West Bank Personal Financial Statement: Fill & Download for Free

tl;dr: This question comes up because many people don’t know the actual history. When you know the actual history, it’s really not that complicated. There’s a lot of pertinent detail, per all the information below - but it’s not complicated detail.Short SynopsisImmigrant European Jews took much (currently effectively controlling almost all) of historical Palestine from its existing residents, displacing millions of them, since 1948, and ruling via a government that prioritizes Jews.Palestinian Muslims and Christians don’t like this at all, and want a state of their own, even if it’s a small part of historical Palestine.Israel wants all of historical Palestine, and has the power to take it, over time, and is in the process of doing so.Longer Overview - the High Points(Please note: this is a very broad brush stroke overview to serve as a jumping off point, so dates, etc. won’t be exact - but anything I say here can be verified as essentially accurate, via a quick bit of Googling).In the late 1800s, Jews in Europe were persecuted to a greater or lesser degree, and had been subject to heinous antisemitism for many centuries.A Jewish journalist, Theodor Herzl, decided to try to do something about it. Inspired by the rising nationalism (literally, many modern nation-states were in the process of forming) he saw, he determined that Jews were not just followers of the religion of Judaism, but a “nation” that needed their own homeland, just as the French have France.Herzl started the Zionist movement which was met with acclaim from many Jews, neutrality from many others, and strident opposition from many others.Palestine, the region where ancient Jewish kingdoms had been located, was seen as the default location for this homeland, but other areas of the world, such as Uganda, were discussed.Palestine’s population was only about 5% Jewish at that time; almost all Palestinians were Muslim or Christian. Members of all three religions lived and worked together without religion being a specific point of conflict between them. Palestine was loosely governed by the quickly-dying Ottoman empire.Zionist Jews from Europe began immigrating to Palestine. This concerned some of the existing residents (of all religions), but many welcomed the influx of money, and superior technology in critical areas like health and agriculture, that the European immigrants brought with them.WWI happened.The Ottoman empire was on the losing side, and control of Palestine went to the British, under a formal agreement known as the Palestinian Mandate.Prior to the beginning of the British mandate to govern Palestine, in 1917, Zionists solicited what became known as the “Balfour declaration”, which was written in a letter from British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour to Lord Rothschild, a leader of the British Jewish community.The text of the Balfour Declaration:“His Majesty's government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country.”Source: Balfour Declaration - WikipediaDespite the clarity concerning the rights of non-Jews in Palestine, many Zionist immigrants from Europe took the text of the declaration as indicating British support for a Jewish state in Palestine., which was not the case, as is described below.Arab Muslims and Christians did perceive British favoritism towards Jewish immigrants from Europe, and they were also shocked at the levels of both legal and illegal Jewish immigration from Europe. Their protests became deadly riots during a week in 1929, and then escalated into a more full-scale revolt from 1936–1939.The British government explicitly clarified its positions in its 1939 white paper on Palestine, which Zionist Jews considered a literal tragedy.“His Majesty's Government therefore now declare unequivocally that it is not part of their policy that Palestine should become a Jewish State. They would indeed regard it as contrary to their obligations to the Arabs under the Mandate, as well as to the assurances which have been given to the Arab people in the past, that the Arab population of Palestine should be made the subjects of a Jewish State against their will.”Source: British White Paper of 1939From that time, through May 1948, a combination of British financial woes, inability to govern in such an intractable situation, and due to the horrific motivations of what were, at the time, massive terrorist attacks by Zionist terrorist groups such as Irgun (led by future Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin) and Lehi (led by future Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Shamir), the British decided to abdicated their governance of Palestine, and left relevant decisions for the newly-formed United Nations to make.A United Nations committee, comprised of people who didn’t know Palestine, and who had no authority to allocate land, suggested a partition of Palestine, where Jewish immigrants from Europe (and some second-generation European Jews who had been born in Palestine), comprising, in 1947, roughly 30% of the population of Palestine, would be granted 55% of the total land (they had purchased between 5%-7% of