After Israel was made a Jewish State in 1948 there was militant resistance from the Arab population living there. Many of these Arabs would be displaced as the British and Jewish forces began moving into their cities and towns. It would decades before some of these Arabs had the chance to return and visit their old homes. When they did they saw how much their homes and cities had changed. The attitude of these returning Arabs ranged from extremely negative to bittersweet. Returning to their old homes did little to quell any hostilities between the Jews and Arabs in the region.
With Jews immigrating to Israel and moving into previously Arab neighborhoods, the now displaced Arabs became severely hostile to the growing Jewish population. The article “Returning to Haifa” by Ghassan Kanafani focuses on the stories of several families that either left Palestine and returned or immigrated there. It shows how both groups faced extreme adversity to get where they are. The Jewish family survived the Holocaust while the Arab family was forced out due to war. In the article a married Arab couple returns to their original home in Haifa twenty years after they were forced to move and leave their infant son behind. During their visit they meet the Jewish woman living in their old home who has raised their son for the past twenty years. This particular story ends with the Arab couple angrily storming out and regretting their trip. The overall tone of this article is an example for the feelings of the Arab and Jewish people living in the region.
The homecoming of these Arabs to their old homes did not help sooth any tensions in the region. Jewish and Arab communities continued to be openly hostile towards one another. Both Jewish and Arab families faced hardship during this time. These displacements were continuations of what was going on in Europe as well.
Sources:
Ghassan Kanafani, Returning to Haifa (2000).pdf
https://electronicintifada.net/content/haifa-peaceful-town-silent-pain/5635
I think it’s important to realize the animosity that was created between the Arabs and the Palestinians because of this whole land dispute. You make a good point of mentioning it in your blog post. Ultimately, both groups felt victimized in some way, so coming to an agreement would be difficult.
I think that our readings this week were so emotionally charged because of the nature of the topic. I like how you mentioned that it seems like there’s no “right side”– both sides had gone through terrible things and also had merits in the dispute.
I find myself seeing a similarity in how the Jews were displaced people, relocated but at the cost of the Arab population then as a result becoming displaced. Was the state of Israel aware that they were expelling individuals and in my opinion subjecting them to the same situation of being displaced many Jews experienced before?
Do you feel that one group had a better or more legit reason to be upset?
The emotions on this topic are very high. Like Tara mentioned in her comment, we need to remember the conflict over land between the two sides. Both sides were getting ran out of their native lands, how would you ultimately feel if you were a Palestinian and your land was the chosen one for the Jews and you were forced out?
The Jewish people were displaced person so to speak in Europe. After the Holocaust, they were not very welcomed and did not want to reside in Europe. We discussed in class if Israel was not an option for relocation, would they have stayed in Europe. I do not think that it mattered if Israel was available or not. Most of the Jewish people would not of stayed in Europe. But I think many forget to look at the situation from the Palestinian point of view.
Its ironic that a displaced group of people like the Jews would displace their neighbors in the Middle East. On the other hand, those who already lived in the Mandate would not have experienced the discrimination of Jews in the Holocaust, and so they would not feel any new sympathy to the Palestinians. This remains one of current event’s greatest conundrums.