Are you a Palestinian or a Jew ?? Decide, because you cannot be both.

In his 1821 play, Almansor, the German writer Heinrich Heine — referring to the burning of the Muslim holy book, the Qur'an, during the Spanish Inquisition — wrote, "Where they burn books, so too will they in the end burn human beings. One century later, Heine's books were among the thousands of volumes that were torched by the Nazis in Berlin's Opernplatz. The white-skinned Aryan Nazis burnt over 25,000 books in 1933, which they deemed ‘un-German.

There is nothing which has distinguished Palestinian "culture" from those of its Arabic neighbours other than the loss of home and land. Loss of home and land, itself, is a very common aspect of universal history, however. Under the Ottomans, the region called Palestine was a non-nationalized backwater. There was nothing unique about the Arabs residing there in terms of a governing system, dance, art, literature (there wasn't any of which I am aware), cuisine or social functioning, etc. The people had language, ethnicity and religion in common but this did not distinguish them from its Arab neighbours. A culture must be defined by its central myths. In that respect, Egypt and Persia (latter day Iran) distinguish themselves as cultures which are significantly differentiated from others. One of the distinguishing aspects of Jewish culture(s) are the many instances of exile and return. There are numerous other aspects (myths) which distinguish Jews from others, of course. Interestingly, the phenomenon identified as the "Naqbah", which traces the exile (both forced and self-imposed) of the Arabic people who resided, at one time, in the Palestinian region, is just such a myth. That is to say, the "Palestinian" people have, as an identifiable starting point, the myth of exile and the hope and challenge of return. Sixty years is a short time, however, to raise such an occurrence to the level of myth. As far as the destroyed, hidden or misplaced textbooks written about in this article, there is nothing to suggest that these books are, in any way, indications of "Palestinian" cultural uniqueness. If these books are cultural indicators, however, I think it is up to Arabic scholars to identify precisely what these indicators are. At any rate, several of the most important aspects of myth is that it sets apart one culture from another, that the myth is of enduring importance and that it raises the level of awareness and cohesiveness of the people who identify with the myth. Without myth, the Hebrew people would not have endured. In fact, the very challenges endured by Jewish people throughout history have strengthened Jewish belief in the myths of origin, sacrifice, suffering, exile and return. It appears to me that the Naqbah, once risen to the level of myth, may be the compelling feature of what will become a unique "Palestinian" culture.

I wonder what other regimes have deemed books a "security threat"?

is it that difficult to imagine such an act? those terrorists destroy people's lives ,is it hard for them to destroy their books?

and "palestinians" give back the Temple Mount which is cuturally Jewish. This seems more than fair.

this is what Arabs have done to Jews and all peoples they conquered in the last 1400 years just in the reverse order First Arabs burned the conquered people that did not convert then they burned their books thus destroying an untold number of much more advanced civilizations After that there was nothing, ruins and desert only, Arabs didn't bother to invent or build anything because they moved on to destroy the next civilization, and the next, and next..........

Nevermind that no other news agency (sans Ynet) picked up this story. It's ok BBS - you saw it on Al Jazeera, and why would an Arab on tv lie to a person? You see - usually "truth" is somehow supported with facts, yet no facts are presented, not even the name of the researcher. So, please bring facts and let's debate this truth...until then it's referred to as "conjecture" Regarding Israel's outlawing of "Nakba", it was actually the violent demonstrations and incitement that come from it, not those who wish to celebrate this event peacefully. Ask Matty to provide you with the Ynet story where that is clearly outlined. He's good at copy/paste.

After burning all the books they could get their hands on during their extensive conquests Arabs didn't bother to write any new books that had nothing to do with Islam

false statement by BBSNews: Israeli academia can be characterized as extremely open to multiple perspectives. Just check with isracampus.org.il to see how extensive are the critiques by Israeli academics about the state of Israel and the way it functions. BBSNews would possibly gain some credibility if he were to actually research subjects as opposed to maintaining his lognterm and well-known biases against the Jewish state.

William bemoans that there is no credibility to the claim/fact because it is not reported on Ynet (Nevermind that no other news agency (sans Ynet) picked up this story). Yet William when supplied (Article: "HRW claim Hamas 'did target civilians in Gaza war'" Posts: #49 onward) with 6 links to Ynet articles he claims he cannot acknowledge that the Israeli Supreme Court ruled that the IDF were in breach of International Law when they use innocent civilians as Human Shields. Clearly William is content to wallow in self-induced ignorance and will dismiss any information that infringes on his make-believe-world. Hey William we only have your word for this statement, excuse me while I class it as utter trite until such time as you provide some proof in the form of a link to a credible news/info source to confirm this claim.

