‘Historic Palestine’ – A Misleading Anachronism

[Hollie]

Heres a map of Disneyworld, which, as we know, was invented by the Treaty of Lausanne as a ''new state'' in 1924.

 

[watchingfromafar]

The notion of a "Palestinian" nation, which never existed

The word Palestine derives from Philistia, the name given by Greek writers to the land of the Philistines, who in the 12th century BCE occupied a small pocket of land on the southern coast, between modern Tel Aviv–Yafo and Gaza. The name was revived by the Romans in the 2nd century CE in “Syria Palaestina,” designating the southern portion of the province of Syria, and made its way thence into Arabic, where it has been used to describe the region at least since the early Islamic era. After Roman times the name had no official status until after World War I and the end of rule by the Ottoman Empire, when it was adopted for one of the regions mandated to Great Britain; in addition to an area roughly comprising present-day Israel and the West Bank, the mandate included the territory east of the Jordan River now constituting the Hashimite Kingdom of Jordan, which Britain placed under an administration separate from that of Palestine immediately after receiving the mandate for the territory.
Palestine | History, People, & Religion | Britannica

Palestine's Early Roots
Throughout history, Palestine has been ruled by numerous groups, including the Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Fatimids, Seljuk Turks, Crusaders, Egyptians and Mamelukes. From about 1517 to 1917, the Ottoman Empire ruled much of the region.
May 11, 2021
Palestine - History, Religion & Conflicts - HISTORY

Palestine’s Early Roots
Scholars believe the name “Palestine” originally comes from the word “Philistia,” which refers to the Philistines who occupied part of the region in the 12th century B.C.

Throughout history, Palestine has been ruled by numerous groups, including the Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Fatimids, Seljuk Turks, Crusaders, Egyptians and Mamelukes.

From about 1517 to 1917, the Ottoman Empire ruled much of the region.

When World War I ended in 1918, the British took control of Palestine. The League of Nations issued a British mandate for Palestine—a document that gave Britain administrative control over the region, and included provisions for establishing a Jewish national homeland in Palestine—which went into effect in 1923.

Palestine - History, Religion & Conflicts - HISTORY

Palestine (Arabic: فلسطين‎, romanized: Filasṭīn), officially recognized as the State of Palestine (Arabic: دولة فلسطين‎, romanized: Dawlat Filasṭīn) by the United Nations and other entities, is a de jure sovereign state in Western Asia officially governed by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and claiming the West Bank and Gaza Strip with Jerusalem as the designated capital.
State of Palestine - Wikipedia

The history of Palestine is the study of the past in the region of Palestine, defined as the territory between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River.
The region was among the earliest in the world to see human habitation, agricultural communities and civilization.
History of Palestine - Wikipedia

iT IS WHAT IT IS----
tHE FUTURE IS VUST AROUND THE CORNER---
a sign across he street said--

"If you can not go right
Go left"

Makes silence to me,
how about you?
-

-

 

[MJB12741]

Of course there was a Palestine before Israel. It was the Jewish homeland before the Muslims invaded on their stolen land with no titles or deeds whatsoever.

 

[watchingfromafar]

Of course there was a Palestine before Israel.

MJB12741:
May you and yours,.,…,.LIVE--
Happily; from the beginning of the beginning to the end, and then beyond .,..,,,,
For all time to come, so help me God.

-

 

[watchingfromafar]

Muslims invaded on their stolen land with no titles or deeds whatsoever.

MJB12741:
May you and yours,.,…,.LIVE--
Happily; from the beginning of the beginning to the end, and then beyond .,..,,,,
For all time to come, so help me God.

-

Just to keep the facts straight, show me “Israel’s claim" or claims?
Thanks in advance
-

 

[surada]

Did Israel “occupy” Palestine?

As with most issues related to this thorny topic this is, at best, a half truth. Please read this entirely to the end.

Below you are three maps.

Map 1 depicts Ottoman Turkish rule over the area today known as Israel, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip in the South.
Map 2 depicts the ‘British Mandate of Palestine’, instituted after Ottoman Turkey was defeated, and collapsed after WWI.
Map 3 depicts only the issue of when the Arabs (today known as Palestinians) gained political control over this land.

By posting these maps I hope to address this abiding but inaccurate idea that Israel has “occupied Palestine” since 1948.

