Opinion
Israeli colonialism in West Bank
Oren Yiftachel
Published: 30.08.12, 01:07
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1. High school essay
Ilan   (08.30.12)
The author couldn't graduate much lest teach at a proper university. Did his father fix him a place as with the other BG post zionist
2. Personal Bias Rules His Classroom
Menachem Ben Yakov ,   Yerushalayim Israel   (08.30.12)
One only has to google the name of the writer to find numerous reports of personal bias and lack of academic honesty. The " professor ' obviously dismisses The Almighty. He also disbelieves in archeology, history, geology, oceanography, international law, and all the other sciences and fields of learning that prove the Land of Israel belongs to the Jews. Pity the poor students who must suffer his " class ".
3. What's scary is that someone so ignorant is teaching
tf ,   herzliya   (08.30.12)
I am not talking about Oren's extremist politics, he is entitled to his opinions, just not the facts. I am talking about material facts of history that are well accepted. I have no axe to grind on Kosovo and don't take sides in the present conflict. However, the Serbs certainly didn't 'colonize' Kosovo as a good example. It is unforgivable that a 'professor of political geography' knows so little history. The Ottomans conquered Kosovo 500 years ago driving the Serbs out., referred to in history as "the Great Serbian Migration". So it was the Ottomans who ''colonized' Kosovo, and during that time Albanians migrated in.
4. Is this the only sensible voice in Israel
Crooksmeister ,   Sydney, Australia   (08.30.12)
I hope to god that some sensible people in power (if there are any) are listening to the good Prof. I fear that the currently ruling approach to the West Bank will lead to disaster, sooner rather than later.
5. Wrong term, right point
ZT ,   West Chester, PA, US   (08.30.12)
Historically, colonialism was motivated by economic concerns and a secondary mission to "civilize" third-world peoples. The motivation behind occupying the West Bank-- settlers' honest belief that it is their homeland-- is very different. It's an economic liability to Israel, not an asset, and its military value (originally defensive, not offensive) is irrelevant with Israels nuclear arsenal and the IDF's conventional superiority. (And the transfer from artillery to rockets as well as modern surveillance technology makes the "high ground" unimportant.) Calling the project "colonial" is likely to offend many and imply inaccurate historical comparisons. Yet inequality before the law is tied in with the settlers' mission, which is the greatest existential threat to Israel's existence as a Jewish and Democratic state.
6. Colonization
Mark ,   San Francisco USA   (08.30.12)
Thanks for a well written article on the dangers of colonization of the West Bank. Voices like yours must be heard! I can only predict that we will now both be called "self-hating Jews" because we believe the Palestinians deserve a homeland free of Israeli occupation. I believe we are true Zionists in support of a democratic Israel. Thanks again.
7. What a sad writing
Tom W ,   USA   (08.30.12)
If these foaming-at-the mouth, self-loathing, Israel hating radicals teach the young and impressionable students,Israel will have to fold and her people emigrate. Seeing from afar, one becomes speechless at reading these vile, hateful incitements against one's own country, while living off the pay provided by people this monster hates most. The hate that radiates from this scum's every word is blood curdling: the Jewish antisemitism represents the ultimate rotten morass of the Jewish soul. More over this man is uneducated and ignorant: Kosovo was part of Serbia and the Ottoman Turks gobbled up after the "Battle of Kosovo" in 1389. The next country to fell to the Turks was Hungary at Mohacs, 1526. And this ignorant radical man is a professor? Oh my....
8. You forget to talk about
Tom ,   Israel   (08.30.12)
the most important factor, which is that Palestinian Arabs have tried to kill us, continue trying to kill us, and expect us to condemn firebombs we throw, but if they throw one it is viewed as "ok" (as an example). They call for our annihilation and claim we have no right to a country of our own. The only State ever established on that land was the State of Israel, both in ancient and modern times. You write as though we are behaving like nazis, but you neglect the fact that during that era Jews did not try to kill and annihilate anyone and that we owe nothing to those who try to kill us. They also claim we are destroying their "holy" sites in Jerusalem, when in fact there is no such conspiracy and when they ran East Jerusalem Jews were often exiled from the Kotel and between 1948-1967 were not allowed to pray there. We are not the apartheid state, they are. There are over 1M Palestinians in Israel whereas a Jew in "Palestine" or pretty much any other Arab or Muslim country is harassed and given no rights. In addition, there have always been Jews living in the land of Israel since at least the time the City of David was established in 1000 BC.
9. maybe, maybe not
awaz   (08.30.12)
west bank is historically israel, no palestinian nation existed. arabs moved into the area that jews, many of whom were expelled lived in. Jews have moved back. San remo spoke of jewish soverignty over the land while preserveing palestinian rights. End of story. You are ashamed of the reality and want something that oslo proved will never work even if god came down and wished it. Your refrain is similar to that of olmert, livni and peres and is revolting and tired stale bunk. The reason that arabs in the west bank cannot make peace with israel is that they are not a nation, and never will be . They are egyptian, yemenites, lebanese and syrians.
