Ilan Pappe Versus Benny Morris

8/11/2019 Ilan Pappe Versus Benny Morris

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Dossier 2013/09/27/01 Ilan Pappe versus Benny Morris

Indice

An interview of Ilan Pappe by Baudouin Loos Brussels, 29 November 1999Politics by Other Means by Benny Morris, The New Republic, 22 marzo 2004Benny Morris's ies!bout My Boo" by #lan Pappe,$lectronic #nti%a&a, 0 marzo 2004

#(M)#talia, ottobre 20*

www+ism)italia+orin%o-ism)italia+or

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http://www.ism-italia.org/http://www.ism-italia.org/


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AN INTE!IE" #$ ILAN PAPPE By Baudouin Loos Brussels, 29 November 1999

Ilan Pappe in not an ordinary Israeli %iti&en' (I am t)e most )ated Israeli in Israel(, )e says of

)imself wit)out any pride' Pappe, wit) several ot)ers, leads t)e (new )istorians* s%)ool( w)i%) too+

off in t)e ei)ties as a result of t)e new availability of state ar%)ives %on%ernin t)e (Independen%e

"ar(' T)e new )istorians )ave done a lot to dismantle t)e Israeli myt)s of t)e foundation of t)e

%ountry' Now t)ey are wor+in on ot)er issues- no Israeli sa%red %ows will )ave t)e opportunity toes%ape.

/nli+e ot)er new )istorians, Pappe ma+es no se%ret of )is politi%al, or ideoloi%al aenda' ("e are

all politi%al(, )e arues' (T)ere is no )istorian in t)e world w)o is ob0e%tive' I am not as interested

in w)at )appened as in )ow people see w)at*s )appened('

Pappe*s most +nown boo+ is (T)e a+in of t)e ArabIsraeli 3onfli%t 19451961( I'B' Tauris,

London 7 New 8or+, publis)ed in 1992'

TET -

:- "it) people li+e Benny orris, Avi ;)laim, Tom ;eev, ;im)a $lappan and ot)ers, you are a

prominent


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T)e new )istory, now in Israel, doesn*t only deal wit) 4@' It analyses &ionism as a %olonialist

p)enomenon from t)e late 19t) %entury' It oes on to revisit t)e fifties- t)ey are very %riti%al on bot)

domesti% and forein se%urity poli%y of Israel in t)ose years' T)e myt) till 19F5 was t)at Israel was

a small isolated %ountry surrounded by )ostile ennemies' It was also undermined- t)ey %laimed t)at

Israel was Guiet aressive, %apable of leadin powerfull poli%ies' And, domesti%ally, Israel

dis%riminated its Arab %iti&ens as it did, on similar round, dis%riminate aainst t)e ews it absorbedfrom Arab %ountries' ;o far, t)e last topi% is t)e attitude of t)e ewis) %ommunity in Palestine

durin t)e mandatory years toward t)e Holo%aust' It*s a very tou%)y sub0e%t' T)e &ionist leaders)ip

%ame out as very pramati% and it put t)e interest of t)e ewis) %ommunity in Palestine above t)at

of t)e ewis) %ommunity in Europe even in t)e time of absolute daner as )appened durin ""II'

:- How do you see t)e answer iven to t)e new )istorians by t)e (old( )istorians li+e ;)abtai

Tevet, Anita ;)apira, Efraim ars) or Itamar abinovi%)>

A- T)e first rea%tion was rat)er deroatory, %laimin t)at t)is wor+ is not professional, s)oudn*t be

ta+en noti%e of' T)en t)e se%ond wave of rea%tions said t)at t)e wor+ is indeed important but it

re0e%ted its findins' I %an understand t)ese )istorians, not so mu%) Ep)raim ars) w)o was t)emost vi%ious of all in )is atta%+s' In my %ase, for e?emple, t)ey dispute everyt)in. T)ey seem to

a%%ept Benny orris more easily t)an me' I am not surprised- Benny orris* %on%lusion is more

relievin' $or e?emple, w)en )e says about t)e fate of Palestinians in 4@ (J la uerre %omme J la

uerre(, I %laim t)at it was more li+e an et)ni% %leansin'

