Nakba Day 1: My Grandparents are Refugees too!

Today, the Palestinians (and in turn the Arab world) mention Nakba Day. Because 64 years ago today (by the Gregorian calendar), the state of Israel was formed. So they’re mentioning the catastrophe and disaster of Israel’s establishment.

The truth is, that while this day is used mainly for incitment and perpetuation of distortions and half-truths, Israel was the side that accepted the UN’s resolution of two states for two people, while it was the Arab world that rejected it and started offenses and war. The outcome of which was one state and the so-called refugee issue.

Here’s the thing though – The only issue here is why has the Arab world made cynical use of these refugees in the war against Israel? The Palestinians themselves, I can understand how it’s easy for them to not blame themselves for anything, and assume Israel is 100% at fault. But here’s the thing – you have refugees living in Syria, Lebanon and all over the region, and these countries that host them refuse to give them any kind of rights, even after 64 years of living on their territory, because their status is good for the war on Israel.

Did you know? Every real refugee in the world is treated by a UN agency called UNHCR. However, the Palestinians and only the Palestinians are treated by a seperate agency called UNRWA, which is a slap and a repeated spit in the face of real refugees.

You see, UNHCR helps people find a new home and rebuild their lives. That’s what it did after World War II, after the Yugoslvia war, and many other locations around the world. UNRWA, on the other hand, only tries to get them by on a daily basis, helping them stay in worse conditions, in order for them to remain refugees and incite against Israel.

In fact, unlike UNHCR, UNRWA gives offsprings the status of refugee as well. So pradocially enough, 64 years after the war, the 750,000 refugees became over 11 million! Have you ever heard of such atrocity?

And the thing is, the status is never lifted! If a Palestinian has been granted citizenship anywhere around the world – UNRWA still considers him a refugee! Bashar al-Masri, is a successful businessman around the world, wealthy, living in a big mansion and UNRWA calls him a refugee!! And he’s not the only one.

Now i’m not going to say most Palestinians live in great conditions. But the duplicity of the issue is that UNRWA keeps them in that situation and the Arab world gives them absolutely no right, even though they’ve been “hosting” them for over 60 years now!

The truth is, during the 1948 war, both sides hurt each other, and you might even go as far as saying both sides comitted atrocities towards each other. But the Palestinians (mostly their leadership and dependance on the Arab world) refuses to better their situation, or help them.

On the other side of the equation, while 750,000 Palestinian refugees was the result of the war, nearly 800,000 Jews where left with no choice but to leave their homes and posessions in Arab Countries.

64 years ago, my grandmother was living with her family in Syria. They were quiet wealthy. The day Israel declared independance, with according to the UN’s partition plan, they rounded all the men and put them in prison. Took their possesion. Her father’s shop was nationalized. When life became unbearable and her family was practically left with no choice but to leave, they had to escape overnight, pay Druzes to help them cross the border from Syria to Lebanon and from Lebanon to Israel. Their entire possesion was left behind. Everything they owned, except for the clothes on their backs, was nationalized as well. Today, many refugees from Sudan, Eritrea and many other African refugees, are doing the same on a daily basis. But nobody calls my grandmother a refugee. Not once. Not ever. And my grandmother is only one of over 800,000 who had to leave their homes.

My grandparents of my dad’s side, like many non-Jewish European, were left without homes or shelter after the end of World War II. From 1945 to this day, not on them, my grandparents (R.I.P), or the Europeans dealing with the outcome of war, are called refugees today. UNHCR helped them rebuild their lives and have new homes. My grandparents received a life here in Israel. Their entire posession and life from before the war was gone. Yet from 1948 to this day, all Palestinian refugees are still refugees.

Why is that? Why are the Palestinians the only people around the world the UN doesn’t help to rebuild their lives? Or at the very least, to lift the status of “refugee” from them and their children when they have? Why is the UN doing nothing for the Palestinian refugees living in camps in Syria and Lebanon? And why are the Palestinians receiving such special treatment, even in this matter.

Because, you see, until they’ll be treated equally by the world, until this conflict will get the proportion it truly has and not the blown-up kind it has gotten, maybe… maybe the Palestinian could acknowledge their part, their fault, in the conflict. And maybe they can acknowledge that they’d have to make concessions too for peace. And then maybe… maybe peace will finally be possible. But until that’ll happen – peace will never be acheived. Calm will never come. Not until the intertional bodies start treating this conflict as they do any other. No special treatment.

UN Refuses to Fire Bias Employee, Taking Part In De-legitimizing Israel

Now this is a truly enraging story!

During the last escalation round between Israel and Gaza militants, in which over 200 rockets were fired upon Israeli civilian population, a UN employee – whose job description mandates her to be objective and unbias – turned her tweeter account against Israel, filling it with false propaganda and heinous lies.

Khulood Badawi is still the information and media coordinator for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanatarian Affairs. On March 10th 2012, she tweeted on her account a picture of Palestinian girl bleeding, while being held by her greiving father (I chose to not post this picture – Israel has nothing to do with this little girl’s death, but it’s still a horrible picture to post). The tweet said:

Palestine is bleeding… another child killed by #Israel… another father carrying his child to a grave in #Gaza

This tweet was re-posted over 300 times!

However, not only was the picture not from the latest round of escalation, it has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with ISRAEL!

This little girl, as another tweeter member (Avi Mayer) revealed, has been dead for at least five years – The image was taken by Ruetuers newsagency in 2006. The little girl died in a car accident. Israel had nothing to do with it!

It should be noted that in the latest escalation round in Gaza, as well as in previous, Israeli aircarfts took great majors in attempting to minimize the hurting of innocent Gazans (which comes in contrast to the agenda of fanatic militants who use death of innocents for political fortune as well as an execuse to keep taking the population of Gaza hostage in its’ illogical war against Israel). True, some civilians suffered injures (as well as on Israeli side), and there were even a few unfortunate deaths of innocents, however the numbers speak louder than words about Israel intent to not harm civilians as much as it could – 20 out of 23 Palestinian killed in the latest escalation round were militants (by Palestinian’s own reports!).

Back to the fake photo, though – Israel took this matter very seriously, and its’ investigation should that the same employee, who is supposed to be unbias, took part in 2008 in anti-Israeli demonstrations and has publicly called Israel’s Defense minister “a war criminal” and “a children’s murderer”. Objectiveness is obviously not one of her strong suits.

Israel’s UN ambassador, Ron Prosor, issued an acute letter to Badawi’s supervisor, Valarie Amos, saying:

It is unacceptable that for 4 years, the UN would employ someone who doesn’t live up to its’ most basic standard, required of any employee.

Prosor demanded Badawi will be fired. Her supervisor declined, only citing that Badawi’s personal views do not reflect on the UN or keep it from being objective, which personally sounds like a pretty ridiculous excuse. She also noted that an internal investigation has been opened (I’m not holding my breath of it yieling something) and that the UN worker had no idea that he job required her to maintain restrain.

I can’t help but wonder what if the shoe was on the other foot? If a UN worker would post a false picture about a kid being hurt in a suicide attack or a by rocket, when in fact he or she too were simply killed in a car accident, would the UN be so forgiven and understanding there? The realist in me believes this would have been handled much differently.