available land).The Arab Muslims and Christians, along with some Palestinian Jews native to the region, said “no”, while the Zionists agreed.Then, wanting a Jewish state with a significant Jewish majority of Jews, which could only be accomplished by forcing non-Jews from the region, Zionist forces proceeded to empty roughly 400 Palestinian villages by force, displacing over 750,000 people.List of Arab towns and villages depopulated during the 1948 Palestinian exodus - WikipediaIn May 1948, Zionists declared Israel to be a nation, which caused rag-tag forces from the Arab countries around them to attack - a set of skirmishes the Zionists easily won, due to superior forces, armaments and military training. This took the territory of Israel from 55% of historical Palestine to 74%.Israel proceeded to establish the “Jewish and democratic” state of Israel, in which non-Jewish Palestinians lived under military rule, until 1966.In 1967, Israel initiated the so-called Six Day War, which is easily won, occupying East Jerusalem, the West Bank, the Golan Heights and Gaza, giving the Jewish state control over all of historic Palestine, plus the Golan Heights, which is actually part of Syria.Because international law forbids acquisition of territory by force, and because Israel showed no sign of ending its occupation, a binding UN Security Council resolution was issued, requiring Israel to comply with international law. Israel ignored this resolution, and every resolution since, and is still occupying all those territories (Gaza via brutal land, air and sea blockade).United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 - WikipediaAs with the “too many non-Jews” within the borders of Israel that was addressed via ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in 1948, Israel has faced that same problem in the occupied territories, which it fully intends to annex permanently (see below for details). This demographic disparity has been addressed, and is being addressed in an accelerated manner, by moving Jews into settlements, illegal under international law, in the occupied Palestinian territories, which are governed as though they are part of Israel, and which are connected by roads that non-Jewish Palestinians are not allowed to access or use.The growth of Israeli settlements, explained in 5 chartsThe international community has grown more emphatic that these settlements are both illegal, and a major obstacle to any possible permanent peace in the region.Israel’s Settlements Have No Legal Validity, Constitute Flagrant Violation of International Law, Security Council ReaffirmsIsrael has continued to ignore the international community, while making both its position and its intentions clear.Per item #7 of its new Basic Law:"7 — Jewish settlementA. The state views the development of Jewish settlement as a national value and will act to encourage and promote its establishment and consolidation."Source: Final text of Jewish nation-state law, approved by the Knesset early on July 19Some people naively feel that Israel may one day end the occupation —- but that doesn’t seem to be even a remote possibility for the Israeli government, who ultimately have the demonstrated power to enforce their will over time, in this situation.Netanyahu's party votes to annex West Bank, increase settlements"Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked vowed Wednesday that Israel would remain in the occupied West Bank for “5,000 years”, speaking during a Knesset debate on applying Israeli legislation to settlers.The Knesset House Committee decided that from now on, “legislative committees will be instructed to discuss each new bill’s application to the West Bank”. Israeli laws currently normally require a military order to apply in the West Bank, since the region is governed by the army.“We’re not in Judea and Samaria [the West Bank] in order to disappear one day”, Shaked said. “We’re here for 50 years already, and we will be here for another 5,000 years. Our policy is clear: Settlement in the entire Land of Israel and normalization of life in Judea and Samaria”.Source: Israeli minister: We’ll be in the West Bank for ‘5,000 years’CONCLUSIONAnd so, non-Jewish Palestinians and the international community all say “this situation is illegal and untenable”, while the Israeli government says “mind your own own business; all of Palestine is ours.”Hence all the trouble.Please Note: Facts, such as those stated above, tend to be problematic for the so-called pro-Israel (pro-Zionist) crowd. Respectful, clearly-stated comments will be noted and/or addressed in kind. Those that are otherwise will be deleted. As several Zionists who disagree strongly with my views know, I will update my answers, with credit for assistance, when my facts or statements are shown to be incorrect or misleading. However, I may not update them exactly as the person pointing out the error, or misleading text, might wish. Obviously, if I have determined that my facts are solid, the details in my answer above will remain as is. It is my sincere hope that this answer will be educational, and that we can all have a productive discussion, if and as any discussion ensues. Thank you.