:- It is pre%isely be%ause of t)at very %on%lusion t)at you appear to be so %ontroversial in your

%ountry, isn*t it> Be%ause you say (T)ere was a unwritten Kionist plan to e?pel t)e Arabs of

Palestine in 4@('''

A- Absolutely' T)ey were %autious enou) not to write it alt)ou) t)ere was t)is (plan (


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you +now t)at it is w)at )e wants to do, t)is is not %alled e?pulsion' I reard it as e?pulsion' I reard

t)e transfer of people from one nei)bour)ood in Haifa to anot)er as transfer, not as dislo%ation- it

is an e?perien%e of refuee)ood w)i%) is more diffi%ult sometimes t)an leavin your town

altoet)er for you see daily t)e people w)o too+ you )ouse'

;o t)ese are t)e +inds of disareement' I %laim t)at t)ey also stem from ideoloi%al positions, not

0ust from fa%ts' I am more antiKionist if you want, and orris still reards )imself as &ionist, maybe t)is is w)ere t)e differen%e lies'

:- 8ou said somew)ere t)at you were (nonKionist('''

A- No, I meant (postKionist(' Be%ause, to be really antiKionist would mean leavin Israel

altoet)er- if you want to serve t)e Palestinians, you )ave to leave' If you )elp t)em from inside

Israel, t)en you do allow ews to fulfill t)eir dream on a )omeland' T)is is an important messae to

t)e Palestinians as well- t)ere are five millions ews t)ere, you %annot return t)e %lo%+ ba%+wards,

you must ta+e t)em into a%%ount' ")et)er t)ey %ame t)ere as a result of an a%t of in0usti%e or not,

t)ey are part of t)e reality'

:- ost of t)e Palestinians seem now ready to a%%ept t)e two state solution'''

A- 8es' But it is more diffi%ult for Israel be%ause 2 M of t)e Israelis are Palestinian, so it*s a

binational state' #n t)e ot)er )and one will )ave anot)er binational state, Palestine, be%ause I don*t

see any Israeli overnement ever evi%tin t)e settlers, a lare and very )ostile ewis) population' In

t)e lon run, it will affe%t t)e two state solution, and we will )ave to )ave only one state'

:- But t)is is still very unpopular in Israel'''

A- #f %ourse. T)ey )ave a vision of a pea%e plan t)at doesn*t in%lude a enuine soverein

Palestinian state, but bantustans w)ile no sinle settlement would be dismantled, t)e w)ole of

erusalem for t)emselve, no dealin of t)e refuees problem- in t)at %ase, w)y s)ould t)ey oppose

t)e idea of partition> But tell t)em t)at t)e partition means full soverein Palestinian state wit) an

army and so on, evi%tion of t)e settlements, partitionin erusalem, some ri)t of return for t)e

refuees, and you will see w)at t)ey t)in+ of t)e partition.

:- Let*s o ba%+ to 194@' r avid BarIlan re%ently wrote, as many %onservatives t)in+, t)at t)e

responsability of w)at )appened must be put on t)e Palestinian s)oulders be%ause t)ey refused t)e

/N partition plan'''

A- T)is is an ama&in a%%usation' Be%ause, in 1945, t)e /N proposed a solution w)i%) wasa%%epted only by one side, t)e ewis) one' And, in t)e )istory of t)e /nited Nations, usually, if you

don*t )ave an areement of bot) sides, you don*t implement t)at solution' T)ere, t)e story bean to

turn bad' T)e fa%t is t)at you for%e t)e solution on a ma0ority of t)e people livin in Palestine w)o

oppose t)at solution, t)en you s)ouldn*t be surprised t)at t)ey opposed even by for%e' T)is )as

not)in to do wit) t)e e?pulsion of t)e Palestinians, w)i%) was not t)e result of t)e re0e%tion of t)e

partition plan but t)e result of t)e ewis) leaders)ip e?ploitin t)at situation to implement an

ideoloy of transfer' It was %lear to t)e Kionist leaders)ip t)at wit)out t)e uprootin of t)e lo%al

population it would be impossible to implement t)e dream of a ewis) nation state' T)e poli%y

toward t)e partition plan )as very little to do wit) poli%y of t)e e?pulsion- one did not lead to t)e

ot)er' ")at )appened is t)at t)e ewis) %ommunity waited for t)e ri)t moment and e?ploited t)e

ri)t moment to t)e full'

