Missing home

The Palestinian people’s right of return is at the heart of their struggle.

Syria's official spokesperson recently went on television to blame the Palestinian refugees resident in her country as the "foreign elements" directly responsible for the current protests for freedom and the rule of law. These pronouncements have encouraged Arab regimes' secret police, the mukhabarat, to crack down on Palestinian rights activists everywhere, heightening the atmosphere of violent intimidation and fear within refugee communities. Of the millions of Palestinian refugees residing in countries such as Jordan and Syria, the majority are young people born in refugee camps, since Palestinians still wait, after 62 years, for the United Nations to compel Israel to adopt that key UN resolution (whose implementation was a condition of Israel's acceptance into the UN as a member state) which would allow them and their families to return to their farms, villages and cities.

This constant harassment of Palestinian refu­gees occurs from the Gulf to North Africa. For those idly wondering why Palestinians have so much difficulty unifying in their struggle for justice, the type of existence lived by most Palestinians outside historic Palestine comes as something of an unpleasant shock. People's attention is usually directed (if they look at all) at the sickening siege still enforced in Gaza (another international convoy of humanitarian ships will be on its way next month); the daily expulsions of old Jerusalemite families from their homes; the increasingly racist laws discriminating against Palestinians inside Israel. For example, the Knesset recently passed new legislation that has the effect of banning any state support to those seeking to commemorate the dispossession of Palestinians from their homes in 1948

Some argue that anything detracting from this focus on the occupied West Bank, Arab East Jerusalem and Gaza is counterproductive to "the peace process" and that the refugees' predicament and their rights should not even be raised. This is the argument Israelis use and it is one that European and American diplomats and their friends loyally repeat. No one, it seems, dare pause for a moment to worry about those millions of distracting Palestinian refugees and exactly what their uncomfortable presence means: it is too dangerous for peace. One example among thousands: at this very moment, innumerable Palestinian refugees sit in Egypt's prisons for the simple crime of not possessing the correct identity papers or, worse, for not having any papers at all.

Where precisely are they meant to obtain these identity documents from, in any case? Not from the British, presumably, under whose colonial mandate Palestine was destroyed. Not the Palestinian Authority, whose full civil authority does not extend beyond so-called Area A, comprised of some West Bank towns and cities, and which has absolutely no control over its water, land, borders, domestic or foreign relations, or any sovereign capacity to protect either Palestinians under military occupation or those refugees in host countries.

Not so long ago, Muhammad Abu Sakr, a young Palestinian refugee born in Cairo, entered into temporary safe haven in Sweden, after living for over a year in the transit hall of Russia's Sheremetyevo Airport. Prevented from either returning to Egypt or entering Russia for just over 14 months, he lived in the transit corridor. Nor was his extended predicament an isolated example for Palestinians, but rather one of a connected series of implausible experiences shared daily by an entire people. Most Palestinians today are without passports, or have duff travel papers or the wrong refugee papers: families are split up at borders and airports.

In the beginning

It is essential to know when this story began, as we Palestinians need to know exactly when this story will end. Throughout 1948, Jewish military forces expelled hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their villages, towns and cities; hundreds of thousands of others fled in fear. They were driven and fled down into Gaza (and to understand Gaza one must appreciate that most live in refugee camps); across into the (now militarily occupied) West Bank; north from Galilee into Lebanon and Syria; east into Jordan; further north-east into Iraq; south into Egypt.

The purpose of this expulsion was to create a purely Jewish state, ethnically cleansed of the original inhabitants. This horrific event - the mass forced expulsion of a people; the more than 50 massacres carried out over the summer of 1948 by various armed Jewish forces to induce both fear and flight; the demolition of over 500 precious, well-loved and well-remembered villages in subsequent years to ensure the refugees could not return home - this is the Palestinian Naqba, the "catastrophe".

The absolute nature of that dispossession means that a refugee's right of return to their home, enshrined in international law, is the heart of Palestinians' identity and struggle for justice. Yet this universal right is the very one we are being pressured to surrender: right now, the US administration is seeking European support to advance just such a position at the next meeting of the Quartet (comprised of the US, the UN, the EU and Russia). Instead of demanding Palestinians abandon their rights for a fictitious peace not even on offer, this is the precise moment Europeans - if they hope to have any role in the region - must place the dignity and protection of Palestinian refugees, the victims of the conflict, at the centre of their policy towards the Arab world and the Palestinian people.