As the first two maps show, in modern history this area was colonised by the Ottoman Turks, and then by the British Mandate. There was no “state of Palestine” in this area, and in fact there never has been - go as far back as you like. In the Ottoman Empire (Map 1), the entire area north of Jerusalem was known as the Province of Beirut (Sidon) and Jerusalem to the South was known as the Mutasarriflik (authority) of Jerusalem. Then, after the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in WWI, the British Mandate (Map 2) clearly shows a division on either side of the River Jordan.

As the key in Map 2 indicates, everything to the left of the River Jordan (known today as the West Bank of the River Jordan) was an area “remaining for Jewish National Home”, and everything to the right of the river (marked Transjordan) was “separated and closed to Jewish settlement”, as is written on the map. There was no “state of Palestine” for Jews to “occupy” at this stage. This was land captured after WWI from a colonial empire (Turks), by a colonial empire (the Brits). It was then administered by the British according tho the 1918 Anglo-French Modus Vivendi, and demarcated by the British as a homeland for the Jewish people, in line with the Balfour Declaration 1917.

It took until 1948 for Israel to be created on the West Bank of the River Jordan, as a homeland for Jews after the Holocaust. What occurred was a typical British colonial partition plan, just like the 1947 partition of India and Pakistan (which was created in exactly the same fashion, as a homeland for Muslims). A consequence of this partition was population expulsions from both sides of the River Jordan (Jews and Arabs) and mass migration according to the new political reality. I am not denying injustices occurred at this stage, just as happened with the partition of India and Pakistan.

Another consequence was that one area remained in dispute (the West bank of the River Jordan), just as Kashmir remains till this day in dispute between India and Pakistan. It is important to remember that at this time in history there still was no, and never had been, a “state of Palestine” just as today there is no internationally recognised “state of Kashmir”, and never has been in that sense.
Other new states *were* created in the region by British colonialism however, including Jordan, Syria, Iraq and Lebanon. All these states were populated primarily by Levantine Arabs. Interestingly, 60% of Jordan today is of the Palestinian-Arab group and only 40% of Jordan is Bedouin Arab (the difference between those two groups is not even as pronounced as the difference between the English and Scots).

Why this is relevant is explained by Map 3. Look to the 1967 image in Map 3 (forgive the bad colouring) it depicts Jordan as having control over the West Bank of the River Jordan (Egypt controlled the Gaza Strip in the South). There still was no “state of Palestine”. In 1967 Egypt, Jordan and Syria attacked Israel and lost, terribly, in six days. It was only after this war that Israel gained control of the West Bank of the River Jordan, and the Gaza Strip. She has secured the West Bank ever since, and Gaza was given to Palestinian-Arabs unilaterally by Israeli PM Ariel Sharon in 2005, before it succumbed to the terrorist group Hamas.

This is where Map 3 becomes very relevant. Because as Map 3 depicts, the first time in history a group of Arabs known through their entirely modern colonial identity (inseparable from the British Mandate) calling themselves Palestinians, gained any form of political control over this land (even though, as stated, 60% of Jordan is Palestinian too, including the Queen of Jordan). And it was Israel that ceded this political control to the Arabs of the West Bank of the River Jordan (today known as Palestinians) in 1994, due to the Oslo Accords.

Before Oslo, Arabs from the West Bank of the River Jordan (today known as Palestinians) had never had political control of this land. The modern identity of Palestinian became a national identity in the 1960s, primarily through Yasser Arafat’s Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO), and especially after the Arab Kingdom of Jordan lost control of the West Bank to Israel. Before this, the ‘people’ or nation in this area were Levantine Arabs. These Levantine Arabs were granted three other states by the British (Syria, Jordan and Lebanon), as well as many other Arab states in the region. Whereas Jews only have one state (Israel).

All four of these states were arbitrarily created by the British and French after WWI, not just Israel. And mass-migration occurred in both directions, not just Arabs out of Israel, but Jews out of Arab lands too. All four involved expulsions (primarily of Jews going one way and Arabs going the other). But only one of these states gave Palestinian-Arabs citizenship (20% of Israel today is Arab). The three Arab states created by Britain (and in fact all other modern Arab states) are yet to provide naturalisation schemes and citizenship by birth right to the masses of Palestinian-Arabs stranded in their territories till this day. One can observe this in the refugee camps (effectively now townships) in Lebanon, Syria and Jordan. These Palestinian-Arabs are pointedly and consistently refused citizenship by their host Arab states. Meanwhile, 20% of Israel’s citizens are Arabs, they sit in the Knesset and they partake in almost all Israeli affairs.