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:- T)e Israeli arument oes on by sayin t)at t)e Palestinian leaders)ip missed a )istori%

opportunity w)en it re0e%ted t)e partition plan'''

A- ay be t)ey did' But even if it is a viable arument and I don*t t)in+ so you don*t e?pel an

entire population be%ause it )as a stupid leaders)ip' But we don*t even )ave t)e ri)t to say t)ey

were wron to refuse t)e partition' T)ey viewed Kionism as a %olonialist movement' And t)ere are

very little reasons not to understand t)at point of view' ust imaine t)e Alerian nationalmovement areein in t)e fifties to divide Aleria into two states, between t)em and t)e w)ite

settlers

A- Israelis in eneral be%ause of t)e leaders)ip' But I t)in+ it will %)ane' T)e ot)er day, aprominent member of t)e Labor party, os)e at&, leadin t)e Palestinian %ommittee of t)e Labor

party, raised t)e idea of t)e return of 1 Palestinians' "as it a trial balloon of I )ope it was, but I doubt it


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poli%y' If people li+e me su%%eed in %onvin%in t)at t)ere is a problem wit) t)e pea%e pro%ess, t)at

all t)e issues s)ould be reopened for neo%iation, may be we %ould prevent t)e ne?t %atastrop)y' If

we don*t, it will ta+e time but people will find out t)at de%larin a permanent solution for t)e

Palestine Guestion in w)i%) only F M of t)e "est Ban+ and of t)e Ca&a strip are in Palestinian

)ands, in w)i%) all erusalem remains in ewis) )ands, wit) no evi%tion of one ewis) settlement,

wit) Israeli %ontrol of borders, water and e%onomy in Palestine, and no solution for t)e refuee

problem, all t)is %annot be %alled pea%e' I t)in+ t)ere is a publi% illusion in t)e "est t)at you )avetwo openin positions )ere- t)e Israeli openin position, t)at I 0ust des%ribed, and t)e Palestinian

one, full independent and soverein state in t)e "est Ban+ and Ca&a, but t)is is not true' T)ere is no

Palestinian pea%e plan' T)e Ameri%ans, unfortunately t)e +ey )ere, understand t)e final stae of t)e

pea%e pro%ess is )ow to %onvin%e t)e Palestinians to a%%ept t)e Israeli di%tate' T)is is w)at we %all

now (pea%e(' And at t)e same time, ewis) settlements o on, silent transfer of Palestinians of

erusalem oes on, t)e Palestinians are offered natural reserves instead of populated areas in t)e

interim staes, Israel )as 0ust %ompleted t)e plan today to build a rin road in East erusalem to

%omplete Creater erusalem w)i%) is 1 M of t)e "est Ban+' And t)ey would ive Arafat anot)er

medal, so )ad t)e +ins of bantustans in ;out) Afri%a'

:- Arafat*s +ind of leaders)ip is disputed but )is rea%tion is to put t)e %riti%s in 0ail as )e did on t)e25t) of November to nine people w)o )ad sined a )ars) petition aainst )im'''

A- 8es t)ere is a problem' T)e Palestinian Aut)ority, under pressure, does two bad t)ins' #ne is to

totally nele%t t)e demo%rati&ation and t)e buildin of a %ivi% so%iety, usin t)e neo%iation wit)

Israel as an e?%use' ;e%ondly, and probably more important, be%ause it is frustrated by t)e balan%e

of power, it plays a double ame w)i%) is not wor+in too well' #n t)e one )and t)ey try,

%ouraeously in a way, to put forwards some %ounterproposals to Israeli proposals, but on t)e ot)er

)and t)ey play a%%ordin to t)e Ameri%ans* tune be%ause t)ey *ve no one else*s to play' It ives a

very ambivalent pi%ture of t)eir ability to rule' T)ey use more often power t)an persuasion to deal

wit) opposition and t)ey may infli%t a lastin damae on t)e Palestinian politi%al life in t)e future

t)at will not be easy to reverse'

