(JNS) Mitchell Bard - In all the coverage of Israel's operation to root out terrorists from the Jenin refugee camp, did anyone ask: Why is there a refugee camp in an area controlled by the Palestinians? The Oslo Accords gave the responsibility for Jenin to the Palestinian Authority, which might have been expected to ameliorate the suffering of the residents by dismantling the camp and moving the "refugees" into permanent housing. But neither Yasser Arafat nor Mahmoud Abbas had any interest in helping them. The international community showered billions of dollars on the PA, yet no funds were allocated to eliminate the camp. The PA, not Israel, keeps more than 12,000 people in the Jenin camp and nearly 1.4 million in 25 others under its control. International supporters of the Palestinians don't care about the people in Jenin or any other refugee camp unless Israel can be blamed for the hardships. During the years it controlled Gaza, Israel wanted to move the people out of camps. However, the Arabs would sponsor UN resolutions demanding that Israel "desist from the removal and resettlement of Palestine refugees." For those who claim to be interested in the Palestinians' welfare, a good place to start would be to demand that the PA dismantle the refugee camps and move the residents into permanent housing where they can begin to live normal lives. The same demand should be made on Arab countries that maintain camps and refuse Palestinians citizenship. The writer is executive director of the American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise.
2023-08-03 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive