Israeli Zionist Right-Wingers Start a Controversy Around One Sentence in History Book Referring to 1948 as a Catastrophe to the Palestinian People

Arab Israeli textbook sparks controversy

Monday July 23, 2007 11:40 by R. P. - International Middle East Media Center - IMEMC Editorial Group

A textbook for Arab Israeli students has sparked controversy in Israel by referring to the 1948 founding of Israel as a 'catastrophe'.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Education Minister Yuli Tamir

In a single line, the textbook refers to the Arabic term 'al-nakba' – widely accepted as the Palestinian term but largely taboo in Israel – for the eviction of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homes in 1948-49. The sentence in question reads: "The Arabs call the war the nakba, a war of catastrophe, loss and humiliation, and the Jews call it the Independence War."

Israeli histories have typically focused on the historical connection of Jews to the land of Palestine and the persecution they suffered in Europe. The mass exile of 700,000 Palestinians is generally referred to as voluntary if it is mentioned at all.

The new textbook was ordered several years ago at a time when Israel sought to improve relations with its Arab population, and marks the first instance of the term's use in an Israeli textbook. The textbook is designed for use by 8-9 year old Israeli Arab students. About a fifth of Israel's population of seven million is Arab, and its students are largely housed in a separate school system that parallels the segregation of Israel's towns and neighbourhoods.

Israel Education Minister Yuli Tamir of the Labour Party praised the book and expressed her desire to amend other Israeli textbooks to reflect the Palestinian narrative. She stated that Israelis "have shut our eyes for too many years to the issue. We have a complex history of two peoples engaged in a struggle and it's time to give the story of this struggle its proper treatment." However, an inspector with the Ministry, Dalia Fenig, said that there are no plans to introduce the Arab narrative in textbooks for Jewish students.

The limited use of the term has provoked controversy among right-wing politicians in Israel. Benjamin Netanyahu, former Israeli Prime Minister and head of the right-wing Likud party, referred to the textbook's phrasing as "Arab propaganda", stating that "the education minister should go home. This is utter bankruptcy." Zevulun Orlev, a lawmaker with the right-wing National Union Party, said Israel risked encouraging its Arab citizens to revolt. "We lend legitimacy to Arabs seeing our independence as their disaster. How then can we teach the same pupil to be a loyal citizen?" he asked.

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