:- In ;eptember, r Bara+ e?pressed reret in t)e name of t)e Israeli overnement for t)e sufferin

of t)e Palestinian people but at t)e same time )e denied any sense of uilt or responsability' T)at

prompted Cideon Levy to answer in (Haaret&(- (Are we not responsible for e?pulsin people,

torturin people, erasin )undreds of villaes, arrestin ten of t)ousands wit)out trial>'''(

A- Cideon Levy was very ri)t' But Bara+ didn*t (reret(, )e only said (sorry( for t)em' He

disso%iated t)e sufferin from t)e Israeli poli%y' But we are not only tal+in about poli%y in t)e past,

we are tal+in about poli%y in t)e present' Israelis %ontinue to infli%t sufferin on t)e Palestinians.

T)ey do it in Lebanon, in t)e "est Ban+, in t)e Ca&a ;trip' T)e only pla%e w)ere t)ey almost stopdoin it is in Israel itself, w)ere t)e minority of Palestinian Israelis are now e?perien%in mu%)

better %onditions t)an t)ey did before'

:- It seems t)at, alt)ou) t)ey are enerally well edu%ated, ewis) Israelis don*t really reali&e


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t)e first Kionist settlers, t)e Palestinians as part of t)e s%enery, not as )uman beins' Palestinians are

li+e desert, mosGuitos- t)ins you )ave to %onGuer by vision, enery, improvisation' T)e attitude to

t)e Palestinians is t)e ot)er %oin of t)e Kionist su%%ess' "e were so su%%essfull li+e t)ose in t)e

wild "est'

#t)erwise, you would )ave )ad moral problems t)rou)out t)e story. 8ou %an*t )ave it' 8ou solve

t)at moral problem by sayin t)ese are not eGual )uman beins w)o were uprooted, 0ust savaespart of t)e native population w)i%) we %onGuered as we %onGuered poverty, as we %onGuered )ostile

mosGuitos' T)is is t)e main reason' T)e se%ond reason is t)at mu%) of t)e politi%al %apital of t)e

ewis) state is based on moral superiority w)i%) is demanded by t)e name of t)e Holo%aust' I am

)ated in Israel more t)an everyone else be%ause I %laim t)at I )ave a universal and not a Kionist

lesson from t)e Holo%aust' In t)e name of t)e Holo%aust, I %laim t)at Israel s)ould be as)amed' If

you lived in Israel, you would understand t)at it is really doin too mu%) and may be I s)ould be

more %autious w)en I do it be%ause t)is may be a /turn for too many people' But t)is is e?a%tly t)e

problem' Alt)ou) many t)ins )ad been done to t)e Palestinians before t)e Holo%aust, t)e

Holo%aust 0ustifies everyt)in, w)at )as been done before or after it' Even someone reat

intelle%tual li+e artin Buber %ould )ave said t)e most stupid senten%e of all- ("e )ad to do a small

in0usti%e in order to re%tify a bi in0usti%e(' How %ould you say t)is. ")y s)ould t)e one be%onne%ted to t)e ot)er>

:- id you first be%ome %ommunist or (new )istorian(>

A- I )ave to %orre%t somet)in- I li+e life too mu%) to be %ommunist. I am so%ialist' True I am

member of Hadas) w)i%) is a front w)ere you find t)e %ommunist party to w)i%) I don*t belon'

8ou also find t)e nonKionist Arabewis) roup to w)i%) I belon' I t)in+ bot) my politi%al

%ommitment and )istorian +nown position developped simultaneously' And one supported t)e ot)er'

Be%ause of my ideoloy I understood do%uments I saw in t)e ar%)ives t)e way I understood t)em,

and be%ause of t)e do%uments in t)e ar%)ives I be%ame more %onvin%ed in t)e ideoloi%al way I

too+' A %ompli%ated pro%ess. ;ome %olleaue told me I ruined our %ause by admittin my

ideoloi%al platform' ")y> Everbody in Israel and Palestine )as an ideoloi%al platform' Indeed t)e

strule is about ideoloy, not about fa%ts' ")o +nows w)at fa%ts are> "e try to %onvin%e as many

people as we %an t)at our interpretation of t)e fa%ts is t)e %orre%t one, and we do it be%ause of

ideoloi%al reasons, not be%ause we are trut)see+ers'