Summary:
I am *not* opposing the creation of a state of Palestine (though I do remain open also to other solutions for the Palestinian-Arabs in the West Bank and Gaza, that re-involve Jordan and Egypt respectively, if this breaks the deadlock). My point, simply put, is this: when the evolution of the area is properly considered, and not used to score cheap political points or indeed for Europe to grind her ancient antisemitic axe, the truth is that this is a land dispute born of colonialism, no different to Kashmir. It is not a typical “occupation” by one state over another, and it is misleading to frame the conversation in terms of a typical “occupation”, and then to use this emotive basis as a launch pad for “debate”.

The “state of Palestine” has never existed. What has happened is that a land dispute over a colonial partition has dragged on. It is also very clear that too much media focus is placed on Israel’s behaviour, and hardly any on the surrounding Arab dictatorships or absolute monarchies who have failed Palestinian-Arabs over and again. Nor is much of a media focus placed on the Palestinian Authority, which has consistently rejected every formal peace offer made, to a point where they no longer have anything to play for, nothing to negotiate and have become such an embarrassment that even Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egypt have urged them to consider President Trump’s latest proposal (which by historic standards is far less than what the 1947 UN partition plan offered, which Arabs rejected).

Only those who reject the right of Israel to exist, and view her as an “occupying” power, would so consistently overplay their hand in this way. This is what I believe Arabs and Muslims have been doing. And this is why I believe it is so important to reframe this entire debate. Finally, before the usual voices respond with rage, I too used to completely boycott Israel. Until, that is, that I chose to look into this complicated issue with an open mind and open heart, and allowed the facts and not emotion to guide me. The result to date, is my above view.

***Please hit the "Support Now" button to help me grow this page. (For laptops, it's located immediately under this post. For mobile's, it's at the top of the page, under my profile banner.) Thank you***

Its been the Syrian Province of Palestine since 500 BC.. and you forget that in 700 BC 4 Arab tribes settled in Samaria (the West Bank)

 

[watchingfromafar]

Its been the Syrian Province of Palestine since 500 BC..

None of this matters.

We are talking about the here and now
From the 20th century and beyond
from there forward

The country claiming itself “Israel”

Continues to:
Murder Palestinian children
Steal Palestinian land
Cut off fishing rights
Cut off water rights
Express no moral values
Have lost their soul
May God be with them in the end

What should the moral minded Jews tell the Israelis-

Stop murdering children-?
Stop murdering American citizens-?
Follow the Lord’s commandments-?

You are the Jew, you tell me -

 

[P F Tinmore]

The history of Palestine is the study of the past in the region of Palestine, defined as the territory between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River.
The region was among the earliest in the world to see human habitation, agricultural communities and civilization.
History of Palestine - Wikipedia

 

[Rigby5]

Oh no! Now you are saying the Palestinians have no right to the land without any titles or deeds. So they just stole it???

That is a lie.
Most Palestinians have deeds.
The problem is Israel won't let those who fled the violence in 1948, back to their homes.
The Israelis are illegal immigrant thieves.

And the claim Israel is an ancestral Jewish home is also a lie.
There is no evidence Hebrew came from before Egypt, but it most certainly was NOT the Land of Canaan that the Hebrew invaded around 1000 BC.
And since the Assyrians defeated the Israelis around 740 BC, Israel only existed for 220 years.

Israel was a fake Roman puppet created out of thin air.
King Herod was a Roman who claimed to have converted to Judaism.

Around the turn of the century the population of Palestine was less than 5% Jewish.
That is because real Jews know they are not supposed to go to Palestine.
They know they are supposed to wait for the coming of the Messiah, as a sign their period of atonement was over.

 

[Rigby5]

It was not the United Nations that partitioned Palestine. It was the League of Nations after WW I. In 1922 Palestine was divided. If you ever saw the movie, Lawerence of Arabia a bit of the history is told. After World War 1 the Allies in the Middle East who helped defeat the Ottomans who ruled that area were rewarded with kingdoms. Arabia was given to Saud. The Sherrif of Mecca, or Faisal and his sons were given Jordan and Iraq. That was after they got kicked out of Damascus by the French. The French were given the Syrian mandate by the League of Nations.

