The Palestinian Question

I am sure hundreds of books and thousands of PhD theses have been written on the Palestinian Question. However, for the casual reader of news media, some 'crib notes' may be helpful. Consider the following as crib notes for the critical thinker.

Certain Palestinians, and supporters thereof, claim that Palestinians are entitled to all of the land that comprises present day Israel. They claim that the Israelis are colonists and occupiers. Let's evaluate these claims.

First, we need to define what it means to be a 'Palestinian'. More fundamentally, perhaps, we need to define 'Palestine'. The area known as Palestine before the creation of the state of Israel has a lengthy history. At the time the Romans conquered the territory, the area was generally known as Judea.

Since at least 1200 BCE, Hebrews lived in this area. By about 1000 BCE the twelve tribes of the Hebrews were divided into the northern tribal area, called Israel and the southern tribal area called Judah (Judea). The term 'Jew' derives from this southern geographic area and Kingdom. If we want to define 'Palestinians' at that point in time by the people who lived there, they were mostly, if not entirely, Hebrews.

In or about that period, there was a tribe of people known as the 'Philistines'. The name ‘Philistia’ had been used by ancient Greeks in referring to a small area of land possibly occupied by Philistines in the 12th century BCE. This land was between modern day Tel Aviv and Gaza.

Whether this small area of land remained occupied by the Philistines over the centuries since 1200 BCE is a matter of controversy.

The ancient Hebrews that occupied the modern area defined by Israel, and perhaps parts of modern day Jordan, were, in modern terms, colonized, and displaced. First, the northern tribal area known as the Kingdom of Israel was destroyed by the Assyrians in or about 722 BCE. The southern tribal area known as Judah or Judea survived as a puppet kingdom. Judea's capital was Jerusalem.

In or about 586 BCE, the Babylonians sacked Jerusalem and destroyed the Kingdom of Judea including its temple in Jerusalem. Many Hebrews (or Jews, if you will) from Judea were taken to Babylon where they were held captive - the Babylonian Captivity. The area of Judea was colonized by the Babylonians. In or about 559 BCE, Cyrus the Great defeated the Babylonians and founded the great Persan Empire. Soon thereafter, he allowed the Judeans to leave Babylon and return to their former territory. Some did, some did not. The areas formerly known as Israel and Judea were colonized by the Persians. Between 520-515 BCE, the second Jerusalem Temple was built. The area formerly comprised of the two Hebrew Kingdoms was held under Persian control until the Persians were defeated by Alexander the Great in or about 331/333 BCE. After the death of Alexander, until about 168 BCE, Judea was under the alternating governance of the Greek Ptolemies and the Greek Seleucids with the Seleucids finally winning out. For a brief period, the Jews gained their independence from about 142 BCE to 63 BCE. In or about 63 BCE the Romans annexed (or colonized) the land. There were two major Jewish rebellions against Rome. The second resulted in the destruction of the Second Temple and the dispersal of the Jews living in the area. The Romans renamed the area of Judea to ‘Syria-Palaestina’ as part of a policy to break the Jewish identity. The Romans ruled over Syria-Palaestina until the Muslim conquest in the 7th century. Before the Muslim conquest, the people of the area included Roman and Bedouin polytheists and monotheist Jews and Christians. Islam was not practiced in the area until after the Muslim conquest in the 7th century. It was during the Muslim colonization of the area that Arab Muslims migrated to the Roman area by then coined 'Palestine'.

The modern day definition of 'Palestinians' seems to refer to Muslim Arabs that lived in Palestine at the time of the first world war.

Prior to the first World War, since about the 1400s CE, Palestine was a province under the administration of the Ottoman Empire. The population during this period included Jews and Muslim Arabs.

The end of the first World War saw the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire. The issue of the administration of Palestine (and other middle eastern areas formerly controlled by the Ottomans) came before the Peace Conference of Paris in 1919. Ultimately, it was determined that Great Britain would administer Palestine under a 'mandate'. Britain divided this territory into two parts: Palestine and Transjordan. At this point in time it is estimated there were approximately 700,000 inhabitants of Palestine. Some were Jews and Christians but most were Muslim Arabs .

Prior to the end of WWI, Britain had declared its policy that a Jewish homeland should be established in Palestine under the Balfour Declaration. The concept of a National Jewish Home in Palestine, as set forth in the Balfour Declaration, was approved by the League of Nations Council on July 24, 1922. Concerns were expressed, in many quarters, regarding the status of the current inhabitants of the area, particularly Muslim Arabs. The Balfour Declaration anticipated what later would be called the two-state solution.

