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Most Palestinian Families Come from Immigrants from the Past Two Centuries

(JNS) Dr. Harold Rhode - Prior to 1948, practically the only people who referred to themselves as Palestinians were the Jews. Modern Palestinian identity was largely invented in 1964 when the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was created. Throughout history, family and tribal ties in the Middle East have often been defined by economic and trade networks rather than geographical borders. The concept of borders, as we understand them in the West, was irrelevant. Identity in the region has historically been fluid, shaped by social and economic relationships rather than by modern political boundaries. And they still are. In the 19th century, much of what is now the West Bank and Gaza was sparsely populated and underdeveloped. The Ottoman Empire sought to repopulate and develop the region by bringing in Muslim migrants from Albania, Bosnia and the Caucasus. In the 1840s, Egyptian forces occupied the region, prompting many Egyptians to settle there. Construction of the Haifa branch of the Ottoman railway linking southern Turkey to Mecca attracted laborers from Jordan and Syria, many of whom remained in the area. During the British Mandate period, as Jewish immigration increased, Arab workers from across the Jordan River streamed westward, drawn by employment opportunities and improved health care provided by the Jews. They did not perceive themselves as Palestinians. The historical connections between the people of Gaza, the West Bank and British Mandate Palestine are shaped by centuries of migration. They are not one people, but a hodge-podge of peoples with no prior connection to pre-1948 Palestine, who settled there during the past two centuries. In this context, Trump's plan to resettle the people of Gaza in other parts of the Muslim world fits in perfectly with the normal patterns of migration in the region. The writer, a fellow of the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, served as an adviser on the Islamic world for the U.S. Department of Defense for 28 years.
2025-02-06 00:00:00
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