The Real Palestinian Tragedy

It is refreshing to hear the occasional Arab voice in the wilderness decrying the real tragedy of the Palestinian people - the gross manipulation of the Palestinians by other Middle East nations. One of the most egrigous aspects of that manipulation is the horrid conditions in which Palestians reside outside of Gaza, the West Bank or Israel. The squalor is quietly acknowledged as part of the effort by Middle Eastern governments to use the plight of these displaced Palestinians against Israel. This from Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed in London's Arabic newspaper, Asharq Al-Awsat:

. . . Regarded by some as a temporary issue, the tragedy of the Palestinians is rarely presented to the Arab and international public opinion through the media or during political occasions. Even some Arabs and Palestinians intentionally turn a blind eye to the issue so as not to expose abuses. What is happening in Lebanon's Nahr al Bared camp today is just one such example where battles have raised an overwhelming number of questions: who are these people? How long have they lived in the camp and how? What are their rights? The answers can be found on the UNRWA's website. Tens of thousands of people crammed in undignified houses, where many of them were born and have lived for five decades.

Some Arab countries “hosting” refugees ban them from leaving [camps], from occupying a large number of positions and deny them any other legal rights. Some of them have to jump over walls and sneak out to complete their chores or to breathe and experience the outside world. One can imagine these randomly and poorly built houses during the winter chill and sweltering heat of the summer among the sewage and insufficient services. It is a shame. How can we talk about the liberation of Palestine, which we simply associate with stolen land, a desecrated mosque and a powerful enemy, while we do not allow Palestinians to settle down, earn a living or travel like all other human beings?

Our insistence to lock the Palestinians in camps and treat them like animals in the name of preserving the issue is far worse a crime than Israel stealing land and causing the displacement of people. The 60 year-old camps only signify our inhumanity and double standards. Israel can claim that it treats the Palestinians better than their Arab brothers do. It gives citizenship to the Palestinians of 1948 as well as the right to work and the right to lead a somewhat normal life, although they are treated as second-class citizens. . .

Read the entire article here. Palestine today is in a civil war between the gangsters of Fatah and the radical Islamists of Hamas. For the seemingly few Palestians not already corrupted beyond hope by either side and who only desire a functioning society, they are in a lose-lose situation. There is a complete breakdown in morality and respect for the law necessary for a functioning society. And that all arises out of Middle East countries who have, for a century, actively nurtured and paid for this rot in a cynical attempt to use the Palestinians against Jews and the state of Israel. One must hope that there is a special place in hell reserved for those Saudis who have paid stipends to suicide bombers or who have funded the propoganda machines that tell pre-school children about the joys of murdering Israelis. This all leads to the incredible irony that the Palestians who have the highest standard of living and the most freedom in the Middle East are those who live in Israel.

(H/T Steve Halter)