Mizrahim were brought here as their “natural laborers,” and from the early 1950s on, were stuffed by the master into the spacious Nakba villages, but in crowded conditions, to eliminate any possibility for the Palestinians to enact their right of return. Mizrahim must demand a true partnership and equality in one state for all of us, Mizrahim and Palestinian alike, a state that will be our permanent home. Mizrahim are the demographic majority citizenry of the state of Israel. The creation of the Israeli new identity involved the de-Arabization of the Mizrahim, the near total erasure of their cultures, the nationalization of their politics, and their assimilation into Israel’s economy and expanding middle class. Yet, Mizrahi identity has been preserved at the social and economic peripheries, not as a distinct cultural orientation, as a diffused sense of origin and solidarity, fueled by persisting marginality and hardship.

Agree with every word. And more than that, this University is a disgrace to the name it bears, and should be closed down. Let all these "researchers look for work in England.

"So prove it" Absolutely comical! Matty - I offer to merchandise your egotistical ranting into a lovable doll with a pull string, with all your favorite musings: "I heard in Al Jazeera - it's true" "Racists" "Hamas is innocent" "Don't you know the Gazans are starving" and when you tilt its head, you get a tasty Pez....filled with disgust and remorse.

ok, I know you do actually support the use of suicide bombers and drive by shootings by the "palestinians" as "peace-loving freedom fighters" but you can hardly call their violence, calls for ethnic cleansing, and war crimes as a "human right". If it is true, then yes - they are denied their "human rights" to kill and take away the rights of other humans. Shame that their life is so self-created.

And the Druze really hate you Arabs. Both the Mizrahim and Druze have something in common - they felt the innate racism and oppression of Arabs. Mizrahim were not "brought to Israel", they were forced to flee a country of racist Muslims with no place to go. And equally, it would be fair for Arab countries to open their doors (and hearts, and wallets) to the "palestinians" that are no longer welcome in the State of Israel. My family is Mizrahi, straight from Iran, and lived in the South in a village built for new immigrants. Life was actually quite good.

Thank you

Do you think they Arabs would have preserved anything of the Jewish conneciton to this land--including the poeple themselves? Wars happen. There are winners and loosers. So sorry: we won.

Israel systematically tried to cleanse any signs of the Arab inhabitants who were expelled from Palestine during the creation of the Jewish State. Many towns and villages were destroyed. Their buildings and infrastructure were demolished. Towns and villages were renamed and built-over. There were hundreds of Arab villages and towns throughout modern-day Israel, nearly all were systematically erased off the map. This widespread book destruction doesn't surprise me.

Because it really isn't a "truth" until there are facts...and until that point, what do you want me to provide evidence for....to dis-prove your myth, to prove you're a moron? I think in a survey of other TB'ers here - I've done my job already.

Supporting your accurate historical description, today in all Arab countries the rate of illiteracy is very high, 30% to 70%, including the Chiefdom of Arabia. It doesn't make sense then that in the backwater that Israel was 100 years ago there would be many Arabs knowing how to read and write, let alone create works of literature of any kind

i sent you quite a few book titles to educate yourself, that is if you honor historical accuracy and best world historians rather than propaganda and lack of basic facts as you show. you would do well to read the texts i sent to you via a post of mine. then, we'll talk. hameed aboughaze, iranian

They are living above a volcano that can explode any time. The status quo in Muslim countries cannot continue and Muslims are discovering they have been in massive tyranny and terror for 1400 years. Muslims are leaving Islam in large numbers and more will leave if the apostasy death penalty is lifted. Tyranny cannot last for ever, not even under Sharia Law.

text or book written by any so called palestinian that resided in what is now israel between 1920 to 1947. never. not a single one. except for some religious edicts by husseini and books written by arabs from other arab country, not a single palestinian wrote a book during the above mentioned time period. hameed aboughaze, iranian

...you might gain some if you would answer Matty's very easy question. Do you agree that the IDF is committing a crime when it uses civilians shields? Yes or no? And William, you can try and dissemble all day long about Israel seeking racial purity, but it is. "This is a strategic decision to ensure the Jewish and democratic character of the state of Israel" says Bibi recently about immigrants. Here in these pages it was reported he also said "We have become almost the only First World country that can be reached by foot from the Third World. We are flooded with surge of refugees who threaten to wash away our achievements and damage our existence as a Jewish democratic state." He went on to say, "Anyone walking around Arad, Eilat, or even south Tel Aviv today, can see this wave, and the change it is creating, with their own eyes. They are causing socio-economic and cultural damage and threaten to take us back down to the level of the Third World. They take the jobs of the weakest Israelis." He sounds like George Wallace. Look him up. Perhaps you might note the "Lieberman Plan" - by the current FM? He ran an unabashed anti-Arab election campaign on loyalty oaths and "separation of the two nations and the creation of homogenous states". You get that? He's implying that even the Arab Palestinians in Israel could be forced out. You could look to the data from ACRI, that is if the Israeli government does not lock more of their staff up and stop them from reporting. You might study up the catalog of war crimes and other violations of international law that Lieberman came up with before the War on Gaza. A person would have to live under a rock to not know about the racism in Israel? Have you seen what they say about President Obama? You can bet he has.

What kind of yellow journalism is this?