League of Nations, over 20 years before the United Nations, divided Palestine into Jordan and Israel.

Wrong.
It was the Treaty of San Remo and the Treaty of Sevres that divided Trans Jordan into Jordan and Palestine.
The League of Nations has no authority to divide anything.
The Jordanians did not want to allow Jewish immigration at all, so they were the ones who insisted on the division.
The division was to allow Jews to immigrate at all, as the British had promised with the Balfour Declaration.

No one even dreamed of Israel existing until Truman came up with the idea in 1945, and created the UN so he could pull it off.

 

[Rigby5]

Correct.
And the earliest and principle group was the Canaanites.
But they allowed others, like the Chaldeans, Akkadians, Philistines, Phoenicians, Amorites, Urites, Nabatians, etc.

Hebrew spent little time there, were invaders, very arrogant and hostile, so quickly kicked out.

 

[Rigby5]

How sad when Israel offered to return the West Bank back to Jordan, Jordan refused so they could dump their Palestinians on Israel to deal with.

Wrong.
Israel never offered the West Bank to Jordan and Jordan never refused it.
Jordan was happy to administer the West Bank for 20 years before Israel illegally invaded in 1968.

 

[surada]

None of this matters.

We are talking about the here and now
From the 20th century and beyond
from there forward

The country claiming itself “Israel”

Continues to:
Murder Palestinian children
Steal Palestinian land
Cut off fishing rights
Cut off water rights
Express no moral values
Have lost their soul
May God be with them in the end

What should the moral minded Jews tell the Israelis-

Stop murdering children-?
Stop murdering American citizens-?
Follow the Lord’s commandments-?

You are the Jew, you tell me -

It matters to irosie.

That is a lie.
Most Palestinians have deeds.
The problem is Israel won't let those who fled the violence in 1948, back to their homes.
The Israelis are illegal immigrant thieves.

And the claim Israel is an ancestral Jewish home is also a lie.
There is no evidence Hebrew came from before Egypt, but it most certainly was NOT the Land of Canaan that the Hebrew invaded around 1000 BC.
And since the Assyrians defeated the Israelis around 740 BC, Israel only existed for 220 years.

Israel was a fake Roman puppet created out of thin air.
King Herod was a Roman who claimed to have converted to Judaism.

Around the turn of the century the population of Palestine was less than 5% Jewish.
That is because real Jews know they are not supposed to go to Palestine.
They know they are supposed to wait for the coming of the Messiah, as a sign their period of atonement was over.

Edomites had been forced to convert to Judaism in 125 BC.

The Truth About Conversion: It is Not Biblical | Israel ...

The Truth About Conversion: It is Not Biblical

From the blog of Israel Drazin at The Times of Israel

blogs.timesofisrael.com

May 12, 2021 · The first mention of conversion is when the Hasmonean king John Hyrcanus forcibly converted Edomites around 125 BCE.

 

[Hollie]

The word Palestine derives from Philistia, the name given by Greek writers to the land of the Philistines, who in the 12th century BCE occupied a small pocket of land on the southern coast, between modern Tel Aviv–Yafo and Gaza. The name was revived by the Romans in the 2nd century CE in “Syria Palaestina,” designating the southern portion of the province of Syria, and made its way thence into Arabic, where it has been used to describe the region at least since the early Islamic era. After Roman times the name had no official status until after World War I and the end of rule by the Ottoman Empire, when it was adopted for one of the regions mandated to Great Britain; in addition to an area roughly comprising present-day Israel and the West Bank, the mandate included the territory east of the Jordan River now constituting the Hashimite Kingdom of Jordan, which Britain placed under an administration separate from that of Palestine immediately after receiving the mandate for the territory.
Palestine | History, People, & Religion | Britannica

Palestine's Early Roots
Throughout history, Palestine has been ruled by numerous groups, including the Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Fatimids, Seljuk Turks, Crusaders, Egyptians and Mamelukes. From about 1517 to 1917, the Ottoman Empire ruled much of the region.
May 11, 2021
Palestine - History, Religion & Conflicts - HISTORY

Palestine’s Early Roots
Scholars believe the name “Palestine” originally comes from the word “Philistia,” which refers to the Philistines who occupied part of the region in the 12th century B.C.

