If you know history, you know that most nations are invented. What he meant to say was that the Palestinians are a “relatively recently” invented people. At least they’ve been there, and their ancestors, right on down the line for centuries. Most modern Israelis are descended from immigrants, many of them illegal immigrants (see the movie “Exodus”), who only arrived in that part of the world during the 20th century. The Israelis have a right to the land of Israel because their ancestors lived there 2000 years ago? That is just nuts. Native Americans have a better claim to the United States, than the Israelis have to their country if we are going to allow ancestral claims to come into it.
Of course, Israel has a right to exist; of course Israelis can legitimately claim their country. But that claim has NOTHING to do with anything that happened a thousand years ago. And as the Zionists who traveled to Palestine and built the modern state of Israel came from all over the world, speaking all sorts of languages, and having little in common but their religion, the Israelis are themselves a recently invented people.
In fact, you could almost say that the Palestinians and the Israelis invented each other. Israeli unity was built on the foundation of resistance to a common foe, and the Palestinian identity was built on opposition to Israel. Neither people would be who they are without the other. Neither nation is any older than the other.
If you know history, you know that most nations are invented. What he meant to say was that the Palestinians are a “relatively recently” invented people. At least they’ve been there, and their ancestors, right on down the line for centuries. Most modern Israelis are descended from immigrants, many of them illegal immigrants (see the movie “Exodus”), who only arrived in that part of the world during the 20th century. The Israelis have a right to the land of Israel because their ancestors lived there 2000 years ago? That is just nuts. Native Americans have a better claim to the United States, than the Israelis have to their country if we are going to allow ancestral claims to come into it.
Of course, Israel has a right to exist; of course Israelis can legitimately claim their country. But that claim has NOTHING to do with anything that happened a thousand years ago. And as the Zionists who traveled to Palestine and built the modern state of Israel came from all over the world, speaking all sorts of languages, and having little in common but their religion, the Israelis are themselves a recently invented people.
In fact, you could almost say that the Palestinians and the Israelis invented each other. Israeli unity was built on the foundation of resistance to a common foe, and the Palestinian identity was built on opposition to Israel. Neither people would be who they are without the other. Neither nation is any older than the other.