PLO leader Zuheir Mohsen tells the truth in 1977 about the invention of “Palestine” as part of the struggle against Israel: “The Palestinian people does not exist. … 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 … 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.”
Anti-Israel Arab nationalist Christian Azmi Bishara in a pre-1996 video.
Translation: “Well, I dont think there is a Palestinian nation at all. I think there is an Arab nation. I always thought so and I did not change my mind. I do not think there is a Palestinian nation … When were there any Palestinians? Where did it come from? I think there is an Arab nation. I never turned to be a Palestinian nationalist, despite my decisive struggle against the occupation. I think that until the end of the 19th century, Palestine was the south of Greater Syria.”
A Brooklyn city councilman could be booted from the immigration committee after tweeting that “Palestine does not exist” — but he refused to heed calls to apologize for the comment.
“Nope,” Councilman Kalman Yeger said when asked if he’d apologize. “For what?”
Yeger tweeted on Wednesday that “Palestine does not exist,” sparking outrage from activists and eventual condemnation from elected officials who said the remark was unhelpful in moving toward a two-state solution in the Middle East.
“He should definitely apologize, and I very vigorously condemned his comments in no uncertain terms, they have no place in New York City,” Council Speaker Corey Johnson said, adding that the city celebrates both its Jewish and Palestinian communities and that Yeger’s remarks were “dehumanizing.”
“They are comments that create some sort of erasure of the Palestinian experience and I find those totally unacceptable,” Johnson said.