Throughout history, Palestine has been ruled by numerous groups, including the Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Fatimids, Seljuk Turks, Crusaders, Egyptians and Mamelukes.

From about 1517 to 1917, the Ottoman Empire ruled much of the region.

When World War I ended in 1918, the British took control of Palestine. The League of Nations issued a British mandate for Palestine—a document that gave Britain administrative control over the region, and included provisions for establishing a Jewish national homeland in Palestine—which went into effect in 1923.

Palestine - History, Religion & Conflicts - HISTORY

Palestine (Arabic: فلسطين‎, romanized: Filasṭīn), officially recognized as the State of Palestine (Arabic: دولة فلسطين‎, romanized: Dawlat Filasṭīn) by the United Nations and other entities, is a de jure sovereign state in Western Asia officially governed by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and claiming the West Bank and Gaza Strip with Jerusalem as the designated capital.
State of Palestine - Wikipedia

The history of Palestine is the study of the past in the region of Palestine, defined as the territory between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River.
The region was among the earliest in the world to see human habitation, agricultural communities and civilization.
History of Palestine - Wikipedia

iT IS WHAT IT IS----
tHE FUTURE IS VUST AROUND THE CORNER---
a sign across he street said--

"If you can not go right
Go left"

Makes silence to me,
how about you?
-

-

who can edit wikipedia - Bing

Intelligent search from Bing makes it easier to quickly find what you’re looking for and rewards you.

www.bing.com

Yes, you can edit Wikipedia. Everyone can unless a page is " protected ". Editing is open to anyone and everyone with an internet connection. All you have to do is click the “edit this page” tab or “edit” next to the heading of the section you’d like to edit.

how about you?
-


How about, ''Hysterical Pal'istan''?

 

[surada]

who can edit wikipedia - Bing

Intelligent search from Bing makes it easier to quickly find what you’re looking for and rewards you.

www.bing.com

Yes, you can edit Wikipedia. Everyone can unless a page is " protected ". Editing is open to anyone and everyone with an internet connection. All you have to do is click the “edit this page” tab or “edit” next to the heading of the section you’d like to edit.

how about you?
-


How about, ''Hysterical Pal'istan''?

A lot of people think Palestine is a derivative of Philistine based on the sea people who took over the coast and caused Canaanites to migrate to the hill country which was controlled by Egypt.

Problem is its not true.

Akkadian Language - Jewish Virtual Library

Akkadian Language

Encyclopedia of Jewish and Israeli history, politics and culture, with biographies, statistics, articles and documents on topics from anti-Semitism to Zionism.

www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org

The Akkadian material from the archives of Bogazköy and Ras Shamra ( *Ugarit ) are written in local forms of Middle Babylonian, as are the letters of El *Amarna found in Egypt, which, however, originated in Anatolia, Syria, Palestine, and Mesopotamia. The wide diffusion of Akkadian during the period was due to its use as a diplomatic language.

 

[Hollie]

A lot of people think Palestine is a derivative of Philistine based on the sea people who took over the coast and caused Canaanites to migrate to the hill country which was controlled by Egypt.

Problem is its not true.

Akkadian Language - Jewish Virtual Library

Akkadian Language

Encyclopedia of Jewish and Israeli history, politics and culture, with biographies, statistics, articles and documents on topics from anti-Semitism to Zionism.

www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org

The Akkadian material from the archives of Bogazköy and Ras Shamra ( *Ugarit ) are written in local forms of Middle Babylonian, as are the letters of El *Amarna found in Egypt, which, however, originated in Anatolia, Syria, Palestine, and Mesopotamia. The wide diffusion of Akkadian during the period was due to its use as a diplomatic language.

These walks down memory Pal'istan lane serve what purpose? The loosely defined geographic land area identified by many names and occupied by many religious / ethnic groups has seen the churn of conquest and ceding to newer conquest for thousands of years. History is not static, being written with the inertia of maps changing shape over time. Yes, the Arabs-Moslems see an entitlement from their religion's inventor to perpetual ''ownership'' of the lands they once conquered. Others disagree with that perceived entitlement.