Prior to partition, “Palestinian” Arabs did not view themselves as having a separate identity. The following resolution was adopted by the first congress of Muslim-Christian associations that met in Jerusalem in February 1919 to choose “Palestinian” representatives for the Paris Peace Conference:“We consider ‘Palestine’ as part of Arab Syria, as it has never been separated from it at any time. We are connected with it by national, religious, linguistic, natural, economic, and geographical bonds.”In 1937, a local Arab leader, Auni Bey Abdul-Hadi, told the Peel Commission, which ultimately suggested the partition of Israel: “There is no such country [as Palestine]! ‘Palestine’ is a term the Zionists invented! There is no Palestine in the Bible. Our country was for centuries part of Syria.”The representative of the Arab Higher Committee to the United Nations submitted a statement to the general assembly in May 1947 that said “‘Palestine’ was part of the province of Syria” and that, “politically, the Arabs of Israel were not independent in the sense of forming a separate political entity.”Ahmed Shukairy had no hesitation, as current head of the Palestine Liberation Organization, in announcing to the UN Security Council the observation, “It is common knowledge that Palestine is nothing but Southern Syria” on May 31, 1956.“The Palestinian People Does Not Exist” – Interview with Zuheir Muhsin, a member of the PLO Executive Council, published in the March 31, 1977 edition of the Dutch Newspaper “Trouw”:“The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct Palestinian people to oppose Zionism.“For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan.”Under the Ottoman Empire, there was no “Syria”, just as there was no “Palestine”, or “Lebanon”. This is what the region looked like under the Ottomans:As one can see, there were only a variety of “sanjaks” (administrative districts) and a few Vilayets (administrative regions over a group of sanjaks) and the “Independent Sanjak of Jerusalem”, which was directly subordinate to Constantinople. There was no “Palestine”.The “Palestinian people” as a population group separate from the rest of the “Arab Nation” didn’t come into existence until after the 6-Day War of 1967. In fact, the PLO, in its initial 1964 Charter, waived its claims to the Gaza Strip and West Bank.“Article 24: This Organization does not exercise any territorial sovereignty over the West Bank in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, on the Gaza Strip or in the Himmah Area. Its activities will be on the national popular level in the liberational, organizational, political and financial fields.”Permanent Observer Mission of the State of Palestine to the United Nations (1964 Palestinian National Charter)“Article 1. Palestine is an Arab homeland bound by strong Arab national ties to the rest of the Arab Countries and which together form the great Arab homeland.”No mention of a “Palestinian people” here.“Article 2: Palestine, with its boundaries at the time of the British Mandate, is a indivisible territorial unit.”No 2-state solution, only a single, Muslim/Arab state where all non-Muslims would be dhimmi (a non-Muslim subject of a state governed according to the Shari'a who is granted the freedom to worship and is entitled to the protection of life and property by the state, although constrained to pay a special tax and not granted the full legal status accorded to Muslim subjects. The status of dhimmi was originally limited to Christians and Jews but has occasionally been extended to Hindus, Zoroastrians, and others, Dhimmi dictionary definition | dhimmi defined).“Article 7: Jews of Palestinian origin are considered Palestinians if they are willing to live peacefully and loyally in Palestine.”The definition for “Jews of Palestinian origins” was changed in the 1968 version, authored mostly by the PLO’s Soviet mentor and supplier, the KGB.The Soviet-Palestinian LieUnderstanding the 'Palestinian' movement (Part 1 of a 4-part article. Part 1 has links to the other 3 parts).After the 6-Day War, when the Gaza Strip and West Bank were taken from Egypt and Jordan, respectively, Article 24 disappeared. Apparently, as long as these areas were under Arab control, they weren’t “Palestinian territories”.Now let’s look at the 1968 version, written after the KGB realized that the Arabs could not destroy Israel militarily:“Article 1. Palestine is the homeland of the Arab Palestinian people; it is an indivisible part of the greater Arab homeland, and the Palestinian people are an integral part of the Arab nation.”The logic here escapes me. Either the Arabs from Palestine were part of the Arab nation, or they were a distinct and separate “Palestinian people”, being both isn’t an option.“Article 2: Palestine, with the boundaries it had during the British Mandate, is an indivisible territorial unit.”Better grammar, perhaps, but the same rejection of any 2-state solution.