WW2 and the Holocaust firmed up opinions on the international front that the Jews needed a homeland. "On November 29, 1947 the United Nations adopted Resolution 181 (also known as the Partition Resolution) that would divide Great Britain's former Palestinian mandate into Jewish and Arab states in May 1948 when the British mandate was scheduled to end."

The State of Israel was established in 1948. Soon after the creation of the State of Israel, Jews from around the world immigrated there in large numbers.

As of 1948, it is estimated there were about 1,400,000 Muslim Arabs living in Palestine. This number is hotly disputed.

The partition of Palestine and the creation of the modern State of Israel was rejected by the Palestinian Arabs. In 1948 war broke out between Israel and its neighbours. As a result of the war and the creation of the State of Israel, or both, it is estimated that between 520,000 and 1,000,000 Arab Palestinians fled or were expelled from the new territory of Israel. This range of numbers is hotly disputed. According to Encyclopedia Britannica: "Some 276,000 moved to the West Bank; by 1949 more than half the prewar Arab population of Palestine lived in the West Bank (from 400,000 in 1947 to more than 700,000). Between 160,000 and 190,000 fled to the Gaza Strip. More than one-fifth of Palestinian Arabs left Palestine altogether. About 100,000 of these went to Lebanon, 100,000 to Jordan, between 75,000 and 90,000 to Syria, 7,000 to 10,000 to Egypt, and 4,000 to Iraq." Also: "Approximately 150,000 Arabs remained in Israel when the Israeli state was founded."

The above numbers can be sliced and diced many ways. Undoubtedly, however, people were displaced as a result of the UN Resolution and the subsequent creation of the State of Israel.

With all of this in mind, let's now examine the validity of the Palestinian claim for all of Palestine.

One argument in favour of the claim is that they were there first. Who is 'they'? The history shows that the Hebrews were there long before Muslim Arabs. A claim extending back to the Philistines seems tenuous. It seems questionable that the Philistines predated the Hebrews in the area in any event.

Another argument is that the Muslim Arabs came to outnumber the Jews in the area by 1948. If head counts determine the legitimacy of claims, what does that do the indigenous claims in the 'new world' where the indigenous people are vastly outnumbered by the new- comers. At what time do we do the head count? Now, or at some past date; if some past date, what date?

Furthermore, if the Muslim Arabs in Palestine were colonists under colonization by Mohammad and his followers, how valid is their claim given current views about colonization? Are their claims based on 'we colonized before you recolonized'?

What about a claim based on international law? Well, the State of Israel was created by international law. Having been created by international law, can it be undone by international law? Seems the horse has already left the barn on that one. It is simply impossible, short of genocide, for the Israeli state to be undone. Genocide is not an option except for extreme proponents in favour of Palestinian resettlement.

The Palestinians have been offered land for their own homeland on at least three occasions since the second World War: in 1947/48 as noted in the UN Resolution; in 1979 as part of the Egypt-Israeli peace negotiations and treaty; and in the 1990s as part of the Oslo Agreements. Extremist factions have chosen an 'all or none' approach and have gotten none - unless you consider Gaza as an exception. Given recent events with Hamas operating out of Gaza, it seems that 'land for peace' and even a two state solutions is off the table.

It was undoubtedly wrong that inhabitants of Palestine were involuntarily displaced by the creation of the State of Israel. This wrong must be righted.

It seems there are two categories of Palestinians that need to be considered as a matter of justice for displacement: those that fled out of concern about living under Israeli rule; and those that were forced out. How should those that left voluntarily due to their own concerns about Israeli rule, whether justified or not, be treated? On the other hand, those that were forced out seem to be in a different position from a moral point of view.

We have Palestinians that are either living within Israel or in nearby countries or enclaves. It is a matter of controversy whether those living within Israel are being treated fairly. This is largely a matter of Israeli law. Contrary to popular belief, Arab Palestinians can be citizens of Israel. Twenty percent of citizens in Israel are Arab Palestinians and are entitled to vote. Palestinians living in Gaza and/or the West Bank have no voting rights in Israel. The citizens of Gaza achieved voting rights for the area of Gaza and they elected Hamas. Since bring elected in 2006, Hamas has not held any further elections in Gaza. The West Bank is under the partial control of the Palestinian Authority and partial control of the Israeli government. The president and legislative council of the Palestinian Authority is elected however elections in the West Bank have not occurred since 2006. Elections in Gaza and for the Palestinian Authority are outside of Israeli control.

For Palestinians living in other countries, like Jordan and Lebanon, the question is two-fold. Should they be entitled, if they so desire, to move back to Israel and become citizens? Either way, should they be entitled to compensation for expropriated property or some other form of justice?

Certainly, I don't have the answer to the Palestinian Question(s). I hope, however, the foregoing is helpful for the casual reader. The issues are complex. This should be kept in mind when reading sensationalized news headlines.