10. Yiftachel shouldn't be allowed anywhere near our youth.
Chaim   (08.30.12)
What is wrong with Yiftachel? Israel is threatened by Iranian maniacs building nuclear bombs and Yiftachel says it's more dangerous to live in our more than 3,500 year old ancestral heartland. Has he not heard that Israel legally owns Judea and Samaria? Yiftachel should not teach anywhere. He should not be allowed anywhere near our precious youth. His views are absolutely lunatic.
11. How
Charles S.   (08.30.12)
can you take this anti-Israel antisemite provocateur seriously (according to Israeli Academia Moonitor he is a known BDS supporter, which is racism, whose sole aim is genocide) when in a bombastically self-defeating way he multiples times spouts outright, proven lies and pure rubbish. But I concentrate on only one issue: he ridiculously, laughably and ignorantly says that the Serbs "colonize" Kosovo! The abject moron. It was historically an integral part of the Serbs and even in Yugoslavia, which was a sovereign state for all intents and purposes Kosovo was legally part of Serbia before and after the breakup of the unitiy state. I think this detail just suggests whom we are dealing with on this page!
12. Disgusting!
T ,   Israel   (08.30.12)
Disgusting that such people like Yiftachel or Shlomo Sand are financed from Israeli tax payer. We are feeding the enemy who is working against us, for foreign interests ,as foreign mercenaries and puppets of those who want us killed.
13. Kumbaya oh..... kumbaya.....
Iranian Hunter   (08.30.12)
Let's give Sinai, then West Bank, then Golan Height, then Samaria, then Judea. And convert to Islam, then go to Europe and Russia and USA. Kumbaya....oh....kumbaya.
14. The most often conquered land in the world.
Dr Yeruham Leavitt ,   Kiriat Arba, ISRAEL   (08.30.12)
Israel has been conquered so often I can count, with no effort, at least ten conquests since the Canaanim. Every Arab who "owns" land in the Land of Israel has it in virtue of some conquest. This includes the Jordanian conquest, which tried to destroy all evidence of the Jewish Community of Hebron, and which allowed anyone to settle land and claim ownership unless he was Jewish. Check to see if I am wrong. That our own conquest is considered illegitimate is the work of left Israelis who do not believe in their own Jewishness, and think they will find favour in the eyes of the gentiles by spreading the lie that our conquest and only our conquest is illegitimate. Let us wake up and realize that Israel is a microscopically tiny island of sanity in the midst of a Mohamedan conquest from northwest Africa to the Indo-Pak border, and much more east of India. Of course we have to hold on to what we get. I can only believe that people like Yiftachel love the Mohammedan conquest and want more of it. Best wishes to all, Dr Yeruham (Frank) Leavitt Senior Lecturer Emeritus Faculty of Health Sciences Ben Gurion University, Beer Sheva, and resident: Kiriat Arba, Hebron
15. Arabs colonies in Israel.
Ibrahim el-Awal ,   dearborn, Michigan   (08.30.12)
Yiftachel is known for his radical views, demonizing Israel. He chronically ignores the of history of the Jewish state. Ignores the Hebrew Bible, Judaism, holy places in the West Bank. Land was legally bought both in Gaza by Tuvia Miller in 1926 and Gush Etzion. We can even ignore San Remo declaration, Balfour letter and 55 members of the League of Nations who decided that the Holy Land including Trans Jordan is the home of the Jewish people. Later, under British Mandate, Trans Jordan was cut from the Jewish Homeland. In 1948 another piece was cut from what was left of the Jewish homeland under the premise that this will bring peace. But the issue that a professor of political geography does not understand is that Jews have the right to live where ever they want. Jews can emerge from the ghetto Israel and build towns and villages wherever they want. This is not colonialism, it is a right. On the other hand, it is not a right for Hamas to confiscate Jewish property in Gaza, to force Jews to leave their homes there. Oren's philosophy is empty of substance.
16. The problem with the left
mike ,   ra'anana   (08.30.12)
Is that they honestly believe that somehow the settlements are "more dangerous than a nuclear Iran"....let me ask you, If chas v'shalom Iran became nuclear, do you really think the settlements would even be mentioned anymore? External threats almost always supercede any internal threat because if a state is destroyed (G-d forbid), then so to are all the internal threats....but the removal of what you perceive to be an internal threat viz the settlements, in no way reduces the external risks viz. Iran. Nor does it alleviate the external risks that the PA, PIJ, Hamas et-al present.
17. Another anti-Jew bigot disguised as an academic
BH ,   Iowa   (08.30.12)
If the writer wants to see the real colonization right in front of his face, he'd notice the "building Jihad" all over the Land of Israel. Jihadist tool.