“Article 6: The Jews who had normally resided in Palestine until the beginning of the Zionist invasion are considered Palestinians.”Whether you consider the “Jews who had normally resided in Palestine until the beginning of the ‘Zionist invasion’ as those living there in 1917 (Balfour Declaration) or in 1881 (First Aliyah), it becomes obvious that very few Jews as described in this article would be alive, if any.“Article 19: The partition of Palestine in 1947, and the establishment of the state of Israel are entirely illegal, regardless of the passage of time, because they were contrary to the will of the Palestinian people and its natural right in their homeland, and were inconsistent with the principles embodied in the Charter of the United Nations, particularly the right to self-determination.”“Article 20: The Balfour Declaration, the Palestine Mandate, and everything that has been based on them, are deemed null and void. Claims of historical or religious ties of Jews with Palestine are incompatible with the facts of history and the conception of what constitutes statehood. Judaism, being a religion, is not an independent nationality. Nor do Jews constitute a single nation with an identity of their own; they are citizens of the states to which they belong.”“Article 21: The Arab Palestinian people, expressing themselves by armed Palestinian revolution, reject all solutions which are substitutes for the total liberation of Palestine and reject all proposals aimed at the liquidation of the Palestinian cause, or at its internationalization.”Rejection of any and all possibilities of compromise, rejecting international decisions and denying the Jewish people the same right they’re demanding for the Palestinian people.“Article 22: Zionism is a political movement organically associated with international imperialism and antagonistic to all action for liberation and to progressive movements in the world. It is racist and fanatic in its nature, aggressive, expansionist and colonial in its aims, and fascist in its methods. Israel is the instrument of the Zionist movement, and the geographical base for world imperialism placed strategically in the midst of the Arab homeland to combat the hopes of the Arab nation for liberation, unity, and progress. Israel is a constant source of threat vis-à-vis peace in the Middle East and the whole world. Since liberation of Palestine will destroy the Zionist and imperialist presence and will contribute to the establishment of peace in the Middle East. That is why the Palestinian people look to the progressive and peaceful forces and urge them all, irrespective of their affiliations and beliefs, to offer the Palestinian people all aid and support in their just struggle for the liberation of their homeland.”The delusion that Israel is a western colonial enterprise, while the fact that an Arab Palestine is an Arab colonial enterprise is ignored (straight out of the Communist Handbook—what you want is right, when someone else wants the same thing, they’re wrong).The Palestinian-Israeli conflict is a fictional extension of the very real Arab-Israel conflict, in which two of the 4 bordering Arab countries have signed peace treaties with Israel and two other Arab League states have signed normalization agreements with Israel.Those who support Palestinians might be advised to read these:The Arabs of Palestine (The Atlantic, October 1961, Martha Gellhorn)From time immemorial (1985 edition) | Open Library (From Tome Immemorial, 1985, Joan Peters)What makes these two articles unique (and a target of accusations of “treason” by such rabid pro-Palestinians as Norman Finkelstein, Noam Chomsky, Rashid Khalidi and others) is that both these authors were solid pro-Palestinian supporters until they did their own independent research.I’ve provided links to both so that no one can make the standard claim of “I wouldn’t waste my money on these publications”. The links allow free access.The only thing that’s certain is that Israel absorbed some 650,000 Jewish refugees expelled from Arab lands with nothing but a single suitcase and $50-$100 per person to become useful, contributing citizens in all walks of life and all sectors of Israeli society, while the Arab League countries bottles up the “Palestinian refugees” in camps, refused to allow them citizenship, abbreviated their rights to healthcare, education, employment in multiple professions and sectors, and even the right to buy and own land, in most cases.Since these Arab League countries assisted in the creation of the Palestinian refugees, and created the Jewish refugees on their own as the reaction of a spoiled brat who punished their own Jews for their failure to destroy Israel in 1948.Why are those Arab League countries not held accountable for their actions?The double standard used against Israel should be appalling—punishing a UN member state for surviving against multiple aggressions.

