tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1787272385367494897.post8691158127911064906..comments2023-10-26T16:38:37.859-07:00Comments on Jewish Bubba: Were Arabs Expelled From Their Villages in Palestine? Nadene Goldfoothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01654020384945801380noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1787272385367494897.post-77723457942074885572015-01-21T20:57:15.717-08:002015-01-21T20:57:15.717-08:00Regarding the charge of “ethnic cleansing” as part...Regarding the charge of “ethnic cleansing” as part of “Plan D”, many Israel-haters are fond of citing Pappe and Morris to back up their claims. Morris, however, sets the record straight in a letter to The Irish Times:<br /><br />Most of Palestine’s 700,000 “refugees” fled their homes because of the flail of war (and in the expectation that they would shortly return to their homes on the backs of victorious Arab invaders).<br /><br />There was no Zionist “plan” or blanket policy of evicting the Arab population, or of “ethnic cleansing”. Plan Dalet of March 10, 1948, was the master plan of the Haganah – the Jewish military force that became the Israel Defence Forces – to counter the expected pan-Arab assault on the emergent Jewish state. And the invasion of the armies of Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Iraq duly occurred, on May 15.<br /><br />It is true that Plan D gave the regional commanders carte blanche to occupy and garrison or expel and destroy the Arab villages along and behind the front lines and the anticipated Arab armies’ invasion routes. And it is also true that midway in the 1948 war the Israeli leaders decided to bar the return of the “refugees” (those “refugees” who had just assaulted the Jewish community), viewing them as a potential fifth column and threat to the Jewish state’s existence. I for one cannot fault their fears or logic.<br />Nadene Goldfoothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01654020384945801380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1787272385367494897.post-13333487100873385752015-01-21T15:50:04.019-08:002015-01-21T15:50:04.019-08:00Comment sent to me from the Palestinian version of...Comment sent to me from the Palestinian version of events: <br />Ten years of research into the 1947-49 war<br />The expulsion of the Palestinians re-examined<br />Fifty years ago the UN decided to partition Palestine into two states, one Arab, one Jewish. The ensuing Arab-Israeli war ended with Israel expanding its share of the land by a third, while what remained to the Arabs was occupied by Egypt and Jordan. Several thousand Palestinians fled their homes, becoming the refugees at the heart of the conflict. Israel has always denied that they were expelled, either forcibly or as a matter of policy. Israel’s “new historians” have been re-examining that denial and have put an end to a number of myths.<br />by Dominique Vidal<br /> Doninique, the UN partition I mentioned that was offered was denied by the Palestinian leaders and they opted for more fighting. That was their decision. More fighting may have resulted in more land acquired by Israel. Look at the map on my article; there wasn't much at all for Israel-that's because Abdullah of TransJordan helped himself to 80% of what was earmarked as the Jewish Homeland by the League of Nations- something not for the Palestinian Arabs to decide on. So Israel's 80% was taken away from the Jews at its birth. What remained? Well, Egypt had control of Gaza for years, and Transjordan was renamed Jordan and you know the Hashemite Dynasty is the head of that with Abdullah II reigning today. Benny Morris is the historian you are referring to, and since his early years has changed his tune about his first impressions. He's learned more history. Nadene Goldfoothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01654020384945801380noreply@blogger.com