"Palestine -Al Nakba" النكبة
The Palestinian Exile, also known as Al Nakba (Arabic for "The
Catastrophe"), refers to the ethnic cleansing of native Palestinian
peoples ... all » during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. From December 1947
until November 1948, Zionist forces (namely the Irgun, Lehi, Haganah
terrorist gangs) expelled approximately 750, 000 indigenous
Palestinians--almost 2/3 of the population--from their homes. Hundreds
of Palestinians were also murdered for refusing to leave their homes.
The most notable massacre is the Deir Yassin Massacre, in which an
estimated 120 Palestinian civilians were brutally murdered by an
Irgun-Lehi force. Other massacres include the ones at Sahila (70-80
killed), Lod (250 killed), and Abu Shusha (70 killed). About 40 other
massacres were carried out by Zionist forces in just the summer of
1948. Not only did Zionist forces conduct massacres of Palestinian
civilians, rape occured as well. According to Israeli historian Benny
Morris, "In Acre four soldiers raped a girl and murdered her and her
father. In Jaffa, soldiers of the Kiryati Brigade raped one girl and
tried to rape several more. At Hunin, which is in the Galilee, two
girls were raped and then murdered. There were one or two cases of rape
at Tantura, south of Haifa. There was one case of rape at Qula, in the
center of the country. At the village of Abu Shusha, near Kibbutz Gezer
[in the Ramle area] there were four female prisoners, one of whom was
raped a number of times. And there were other cases. Usually more than
one soldier was involved. Usually there were one or two Palestinian
girls. In a large proportion of the cases the event ended with murder.
Because neither the victims nor the rapists liked to report these
events, we have to assume that the dozen cases of rape that were
reported, which I found, are not the whole story. They are just the tip
of the iceberg." During Al Nakba, Palestinians were murdered, raped,
and ethnically cleansed from their villages. According to Israeli
historian, Ilan Papp.., "In a matter of seven months, 531 villages were
destroyed and 11 urban neighborhoods emptied." Palestinians were forced
into were forced out of Palestine and into neighboring countries (i.e.
Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan), where they lived in refugee camps. Many
were also sent to camps in West Bank and Gaza Strip. Most Palestinian
towns were demolished and taken by the newly established Israeli
government to make room for new Jewish immigrants. Old Palestinian
infrastructures, as well as many ruins dating back from the Canaanites,
Romans, Greeks, Crusaders, Arabs, and Ottoman Turks were completely
destroyed. This signified the end of historical Palestine and the birth
of modern-day Israel. Al Nakba marked the beginning of the Palestinian
refugee crisis. Al Nakba destroyed a thriving and diverse Palestinian
society and scattered them into diaspora. According to the UNRWA, the
number of registered Palestinian refugees today is approximately 4.5
million. These refugees are dispersed throughout the world, many of
which are still living in poverty-stricken refugee camps. Today, the
situation keeps worsening and thousands die from malnutrition,
contaminated water, or scarce medical supply. Israel has since refused
to allow Palestinian refugees to return to their homes, and has refused
to pay them compensation as required by UN Resolution 194, which was
passed on December 11, 1948. Historically, the Israeli government,
Israeli schools, and Israeli historians have denied that Al Nakba has
occured. However, The New Historians, a loosely-defined group of
Israeli historians, have recently published information recognizing the
Al Nakba tragedy and controversial views of matters concerning Israel,
particularly events concerning its birth in 1948. Much of their
material comes from recently declassified Israeli government papers.
Leading scholars in this school include Benny Morris, Ilan Papp.., Avi
Shlaim, and Tom Segev. Many of their conclusions have been attacked by
other scholars and Israeli historians, who continue deny Al Nakba even
occured. May 15th is Al Nakba Day, a day for Palestinian refugees and
their descendants to remember their lost loved ones and their lost
homeland
الجمعة مايو 09, 2008 10:46 am
