Note: This is Part 1 of a two-part series.
What was the largest forced population transfer in human history? Most will be surprised to hear that it was of ethnic Germans from Eastern Europe to Germany, following the Nazis’ defeat in WW II. It also could be the forced migrations of Hindus and Muslims following the partition of India in 1947.
Like the Germans, the Indian population that was forced to move numbered around 12 million people — but there was such a lack of record-keeping that the actual number will probably never be known.
Next time I attend a progressive political rally, I’ll be sure to ask dressed up-as Hamas and Hezbollah terrorists the same question. I’ve a hunch the words Palestinian and nakba will come up. “Nakba” is the Arabic term used to describe the displacement of the Arabs living in Israel in 1948. Its literal translation is “catastrophe.” The implication is that it was a uniquely horrific event requiring its own moniker.
Part of the agenda, and the goal, is to diminish the Holocaust by creating this counterpart and accusing Israel of doing the same that was done to them.
But like many aspects of the anti-Israel narrative, it is rife with sophistry.
Israel was declared in 1948 in agreement with the UN partition plan. The surrounding Arab nations declared war on Israel immediately. Ultimately, about 750,000 Arabs who were living in what today is Israel, fled — some at the urging of their own leadership, others forced out by Israel’s military, sometimes violently. Certainly a catastrophe for that community, but in line with what happens in military conflicts, especially (as with Germany) in a war that one starts, then loses. The number of Arabs dispossessed was far lower than other population groups at that exact time period (by both percentage and raw number).
So why are Palestinians the only group with a dedicated UN agency? Why do so many in the streets claim to care so deeply about this one particular group? Why are they certain that anyone who supports Israel’s existence is a “genocidal baby killer”?
Palestinians are unique because their leadership, the leadership of neighboring Arab nations, the international community and anti-Israel activists insist upon it.
That, and how it impacts IHRA’s working definition of anti-Semitism, are the subjects of Part 2.
Shana Goldberg may be reached at shana@ijn.com
