing.
You went through an interesting process. You went to research Ben-Gurion and the Zionist establishment critically, but in the end you actually identify with them. You are as tough in your words as they were in their deeds.
"You may be right. Because I investigated the conflict in depth, I was forced to cope with the in-depth questions that those people coped with. I understood the problematic character of the situation they faced and maybe I adopted part of their universe of concepts. But I do not identify with Ben-Gurion. I think he made a serious historical mistake in 1948. Even though he understood the demographic issue and the need to establish a Jewish state without a large Arab minority, he got cold feet during the war. In the end, he faltered."
I'm not sure I understand. Are you saying that Ben-Gurion erred in expelling too few Arabs?
"If he was already engaged in expulsion, maybe he should have done a complete job. I know that this stuns the Arabs and the liberals and the politically correct types. But my feeling is that this place would be quieter and know less suffering if the matter had been resolved once and for all. If Ben-Gurion had carried out a large expulsion and cleansed the whole country - the whole Land of Israel, as far as the Jordan River. It may yet turn out that this was his fatal mistake. If he had carried out a full expulsion - rather than a partial one - he would have stabilized the State of Israel for generations."
I find it hard to believe what I am hearing.
"If the end of the story turns out to be a gloomy one for the Jews, it will be because Ben-Gurion did not complete the transfer in 1948. Because he left a large and volatile demographic reserve in the West Bank and Gaza and within Israel itself."
In his place, would you have expelled them all? All the Arabs in the country?
"But I am not a statesman. I do not put myself in his place. But as an historian, I assert that a mistake was made here. Yes. The non-completion of the transfer was a mistake."
And today? Do you advocate a transfer today?
"If you are asking me whether I support the transfer and expulsion of the Arabs from the West Bank, Gaza and perhaps even from Galilee and the Triangle, I say not at this moment. I am not willing to be a partner to that act. In the present circumstances it is neither moral nor realistic. The world would not allow it, the Arab world would not allow it, it would destroy the Jewish society from within. But I am ready to tell you that in other circumstances, apocalyptic ones, which are liable to be realized in five or ten years, I can see expulsions. If we find ourselves with atomic weapons around us, or if there is a general Arab attack on us and a situation of warfare on the front with Arabs in the rear shooting at convoys on their way to the front, acts of expulsion will be entirely reasonable. They may even be essential."
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@cedric - You are missing the point
[Read the article: On armies, war and an aging Israel]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]While I am loath to have all these silly discussions about ancient history (since what really matters for Israelis and Palestinians is to change the racist nature of Israel as it exists today to a democratic state for all its citizens so that it no longer views its native Palestinian inhabitants, including those living in the West Bank and Gaza, as a "demographic threat") I cannot help but point out some of the fallacies in the Zionist propaganda you regurgitate.
Regarding your assertion that "the Jews have had continuous presence in Israel/Palestine for 3500 year" you neglect to mention the historical fact that until the massive influx of European Jews in the 20th century, Jews were a very small minority (less than 3% of the population) since the the destruction of the 2nd temple in 70 AD. In fact Jews were prohibited by the Romans from residing in Jerusalem until the Muslims allowed them in after they took over Jerusalem in the 7th century AD. In other words, being 3% of the population for close to 2000 years doesn't qualify as a claim to the land that justifies expelling the Palestinians from it.
Also you neglect to mention that the many Zionist massacres that were committed against Palestinians were part of an ethnic cleansing campaign that resulted in 700,000 Palestinians being uprooted and over 400 towns and villages being ethnically cleansed (see my earlier post about Benny Morris' interview). As Morris says:
"Without the uprooting of the Palestinians, a Jewish state would not have arisen here"
In order for there to be peace, you need to look into your heart past the propaganda and start to see the truth,
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@Electro Robot and Ethnic Cleansing
[Read the article: On armies, war and an aging Israel]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]You are clearly uncomfortable with my post about Benny Morris' and the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians to create a Jewish state, as you should.
However, I think you, like most right-wing Zionists, don't really mind the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians as long as it is done quitely.