12 comments

GiordanoPiero's picture

Palestine may have been a preference, but Palestine was not the only location that Zionists planned as their state in modern times. Another location was Argentina where Jews have been migrating for hundreds of years for the purpose of establishing a state. Also, locations in Europe were on the list and that’s why the Catholic Church was killing/expelling Jews since Roman times (read the history of the Holly Inquisition). Whatever the location, Zionist plan was to simply occupy the people living on the land even if that would mean imposing a regime worst than Nazi Germany’s from which they escaped. http://www.greeneurope.org/

Captain Sensible's picture

We need to impose the same rights on Mecca and Medina. Muslims should pay heavily for the Jews to be returned to those areas ethnically cleansed by Muslims. We need all peoples in the middle east especially the Kurds to ber eleased thePalenstinians come low down on the list of injustices.

RFM's picture

Two questions, Captain Sensible.

1. Do you have any figures at hand for the number of Jews who currently want to return to their former muslim homelands? If not, then your point in is in need of some desparate clarification.

2. What are the precise criteria for determining where on your list people rank in terms of injustices needing resolution?

Sincerely,
Colonel Leslie "Hap" Hapablap

AndJee's picture

You can definitely copy, repost, or email mine to anyone including lobbying senators, state representatives and any other public officials who shape our country’s foreign policies.

The main Zionist claim is that they have a supreme right to some of Palestinian territory because they lived there thousands of years ago. Let’s examine the core and real nature of this claim.
Firstly, this claim is mistaken and selfish in its core concept because Zionists fail to recognize that history is a continuum and that there were other people living in majority in Palestine before the Jews and also after the Jews. Zionists simply cut history at a convenient point for them and claim ancestral ties to the land as of that convenient point.
Secondly, whatever the claim, it is beyond absurd to try to shape modern world based on thousands of years old maps. Imagine if the rest of the world would be reshaped by who was on the land thousands of years ago. It would cause horrific wars, countless refugees, and unimaginable human suffering, exactly what is happening in Palestine.

Thirdly and most disturbing, Zionist goal was to establish a Jewish state wherever possible. Palestine may have been a preference, but Palestine was not the only location that Zionists planned as their state in modern times. Another location was Argentina where Jews have been migrating for hundreds of years for the purpose of establishing a state. Also, locations in Europe were on the list and that’s why the Catholic Church was killing/expelling Jews since Roman times (read the history of the Holly Inquisition). Whatever the location, Zionist plan was to simply occupy the people living on the land even if that would mean imposing a regime worst than Nazi Germany’s from which they escaped. And Zionists would just use a different ideological coloring than the one used in Palestine in the attempt to rationalize the occupation.

In conclusion, the main claim on which the Zionist regime is built in Palestine is erroneous, selfish, and a lie. I am categorically against generalizing, and recognize that many Jews are against the crimes the Zionist regime is committing and that many Jews are leading the global resistance to it. They should be proud

State Man's picture

If it is ever reached, the current and any other artificial “peace agreement” will be illegitimate before it is ever signed because (1) all people living in Palestine regardless of religion, race, origin, etc. (hereinafter “All People of Palestine”) were never given a choice on how they want their land to be governed, and (2) all contracts signed under duress are null and void.
The biggest problem in Palestine is that the Zionist regime never offered a choice to All People of Palestine on how they want to govern their land because the Zionist regime cannot exist as a democratic entity. If there was ever any democratic process in Palestine, Zionists would have been outvoted and the Zionist regime would have never existed. That is why the Zionist regime is the occupier because it does not offer choice (i.e. democracy), but instead imposes its regime (i.e. occupies). Imagine if Russians would simply occupy a town in the U.S. where they are in significant numbers and attempt to create a Russian state there without giving the rest of the Americans living there a choice. Imagine then if they would try to institute a “peace agreement” that would attempt to legitimize their occupation. The “peace agreement” would logically and legally be illegitimate because the Americans were not given a choice.