 

[surada]

These walks down memory Pal'istan lane serve what purpose? The loosely defined geographic land area identified by many names and occupied by many religious / ethnic groups has seen the churn of conquest and ceding to newer conquest for thousands of years. History is not static, being written with the inertia of maps changing shape over time. Yes, the Arabs-Moslems see an entitlement from their religion's inventor to perpetual ''ownership'' of the lands they once conquered. Others disagree with that perceived entitlement.

Its important to irosie.. She's trying to lay claim to Mecca and Medina.

Don't be dumb. Arabs have been in Palestine since Abraham or before. ... long before Islam. The Akkadians migrated from the Arabian Peninsula 3100 BC.

The Hebrews didn't emerge from the Northcoast Canaanites 2100 BC.

(PDF) Language Contact between Akkadian and Northwest ...

Language Contact between Akkadian and Northwest Semitic Languages in Syria-Palestine in the Late Bronze Age

Language Contact between Akkadian and Northwest Semitic Languages in Syria-Palestine in the Late Bronze Age

www.academia.edu

Language Contact between Akkadian and Northwest Semitic Languages in Syria-Palestine in the Late Bronze Age

 

[Hollie]

Its important to irosie.. She's trying to lay claim to Mecca and Medina.

Don't be dumb. Arabs have been in Palestine since Abraham or before. ... long before Islam. The Akkadians migrated from the Arabian Peninsula 3100 BC.

The Hebrews didn't emerge from the Northcoast Canaanites 2100 BC.

(PDF) Language Contact between Akkadian and Northwest ...

Language Contact between Akkadian and Northwest Semitic Languages in Syria-Palestine in the Late Bronze Age

Language Contact between Akkadian and Northwest Semitic Languages in Syria-Palestine in the Late Bronze Age

www.academia.edu

Language Contact between Akkadian and Northwest Semitic Languages in Syria-Palestine in the Late Bronze Age

It seems equally important to you. The Islamic gee-had is always hiring. If retaking Pal'istan is important to you, the glory of the Ummah awaits your participation.

 

[surada]

It seems equally important to you. The Islamic gee-had is always hiring. If retaking Pal'istan is important to you, the glory of the Ummah awaits your participation.

Don't be stupid. Just treat the Palestinians the way you'd like to be treated.

 

[Sixties Fan]

Don't be stupid. Just treat the Palestinians the way you'd like to be treated.

(One thing is for sure. Non Jews in Israel are not being treated the way Jews were treated in Muslim countries.

And let us make clear, that the countries and territories around Israel today, have zero or nearly zero Jews living on those land.)

Therefore, one should never tell the Jewish People to treat others the way they were treated in the Muslim world for the past 1400 years.
---------------------

The Dhimmi​

Still, as "People of the Book," Jews (and Christians) are protected under Islamic law. The traditional concept of the "dhimma" ("writ of protection") was extended by Muslim conquerors to Christians and Jews in exchange for their subordination to the Muslims. Peoples subjected to Muslim rule usually had a choice between death and conversion, but Jews and Christians, who adhered to the Scriptures, were allowed as dhimmis (protected persons) to practice their faith. This "protection" did little, however, to insure that Jews and Christians were treated well by the Muslims. On the contrary, an integral aspect of the dhimma was that, being an infidel, he had to openly acknowledge the superiority of the true believer--the Muslim.
In the early years of the Islamic conquest, the "tribute" (or jizya), paid as a yearly poll tax, symbolized the subordination of the dhimmi. Later, the inferior status of Jews and Christians was reinforced through a series of regulations that governed the behavior of the dhimmi. Dhimmis, on pain of death, were forbidden to mock or criticize the Koran, Islam or Muhammad, to proselytize among Muslims or to touch a Muslim woman (though a Muslim man could take a nonMuslim as a wife).
Dhimmis were excluded from public office and armed service, and were forbidden to bear arms. They were not allowed to ride horses or camels, to build synagogues or churches taller than mosques, to construct houses higher than those of Muslims or to drink wine in public. They were not allowed to pray or mourn in loud voices-as that might offend the Muslims. The dhimmi had to show public deference toward Muslims-always yielding them the center of the road. The dhimmi was not allowed to give evidence in court against a Muslim, and his oath was unacceptable in an Islamic court. To defend himself, the dhimmi would have to purchase Muslim witnesses at great expense. This left the dhimmi with little legal recourse when harmed by a Muslim.(4)
Dhimmis were also forced to wear distinctive clothing. In the ninth century, for example, Baghdad's Caliph al-Mutawakkil designated a yellow badge for Jews, setting a precedent that would be followed centuries later in Nazi Germany.(5)​

