(Hudson Institute New York) Khaled Abu Toameh - Palestinian Authority leaders say they will never recognize Israel as a Jewish state because that would mean they would have to give up the "right of return" for millions of Palestinians to their original homes inside Israel. The PA, like the rest of the Arab governments, has been lying to the refugees for decades, telling them that one day their dream would be fulfilled. No Arab or Palestinian leader has ever dared to confront the refugees with the truth that they are not going to move into Israel. Palestinian refugees living in Syria, Lebanon and Jordan have long been the victims of racism and unjust laws that deprive them of basic rights. Since its establishment in 1994, the PA has also done very little to help the refugees. Refugees are a gigantic UN jobs program, providing over 30,000 jobs costing over $1 billion a year. The issue of the refugees can easily be solved if the entire international community, with the help of the Arab world, gets together to find a solution. The refugees should be offered financial compensation or resettlement in Arab and other countries. And let us not forget that there are also hundreds of thousands of Jewish "refugees" who lost their properties in Arab countries.
2010-10-22 09:38:25Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive