Don’t Even Ask of Israel

Beyond the Cusp ^ | January 17, 2010 | B Saunders

[bsaunders]

There have been demands and calls and rulings and all sorts of actions all indicating that the world will expect Israel to fully retreat behind the pre 67 borders, also known as the Green Line. Perhaps it would be advantageous to inspect the history behind the demarcation of the Green Line and establish what validity it holds as an actual recognized border. Sit back and relax, this will take a while to explain and reveal. I will try to be as brief as I am able.

The Balfour Declaration was made in November 1917 by the British Government that set aside land for a future Jewish State to be established by the British Government. The land that comprised the Mandate included what is today Israel, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and all of Jordan. It is only fair to note that Jewish purchases of land within the British Mandate and also some beyond the Mandate had begun almost a century earlier and a fairly substantive number of Jews had established themselves and were farming these lands. The League of Nations drew up the Mandate for a Jewish Palestine that was concurrent to the Balfour Declaration. The document underwent several transformations. Arab pressure and riots in Palestine had brought about the Churchill White Paper of 1922, which again reiterated the right of the Jews to a Homeland in Palestine. At this time, Britain detached all of the area east of the Jordan River from Palestine and gave it to the Hashemi family called Trans-Jordan as an independent Arab state. These lands comprised 78% of the British Mandate lands thus leaving a paltry 22% of the original Mandate lands for a Jewish State.

After 1922, everything was stuck in limbo where no further steps were taken to declare a Jewish State. After WWII and the Shoah, Holocaust, the United Nations took up the problem of establishing a Jewish State in the 22% of what remained of the original lands comprising the British Mandate. This led to the declaration of UN General Assembly Resolution 181, which further divided the sliver of land between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River into two states, one Arab and one Jewish that was approved on November 29, 1947. Almost 75% of the land appropriated for the Jews consisted of lands within the Negev Desert, land considered useless, and placed Jerusalem within the Arab sections. The Zionist Jews, desperate for any lands, accepted the partition plan while the Arab States rejected the plan and called for Jihad, Holy War, against the nascent Jewish State on the morning after it was founded. The attacking Arab armies from six Arab States invaded the morning of May 16, 1948, Israel’s first full day as a nation. In reality, the hostilities began in early December 1947 while the British were still militarily in control.

This conflict continued in surges until peace was restored by UN Resolution 181 that established an armistice line, aka the Green Line, which acted as a de facto border for the State of Israel. At this point, the West Bank was controlled by Jordan and Gaza was controlled by Egypt. There were no claims for a Palestinian state until after the Arab defeat in the war of 1967 where Israel gained control of the Golan Heights from Syria, the West Bank from Jordan, and both Gaza and the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt. These expanded borders remained the new de facto borders of Israel while the Arab League refused any mediation after reaching the Three No’s, No peace with Israel, No negotiations with Israel, and No recognition of Israel. Egypt was the first to break the Three No’s pact signing a Peace Accord with Israel on March 26, 1979. As part of this Treaty Israel returned the entire Sinai Peninsula while Egypt gave up any claims to the Gaza Strip leaving the land under Israeli control. This was followed by Peace Accords between Jordan and Israel on October 26, 1994. As a result of this treaty, Jordan relinquished any claim to the West Bank leaving these lands under Israeli control. To this day, there has been no peace accord between Syrian and Israel and Israel has announced the annexation of the Golan Heights.

Under any normal situation, this would have been the end of the problems. Israel would have new borders along the Jordan River including all of Jerusalem, which Israel has also annexed, and along the Negev Sinai border. But as is obvious, this is not a normal situation. In all previous such wars, the peoples living in the conquered lands would move as the border had moved. This is evident on Cyprus where the lands changed hands between Turkey and Greece, in Kashmir where new borders were formed between India and Pakistan, and in numerous other similar situations. Despite the fact that Israel has been burdened by unusual demands by normal standards, they have shown a willingness to reach some degree of accommodation. It would be within Israel’s right to simply have annexed all the lands gained after the wars of 1967 and 1973, but Israel made every attempt to return the conquered lands from two costly defensive wars to her enemies, Jordan, Egypt, and Syria. Syria still refuses to make peace while both Jordan and Egypt made their peace and surrendered lands to Israel.

But it is not the entire Gaza, which Israel has already vacated completely, or the entire West Bank of which I refer when I say, “Don’t Even Ask of Israel.” I am not even referring to all the suburbs of Jerusalem. I refer to the Old City, in particular the Temple Mount. For way too long Jews could only see the Western Wall, the Wailing Wall, and be denied access to pray at this holy site for twenty years while it was under Jordanian control. Now the world thinks that Israel will willingly return to that intolerable situation. This too is part of what Jews mean when we say, “Never Again!” Do not even pretend to claim it will be an international zone. That game was played for twenty years of Jordanian refusal to allow any Jew access. While Israel has controlled the Old City of Jerusalem, all religions have had access to their holy sites. This is how the situation should stay; the Old City of Jerusalem and the Temple Mount in particular should be free for access by all peoples of the faiths that hold this land precious. The only guarantee that Jews will be allowed this access is with these sites remaining under Israeli control. So, simply put, “Don’t Even Ask of Israel to surrender these precious few parcels of land.

Beyond the Cusp

[bsaunders]

Also, New Poll Question at Beyond the Cusp

[Recon Dad]

If any Freepers have been to Israel you will know the idea that Israel should or must retreat to the “green line” is nuts.

The green line is not some demarcation in the desert, it is a line going down the middle of the street in East Jerusalem. It was a shooting gallery where palestians shot across the street at will. It was where Jordan troops and Palestinans pulled up Jewish headstones from graveyards and used the build hotels.

[SunkenCiv]

But it is not the entire Gaza, which Israel has already vacated completely, or the entire West Bank of which I refer when I say, "Don't Even Ask of Israel." I am not even referring to all the suburbs of Jerusalem. I refer to the Old City, in particular the Temple Mount. For way too long Jews could only see the Western Wall, the Wailing Wall, and be denied access to pray at this holy site for twenty years while it was under Jordanian control. Now the world thinks that Israel will willingly return to that intolerable situation. This too is part of what Jews mean when we say, "Never Again!" Do not even pretend to claim it will be an international zone. That game was played for twenty years of Jordanian refusal to allow any Jew access. While Israel has controlled the Old City of Jerusalem, all religions have had access to their holy sites. This is how the situation should stay; the Old City of Jerusalem and the Temple Mount in particular should be free for access by all peoples of the faiths that hold this land precious. The only guarantee that Jews will be allowed this access is with these sites remaining under Israeli control. So, simply put, "Don't Even Ask of Israel to surrender these precious few parcels of land."

Thanks bsaunders.