Video of the week – Is there an Occupation? http://tinyurl.com/ybx5r6zs
It is often stated that Israel is “occupying”
Palestinian land, and has no legal basis to exist. This is a lie - let’s learn
the truth, and some history while we’re at it!
The State of Israel was established on May
14, 1948, by the United Nations and with the legal approval of the British, who
governed the land where the modern State of Israel exists on at the time - note
there was no Arab or Palestinian state there. These maps will show you a
continual Jewish presence in the region, however, for thousands of years.
The United Nations partitioned the land, like
so;
UN
Partion
A home for the Arabs and a home for the Jews.
The Jews accepted. However, the Arabs rejected this plan - thus legally
forfeiting their state - and staged a war against Israel in which it was
attacked by six Arab armies…and Israel won. That left Israel a sovereign state,
but Jordan controlled what is now The West Bank, and Egypt controlled Gaza, as
that is where the parties involved decided to draw armistice lines. Once
again…where is Palestine?
The map now looked like this;
Fast forward to 1967. Tensions in the region
had been high, with troops amassing in Israel’s neighbouring countries preparing
for war. In a preemptive strike, Israel rolled out “Operation Focus” - an
airstrike on the Sinai peninsula. After only six days, facing armies from all
of its surrounding countries, Israel had captured land from Syria, Egypt, and
Jordan. Once again…no Palestine.
Our borders now looked like this;
However, Israel wanted to make peace with its
neighbours - it didn’t want to have to fight anymore.
On March 26th 1979, Israeli Prime Minister
Menachem Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat signed a treaty which gave
the Sinai Peninsula back to Egypt, while still letting Israel have control over
Gaza, in exchange for peace. And this worked! So, Gaza, an Egyptian territory
given legally to Israel? Not occupied.
In 1994, Israel and the Jordanians sat down
to discuss peace as well. Jordan gave up control of Judea and Samaria, also
known as The West Bank, as well as East Jerusalem, to Israel. Thus, these areas
also cannot be considered occupied.
The Golan Heights, also captured by Israel in
the 1967 war, were taken from Syria, with whom Israel does not have peace.
However, the land was won fairly and under the circumstances of any other
country, its annexation would have been an approved one. But understanding bias
against Israel is for another post.
So, let’s review.
A sovereign Palestinian state has never been
in existence.
East Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria (the West
Bank), the Golan Heights, and Gaza were won in a defensive war.
These territories, save for the Golan
Heights, were legally given to Israel by the nations sovereign over them.
With this history, Israel cannot be
considered an occupier. The proper term for Judea and Samaria, Gaza, and The
Golan Heights is not “occupied territories” - rather, “disputed territories”,
much like Western Sahara or South Ossetia.
This
article can tell you more about Israeli history and activity, such as
settlement building, in Judea and Samaria.
See more at: Eretz Yisrael - http://tinyurl.com/yddkxjxu
Please use a small "e" when referring to east Jerusalem. The word east in this context is not a proper noun. It is an adjective.
ReplyDeleteUsing an upper case "E" has been the standard tool of the global media to create a reality that does not exist - i.e. a city whose name begins with east.
The Jerusalem Post has thankfully ended the use of this misnomer. Please do likewise.
With many thanks.
Rafi Bezalel.