Violence Against Jews​

At various times, Jews in Muslim lands were able to live in relative peace and thrive culturally and economically. The position of the Jews was never secure, however, and changes in the political or social climate would often lead to persecution, violence and death. Jews were generally viewed with contempt by their Muslim neighbors; peaceful coexistence between the two groups involved the subordination and degradation of the Jews.
When Jews were perceived as having achieved too comfortable a position in Islamic society, anti-Semitism would surface, often with devastating results: On December 30, 1066, Joseph HaNagid, the Jewish vizier of Granada, Spain, was crucified by an Arab mob that proceeded to raze the Jewish quarter of the city and slaughter its 5,000 inhabitants. The riot was incited by Muslim preachers who had angrily objected to what they saw as inordinate Jewish political power.
Similarly, in 1465, Arab mobs in Fez slaughtered thousands of Jews, leaving only 11 alive, after a Jewish deputy vizier treated a Muslim woman in "an offensive manner." The killings touched off a wave of similar massacres throughout Morocco.(6)
Other mass murders of Jews in Arab lands occurred in Morocco in the 8th century, where whole communities were wiped out by Muslim ruler Idris I; North Africa in the 12th century, where the Almohads either forcibly converted or decimated several communities; Libya in 1785, where Ali Burzi Pasha murdered hundreds of Jews; Algiers, where Jews were massacred in 1805, 1815 and 1830 and Marrakesh, Morocco, where more than 300 hundred Jews were murdered between 1864 and 1880.(7)
Decrees ordering the destruction of synagogues were enacted in Egypt and Syria (1014, 1293-4, 1301-2), Iraq (854-859, 1344) and Yemen (1676). Despite the Koran's prohibition, Jews were forced to convert to Islam or face death in Yemen (1165 and 1678), Morocco (1275, 1465 and 1790-92) and Baghdad (1333 and 1344).(8)
As distinguished Orientalist G.E. von Grunebaum has written:​

It would not be difficult to put together the names of a very sizeable number of Jewish subjects or citizens of the Islamic area who have attained to high rank, to power, to great financial influence, to significant and recognized intellectual attainment; and the same could be done for Christians. But it would again not be difficult to compile a lengthy list of persecutions, arbitrary confiscations, attempted forced conversions, or pogroms.(9)​

The situation of Jews in Arab lands reached a low point in the 19th century. Jews in most of North Africa (including Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Morocco) were forced to live in ghettos. In Morocco, which contained the largest Jewish community in the Islamic Diaspora, Jews were made to walk barefoot or wear shoes of straw when outside the ghetto. Even Muslim children participated in the degradation of Jews, by throwing stones at them or harassing them in other ways. The frequency of anti-Jewish violence increased, and many Jews were executed on charges of apostasy. Ritual murder accusations against the Jews became commonplace in the Ottoman Empire.(10)
By the twentieth century, the status of the dhimmi in Muslim lands had not significantly improved. H.E.W. Young, British Vice Consul in Mosul, wrote in 1909:​

The attitude of the Muslims toward the Christians and the Jews is that of a master towards slaves, whom he treats with a certain lordly tolerance so long as they keep their place. Any sign of pretension to equality is promptly repressed.(11)​

The danger for Jews became even greater as a showdown approached in the UN over partition in 1947. The Syrian delegate, Faris el-Khouri, warned: "Unless the Palestine problem is settled, we shall have difficulty in protecting and safeguarding the Jews in the Arab world."(12)
More than a thousand Jews were killed in anti-Jewish rioting during the 1940's in Iraq, Libya, Egypt, Syria and Yemen.(13) This helped trigger the mass exodus of Jews from Arab countries.​

The Treatment of Jews in Arab/Islamic Countries

Encyclopedia of Jewish and Israeli history, politics and culture, with biographies, statistics, articles and documents on topics from anti-Semitism to Zionism.

www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org