18. Very difficult to "colonize" our own land, no?
Baruch ,   Israel/Houston   (08.30.12)
19. Wrong colonists
Gee ,   Zikron Yaakov   (08.30.12)
It is our land and the Jordanian colonists are a real threat to us and must be deported.
20. Levy Report Broken Promises
Joe Sombrero ,   USA   (08.30.12)
The levy Report must be adopted and discussed as promised.
21. I'm disappointed in YNET for allowing this liberal drivel...
Jake Stone ,   USA   (08.30.12)
to be published! The author is a typical, self-hating Jew (in-name-only!). This guy is an idiot!!!
22. What an idiot
babawawa ,   new york, usa   (08.30.12)
Ben-Gurion University - totally off my contribution list. Jews are indigenous to the West Bank and all of Israel. How do you colonize what already belongs to you? Totally stupid.
23. Ben Gurion University
Abraham Nachmias ,   Petach Tikva IL   (08.30.12)
This guys are post Zionists and they hate anything that smells of Jewish religion, Jewish heritage or the Jewish spirit that moved our fathers creating outposts (kibbutzim) all over the Land of Israel in the early years of the XX century but we pay his salary as if he was a defensor of Israel!
24. come back with that?
Leah g ,   Itamar Israel   (08.30.12)
If Mr. Oren Yiftachel ever walked into Shechem I don't think the local population would give a darn about his political views. A jew is a Jew is a Jew- too bad HE doesn't know that. It is so sad that people that profess to be the knowledgable ones are the ones that know nothing.The Land of Israel in its entire length and breadth has always belonged to the Jewish people, a covenant never broken. The return of Israel to it's Land is inevitable- completely.ps- this article has comments of incitement, slander, and racist slurs therefore inappropriate to be published.
25. Israeli land theft in the West Bank and International Law.
Alan Smith UK   (08.30.12)
What the real world considers in the colonization issue is whose land was it prior to occupation. Israel claims ownership of the West Bank, but there's no real evidence of provenance other than in myth, hearsay and religious comic books. That's not enough for the Western democracies who claim the settlements violate article 49 of the fourth Geneva Convention - Israel can't change that interpretation of International Law with a report by Levy or anyone else for that matter, not even the Israeli God himself.
26. irrational rationality
Dudu ,   Israel   (08.30.12)
Does the author truly believe that the state needs more self hating Jews? Isn't it irony that some tend to forget the true problem with any 2-state solution: the Arab denial of the Jewish state's right to exist in any borders? Isn't it disgusting when some Jews dream about a "judenreihn Palestine" while they advocate the Arab colonialization of the Galil, Judea and Samaria?
27. You cannot colonize what is yours
Sarah B , ,   U.S.A./Israel   (08.30.12)
This land belongs to us. From the Nile to the Euphrates. People who live in it are foreigners, but if they accept our rules they can become our citizens with full rights, including as members of the Knesset. We are now in the process of doing a test in Judea and Samaria. We will be soon incorporating 2.5 million Arabs in our midst. If they behave well, if they accept to be citizens in a Jewish State, they will be able to vote and share the responsibilities and destiny of our nation. We want this 2.5 million ersats Palestinians to become full-fledged Arab-Israelis and join our unique and marvelous havayah of reconstructing the Jewish nation.
28. Can this proffessor explain why so many
Zev ,   Israel   (08.30.12)
Can this proffessor explain why so many Arabs living in East Jerusalem have gotten Isaeli Identity cards and Israeli Arabs are against becoming a part of a new Palestinian State??
29. anyone calling settlements colonies ...
Golan ,   modiin   (08.30.12)
does not know what colonialism is. In addition to this, it is the arabs who are a foreign invaders who took this land by the sword and conducted racist policies. If you are "so against colonialism" you should demand the removal of the 1300 years of occupation from the shores of Morocco to the sands of the Hejaz, and end the Muslim discrimination in Mecca.
30. there is no such thing, colonialism of territory
jack bauer   (08.30.12)
you mr author, are a complete fool. Ben Gurion would be rolling over in his grave if he knew you supported the killing and deportation of jews from our land. Judea and Samaria is part of Israel, it was historically and shall continue to be so. I don't have time and space to rebutt ever paragraph, but each one states a lie as if it were truth. What country or kingdom has ever existed in the lands of Israel, including Yesha? And what country in all of history had its capital in Jerusalem? Oh, the kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Judah? No other nation has done that beside the brief crusader kingdom set up to expell the moslem invaders...hmm ... I guess the facts arent important to you leftniks who are full of self loathing. Make no mistake, by advocating against Yesha you advocate the coming slaughter of jews. And btw genius kosovo wasnt colonized by serbs either... it was colonized by albanian moslems. If you knew history you would know about the battle of kosovo poltje, but obviously you do not
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