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PA Textbooks Still Teach Antisemitic, Anti-Israel Messages
(Times of Israel) Nurit Yohanan - Palestinian Authority textbooks continue to glorify terror, demonize Israelis, traffic in antisemitic themes, and advance exclusivist nationalist rhetoric despite promises to implement reforms, according to a report released Wednesday by the IMPACT-se watchdog, which monitors educational content. Textbooks from grades 1-4 and 12, meant to be updated recently to comply with international demands to scrub inciting content, in fact contain no significant changes. Across 290 textbooks and 71 teachers' guides serving those grades and others, researchers cited 210 examples of problematic content. PA-produced texts have been flagged for years for containing content that is a key factor in inculcating hate among Palestinian youths, fueling extremism, and undercutting efforts to foster peaceful coexistence with Israelis. The materials are used widely across the West Bank and Gaza, including in classrooms run by the UN agency UNRWA. "Virulent antisemitism, the glorification of jihad, and incitement to violence remain deeply embedded across all grades of Palestinian Authority textbooks," said IMPACT-se CEO Marcus Sheff. Reform of the Palestinian educational curriculum is a central component of the U.S. peace plan for the region. In a 1st-grade Arabic book, a reading exercise introduces the word "martyr." A 2nd-grade Arabic book presents a poem reading, "We give our souls for the revolution."