Israel supporters correctly point out that Egypt has also established its own (albeit, less-stringent) quarantine of Gaza's Palestinians. Some also insist that there is widespread disdain for the Palestinians throughout the Middle-East. I'd agree that it is fair to point out that on many occasions the Palestinians have appeared to function as their own worst enemies. They've been known to engage in fratricidal in-fighting and are saddled with a reputation for "never missing an opportunity to miss an opportunity" at bringing about some form of diplomatic resolution of their quest for statehood. They'd been booted out of Jordan in 1970 and later expelled from Lebanon, for (putting it lightly) being inconsiderate guests. Indeed, from Kandahar to Cairo, few if any Mid-East nations appear willing to put up with them for any length of time, much less oblige the establishment of a permanent homeland for Palestinians within their borders.
Nevertheless, what I find puzzling is the sense of indignation often exhibited by some Israel supporters over the unwillingness of the Palestinians' Mid-East brethren to accommodate them in this manner. Could they truly believe that be Israel's absolution can only be achieved through Arab largesse? I'm anxious to hear an explanation of how Israel's problem of what to do with all those Palestinians it displaced back in 1948 can be considered the responsibility of other Middle-Eastern countries today. It's very likely that any explanation offered would seem just as absurd to the Jordanians or Lebanese as Helen Thomas' statement about relocating Jews "back to Germany and Poland" would seem to most Israeli citizens.
Perhaps not surprisingly, those stoked by anti-Semitism into denying that the Holocaust actually happened, will find their counterparts on the Jewish side: pro-Israeli stalwarts who insist that the Palestinian exodus in 1948 was either largely unforced, or that prior to 1948 the area was a "land without people." Yet, like the baseless allegations of Holocaust deniers, history also debunks these claims. It unequivocally points out that some Palestinians did in fact depart voluntarily, but also leaves no doubt that most were driven out.
In his book, Righteous Victims: A History of the Zionist-Arab Conflict, noted Israeli historian Benny Jacobs documents the primary factor that fueled the Palestinian exodus.
The principle cause of the mass flight of April-June was Jewish military attack, or fear of such attack. Almost every instance---exodus from Haifa on April 21- May 1; from Jaffa during April-early May; from Tiberias on April 17-18; from Safad on May 10- was the direct and immediate result of an attack on and conquest of Arab neighborhoods and towns. In no case did a population abandon its homes before an attack; in almost all cases it did so on the very day of the attack and in days immediately following. And flight proved to be contagious. The fall of, and flight from, the big cities---principally Haifa and Jaffa---radiated pessimism and despair to surrounding villages.
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