Under all countries’ laws, any contract is null and void if it is signed under duress. The current Palestine “peace agreement” process reminds me of The Godfather movie where the mafia boss (i.e. the Zionist regime) made a guy “an offer he could not refuse” by placing a gun (i.e. Zionist conventional and nuclear arsenal) to his head and making him sign the contract. Like the mafia boss’ offer, any “peace agreement” other than the choice for All People of Palestine is a crime, and the contract is legally null and void.

The bottom line is that All People of Palestine never wanted to divide their land into artificial two states the way the occupation and this “peace agreement” attempt to divide it. From the beginning of the Zionist regime to its unavoidable end, All People of Palestine and the region never wanted the Zionist regime and they do not want it even more after all the atrocities the Zionist regime committed. I just cannot believe how the Zionist regime can be so ignorant to think that this or any other “peace agreement” that does not allow people to choose how they want to be governed will last and ensure its people’s survival. The Zionist regime fails to realize that no matter if it succeeds in muscling this “peace agreement” by unspeakable historic coercion tens of millions of moral people around the world will oppose it until it is corrected, and until justice and free choice prevail. Also, ever increasing number of Jewish people are realizing that Zionism is becoming a destructive force for them and are leading the global resistance to it

stoptheinvasion's picture

We Americans speak of freedoms, tolerance, and diversity, yet our government makes the Zionist occupation possible against our will, with our tax money, and making us accomplices in constant murders that the Zionist regime is committing including murders of our own American citizens (search on youtube for “Rachel Corrie” video of Zionist bulldozer crushing her to death). I am ashamed as an American that our politicians are controlled by the Zionist regime to such a terrifying extent. Tens of senators, state representatives, and ambassadors to foreign countries are Jewish. While I recognize that many are honest and against the Zionist regime, I am concerned about the fair representation of our will at the highest levels of our government. Just look on Wikipedia for “List of Jewish American politicians,” and visit prince.org/msg/105/271100 to discover that all five Federal Reserve chairmen/chairwomen are Jewish, and almost all (9 out of 12) regional Fed chairmen/chairwomen are also Jewish. I never like to generalize, but Jews comprise only 2% of our population and they have so much power in the government and almost absolute power over our money supply and economic polices. I am just not comfortable that all Americans are being represented properly especially not on the Palestine occupation issue that I know most people do not support judging by the comments against the Zionist regime I hear everywhere. Urge your state representatives and senators to immediately stop any remaining support for the Zionist regime. Much of the support already stopped because of the increasing pressure on this issue, but we Americans need to completely distance ourselves from this oppressive regime and stop being accomplices in its murders! The world is also reacting. Who would want to be remembered in history as an accomplice to ruthless occupation? Many countries, companies, and countless moral individuals have already successfully implemented no relations with the Zionist government and others are implementing the same policy as we speak. Not travel there, not buy anything from it, not trade with it, not communicate with it, etc. Also do the same with any country that supports it because the Zionist government only survives because of its external supporters.
The only way to oppose the Zionist controlled media and to take each other’s comments and copy, repost, email, and otherwise distribute them to other blogs, newspaper websites, Facebook, Twitter, and other social networking websites, and send/lobby to senators, state representatives and other public officials. Please do so with this comment for justice to prevail

jie4v7i14's picture

Got to know a bloke from there, excellent bloke, can't fault him. Married a welsh young lady. Still bump into him now and again.

Palestine- got the arse end of world poitics for quite a few millennia now, what with since Summarians and Egyptions, ahem!, discussing things on the field of battle. These days we know nothing - these days is small potatoes, in history.

skiptonman's picture

when obama vetoed the UN resolution concerning illegal building of settlements it showed the contempt for international law .. the human suffering is immense .. mark thomas recently walked around the wall and his observations are a must see ..

jie4v7i14's picture

Black, Wonderful Life - said Palestiniane bloke loved this, in it's original form,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-xR2jQepOM

jie4v7i14's picture

feel feel to add third, fourth and fitth to above video, since the original form above is in complex legal world. Add before it gets taken off, as what happens. Money fascists!

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