by Allen Smith

Created on: January 27, 2008

Okay, for all of you on the yes side of this debate; study the history of the region before you jump on the bus. Israel should never have given over to pressures from any other nation. Israel has as much right to control and defend their land as any other country. The rights of the people living in what we call Palestine are not at the heart of the issue. What is, is the legitimacy of the claim to a land that has never existed.

The claim that Palestine is an ancient land was first made in 1973, following the Yom Kippur War. A study of history will demonstrate that this claim is without merit. However, historical claims are not the defining issue, current occupation and control is.

Israel is the historic home for all Jews, every tribe included. This is a fact that cannot be disputed, and while it is important to note this, as I said before, it is not the defining issue. The truth is, that Israel has always been occupied by Jews, to varying degrees, but they have always been present in the land and in the city of Jerusalem. Arabs have also been present, also to varying degrees, but the land had no significance to them prior to beginning of the Zionist movement of the late 19th century. At the outset of the movement, many Jews were encouraged to return to Israel, for religious, nationalist and historical hereditary reasons. Upon returning, they began to purchase land from those who had title at the time, many of them Arabs living in the area of Palestine. They claimed many areas that were previously unclaimed and unoccupied. And thus began the endless war we have been witness to for the last 60 years.

The fact that Jerusalem is the site of the most strongly held Jewish beliefs and customs, is only one aspect of their desire to defend their claim to it. The temple mount is the most sacred and holy place for all Jews. The claim of the site as holy to Muslims, is not even as old as Islam. Even the early Christians did not place much significance on the area. But again, it is not about the history of the land. The conflict is about people, different customs and different values.

Israel is always portrayed as the errant dictator, bent on the destruction and subjugation of Palestine and her people. No evidence is produced beyond the fact that Israel and the Israeli people are prosperous, and the people of Palestine are not. A close look at the facts will show, that the Palestinians are destitute because they choose too be. How else do you explain the deplorable condition

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