Demographics
Reader comment on item: Jewish and Arab Demographics in Jerusalem
in response to reader comment: Demo-ilitary

Submitted by David Blain (United States), May 28, 2007 at 10:22

The census of Palestine in 1899 counted 116,000 Arab & non-Arab Muslims in the region. THAT'S IT. It was a camel dung repository under the 800 year rule of the Ottomans.

As soon as the Jews took over and started growing oranges as big as basketballs, what do you know, say hello to the "Palestinians," weeping for their deep bond with their lost "land" and "nation." I do not believe that the Arab demographic in Israel is due to "live births". Such a supposition doesn't fit the population growth timeline.

When Jews commenced what must be the most remarkable modern-day national revival, Israel was a wasteland. Palestinians had done precious little for the land they purport to so love. In fact, in 1948, the invading Arab armies instructed Palestinians to vacate their holdings in Israel until the Jews were exterminated, after which Palestinians would return to inherit the land. Palestinians duly scuttled, abandoning the land with nomadic ease.

The question remains: Who are the squatters, Jews or Arabs? The history speaks loudly. It was the Islamic countries who forced hundreds of thousands of Muslims into the fledgling state, with one goal: To try to "push the Jews into the sea". In 1977 Zoher Mossein, head of the PLO Bureau of Military Operations declared: "There is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians and Lebanese; we are all members of a single nation. Solely for political reasons are we careful to stress our identity as Palestinians, since a separate State of Palestine would be an extra weapon to fight Zionism with. Yes, we do call for a Palestinian State for tactical reasons. Such a State would be a new means to continuing the battle against Zionism."

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