By: Scott Hansen
To answer this loaded question and similar ones like it, we have to consider how Israel was established, what were the conditions and circumstances and what the conditions of its establishment were.
To simplify this scenario, just imagine that you and your family were living in a house that you inherited from your father and mother which your father inherited from his father and mother. This house was in the family for generations. Or maybe, you bought the house in which you and your family are living happily and peacefully. Out of the blue, someone knocks on the door, you open the door and see 2 men with machine guns and hand grenades, they tell you, you have a nice house and we want it. You tell them, the house is not for sale. My family and I are living here and we have no place to go. They tell you, we don’t want to buy the house, we want to take it. You have 24 hours to leave and if you don’t, you and your family will be killed.
This is a dilemma that no one wants to face and though the scenario was very simplified, the actual truth was not too far off.
In 1917 Great Britain used to colonize many countries around the world, among them was Palestine. In that year, the British promised the Jews to help them establish a country of their own in the land of Palestine. As to the WHY, this topic was discussed in another post. Between 1917 and 1948, the British helped the Jews immigrate to Palestine smuggling a lot of weapons with the help of the English Army, whereas, the Palestinians were prohibited from carrying any weapons and were severely punished if they possess any kind of fire arms. Their punishments could be imprisonment or demolishment of their home or similar ungodly measures. These measures of punishment are currently practiced by Israel in the West Bank. In 1948 Israel was established and recognized in the United Nations with the help of The United Kingdom and The United States.
Let us now dispel some of the lies that the Israelis are spewing to justify taking the Palestinian land and establishing their country.
Lie # 1: This was a land without people waiting for people without land. We, the Jews, were people without a land and came to this empty country.
Truth: Palestine was never an empty country. It was always occupied by the Palestinians who have families, businesses and lives in that part of the world. When the Jews took over the land, they killed a large number of the occupants by committing massacres in several cities. The Zionists and their terrorist groups like “The Hagenah” were responsible for all of these massacres, and a larger number were just kicked out of their homes in which the Jews are currently residing. People were transferred by the truckload and dumped across the Jordan River. It was estimated that 800K-1M people lost their homes. Those are the people who live in refugee camps in Jordan and other countries.
Lie # 2: We, The Jews, are God’s chosen people. God gave us this land to live on.
A: If you are a religious person, you believe that we are all God’s children and God does not discriminate between his children, so he can’t be preferring you over the rightful owners of the land, The Palestinians.
B: If you are not a religious person, then you don’t believe this claim anyway. After all, the Jews have done nothing special to please God and be rewarded for it. Besides, since when was God in the real estate business?
Lie # 3: We bought this land on which we live now.
Truth: Palestinians were strictly forbidden to sell their land and homes to the Israelis at any price. Those who violate this order were shunned and possibly shot to death. While the Israelis can substantiate the purchase of some land from those who either were leaving the country of desperately needing the money, the total area of land that they actually bought amounts to 3-5%, the rest of the land they have was forcibly taken from its original owners. In this country, we call that “armed robbery”.
Lie # 4: Our ancestors used to live here, so we came back to claim this land that belonged to them.
Truth: The land of Palestine belonged to the Palestinians. They were Muslims, Christians and Jews, not Israelis, among other races and nationalities. The small minorities of Jews are still there. No one forced them out. Before 1948 there was nothing called Israel. If you look at maps in any book before that date, that area was always called Palestine. Even the cities before 1948 have Arabic/Palestinian names, no Israeli names. After the establishment of Israel, the government brought a lot of Jews from all over the world to live in Israel. 78% of the people in Israel have no ties to the land or the history of the area.
SO, to answer the question presented in the title, DOES ISRAEL HAVE THE RIGHT TO EXIST? If you say, it’s OK for the armed men who were taking your house at gun point, then the answer is yes. BUT, if it’s not OK for the armed men taking your house, then the answer is NO.
The point is, Israel has no right to the land of Palestine which they took by force, therefore, ISRAEL DOES NOT HAVE THE RIGHT TO EXIST because their country exists on Palestinian land which they robbed the rightful owners of.