Yes.(This post is not intended to deny, ignore, or minimize the well known hardships of living in the territories, but rather illuminate its’ lesser known silver lining - the side of hope & opportunity - the light at the end of the tunnel.)In the words of Palestinian economist Omar Shaban:“Always in every society, during war, famine, whatever, you will find some risk-takers, some entrepreneurs. Here the business people are hopeless the siege will end, so they look for other opportunities. There’s no export. No garments, no flowers, no trade. So they sell something to Gaza. Some cars, restaurants, resorts.”The following is from a Washington Post an interview with President Abbas:Jackson Diehl - Abbas's Waiting Game on Peace With Israel :…Instead, he says, he will remain passive. "I will wait for Hamas to accept international commitments. I will wait for Israel to freeze settlements," he said. "Until then, in the West Bank we have a good reality . . . the people are living a normal life." In the Obama administration, so far, it's easy being Palestinian.Gaza Mall Seeks to Make Statement of Resolve (NYT):“… the poverty of Gaza is often misconstrued, willfully or inadvertently — is correct. The despair here is not that of Haiti or Somalia. It is a misery of dependence, immobility and hopelessness, not of grinding want. The flotilla movement is not about material aid; it is about Palestinian freedom and defiance of Israeli power.“Gaza is not poor in the way outsiders think,” said Nida Wishah, a 22-year-old information technology student who was at the mall one recent afternoon. “You can’t compare our poverty with that of Africa.”The following excerpts are from an article in The Guardian: (emphasis mine)Rawabi rises: new West Bank city symbolises Palestine's economic potential:Hi-tech city near Ramallah boasts cinemas, malls and homes for 40,000. But developers and investors face wrangles over water supplies as well as criticism project legitimises Israeli occupation.It looks a little like a new Israeli settlement. But the billion-dollar city of Rawabi is the first planned urban centre to be built for Palestinians. And phase one of the development – 600 near-completed apartments – has just sold out, with around 8,000 potential buyers registered for homes yet to be constructed.The level of interest reflects social and financial shifts in Palestinian society and symbolises the economic potential of a future state of Palestine…A third of the $1bn (£640m) investment in Rawabi has come from the private Palestinian conglomerate Massar International, and the rest from Qatar. "The risks are extremely high," said Bashar Masri, the chief executive of Massar and the driving force behind Rawabi. "But I wanted to create an impact project, and I wanted to show we can build a great economy and create jobs."The construction phase of the project has created 8,000-10,000 jobs……- Rawabi rises: new West Bank city symbolises Palestine's economic potentialFrom a Washington Post article which explores the brighter side of Gaza:Gaza Strip’s middle class enjoys spin classes, fine dining, private beaches:GAZA CITY — Alongside the Hamas training camps and bombed-out neighborhoods, there is a parallel reality where the wafer-thin Palestinian middle class here is wooed by massage therapists, spin classes and private beach resorts.Media images beamed from the Gaza Strip rightly focus on the territory’s abundant miseries. But rising from the rubble of last summer’s devastating war with Israel are a handful of new ­luxury-car dealerships, boutiques selling designer jeans and, coming soon to a hip downtown restaurant, “Sushi Nights.”This is the Gaza outside the war photographer’s frame, where families of the small, tough, aspirational middle class will splurge on a $140 seaside villa with generator power to give their kids a 20-hour staycation with a swimming pool and palm trees.This is the sliver of Gaza, a coastal enclave with the highest unemployment rate in the world, with personal trainers, medium-rare steaks, law school degrees and decent salaries.-Hamam Bississo dances with a relative in the swimming pool of the chalet his family is renting for a day in Al Zaweida , south of Gaza City. (Heidi Levine/For The Washington Post)…the seaside corniche, restored with funds from Qatar, now boasts Grand Motors, a car dealership with a row of gleaming late-model Mercedes-Benz sedans on the lot…A mile away at the newly opened Techno Gym, Gazans pay about $100 a month for an all-inclusive membership at the air-conditioned sports club, which offers cardio workouts, hydrotherapy, spin classes, swimming lessons and high-end weight machines…Gaza has had a lone five-star hotel, the Mashtal, since 2011... Across the street is the newest sensation, the Blue Beach Resort, which has an Olympic-size swimming pool, cabana boys and a private beach…- Gaza Strip’s middle class enjoys spin classes, fine dining, private beachesGaza's first five-star hotel provides luxury and hope amid the blockades:Islamic University of Gaza:غزة > عن الجامعة > الحياة الجامعية > جولات بانورامية- Islamic University of Gaza ^Grand Palace Hotel:- Grand Palace HotelMy Beautiful City - Gaza - Occupied Palestine:Additional links:Photos of Gaza (Gatestone institute)Gaza "Strip Mall"… (Huffington Post)Gaza Resort Offers Oasis in War-Torn Land (NBC)Check Out These Beautiful Pictures Of Gaza That Reporters Don't Show YouSo, in conclusion yes there are opportunities; however, as with any places in the world, the ease and likelihood of such opportunities will vary from person to person depending on many factors, not the least of which is socio-economic background of the individual.