Monday, January 14, 2008

Worn out story still resonates

Jihad Watch

Spokesman of Jordan's largest political party: "The recognition of the Jewish nature of Israel heralds a new aggression as well as a new chapter of the conspiracy against Arab rights" Uh, that's really nothing new: Israel's status in the international community as a Jewish state was present even in the 1948 partition plan, UN General Assembly Resolution 181.

"Jordan Islamists blast Bush's remarks on Jewish Israel," from Deutsche Presse Agentur:

Amman - The Islamic Action Front (IAF), Jordan's biggest political party, on Saturday urged the government to reject unequivocally US President George W Bush's remarks referring to Israel as a Jewish state. "We are awaiting a clear Jordanian official attitude that rejects Israel as a Jewish state and sticks to the Palestinian people's right to an independent and a fully sovereign state as well as to the right of refugees" to return to their homes, the IAF official spokesman Rhayyel Gharaibeh said in a statement.

During his visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories earlier this week, Bush advocated Israel as homeland for the Jewish people, a remark seemingly excluding the return of Palestinian refugees to their homes they were forced to quit upon Israel's foundation in 1948.

This is simply untrue. Not only has Israel always been a Jewish state, but the partition plan created an Arab "Palestinian" territory as well, which the Arab bloc rejected, lost all of in successive military defeats, and now wants back, we're told, in exchange for peace. Maybe. Kind of.

The UN General Assembly resolution 194 provided for the return of Palestinians to their homes or compensating those who choose not to return.

"Bush's hostile statement represents one of the stages of the liquidation of the Palestinian question, the offshoots of which will affect the rights of the Palestinian and Jordanian peoples as well as neighbouring Arab countries," Gharaibeh said.

"The recognition of the Jewish nature of Israel heralds a new aggression as well as a new chapter of the conspiracy against Arab rights," he added.

A curious slip-up (resulting in a moment of accurate reporting):

Jordan lost the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, to Israel in the 1967 Six Day War. The Amman government concluded a peace treaty with Israel in 1994, but the Hashemite Kingdom continues to be a home for about 1.5 [million] Palestinian refugees who enjoy full Jordanian nationality.

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