:- I suppose you would aree wit) many Arabs w)o say a ewis) state %annot be a demo%rati%

state>

A- It %an*t' If t)e identity of people is %onne%ted to reliion or et)ni% roup and not to %iti&ens)ip, it

means t)at any %iti&en w)o does not belon to t)at nationalism, reliion or et)ni%ity is a se%ond rate%iti&en' If you de%lare t)at t)e state belons to one nation in a binational state, you immediately

%reate a dis%riminative state w)i%) %annot be demo%rati%' It is li+e in Belium- if you de%lare t)e

Belian state e?%lusively $lemis) or e?%lusively "alloon, it would not be de%lared a demo%rati%

state'

:- Israel would answer t)at many Arab states de%lare t)emselve (Islami% states('''

A- I %riti%i&e t)em as well'''

:- 8ou admit t)at most of ewis) Israelis don*t s)are your views' o you see t)ins evolve soon>

A- In absolute term, you are ri)t- we are a small roup of people, but in relative numbers it )as

@


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rown immensely' Two e?emples- w)en we started our wor+ as new )istorians, t)ere were only

t)ree of us' orris, myself and ;)laim w)o was not even livin in Israel' #ne day we were all t)ree

in my %ar drivin to erusalem and I said- if we )ave now a let)al a%%ident, t)is is t)e end of new

)istory in Israel. Now, t)ere is a proliferation of a%ademi%ians and so one s)arin t)ose views' It is

not a Guantitive impressive fa%t but it is a Gualitative one be%ause people at t)e )eart of %ultural

produ%tion in Israel )ave been %onvin%ed by our views' ;)ow me someone w)o wor+s on T! or in

a t)eater or in t)e film industry and even amon t)e leadin 0ournalists


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Politics by Other Means by Benny Morris, The New Republic, 22 marzo 2004! .istory o% Mo&ern Palestine/ One an&, Two Peoples By #lan Pappe1ambri&e ni3ersity Press, pp+, 225

#lan Pappe an& # wal"e& a stretch toether in uneasy companionship, but we ha3e now parte&ways+ #n the late *670s an& early *660s we belone& to a roup &ubbe& the 8New .istorians8o% #srael, which also inclu&e& !3i (hlaim an& Tom (ee3+ This roup, contrary to theconspiratorial imae pro9ecte& by our critics, was ne3er a close)"nit or monolithic school o%

intellectuals who plotte& toether aroun& the table at :ri&ay)niht meals+ (ome o% us barely"new one another+ $ach, in &i%%erent institutions an& &i%%erent cities an& &i%%erent countriesin&ee&, only Pappe was on the %aculty o% an #sraeli uni3ersity5, ha& plie& his cra%t alone an&reache& his conclusions on his own+ But we ha& all written histories %ocusin on #srael an&Palestine in the *640s, an& they ha& all appeare&, mostly in $nlish, in the late *670s, an&ta"en toether they ha& sha"en the ;ionist historioraphic establishment an& permanentlyun&ermine& the tra&itional ;ionist narrati3e o% the #sraeli)!rab con%lict+

#n some measure, our histories also un&ermine& the tra&itional !rab narrati3es o% the con%lictas in my boo" The Birth o% the Palestinian Re%uee Problem, *64 but we approache& history, an& the writin o% history,%rom antithetical stan&points+ Pappe rear&e& history throuh the prism o% contemporarypolitics an& consciously wrote history with an eye to ser3in political en&s+ My own 3iew wasthat while historians, as citizens, ha& political 3iews an& aims, their scholarly tas" was to try toarri3e at the truth about a historical e3ent or process, to illuminate the past as ob9ecti3ely an&accurately as possible+ # belie3e&, an& still belie3e, that there is such a thin as historicaltruth> that it e=ists in&epen&ently o%, an& can be &etache& %rom, the sub9ecti3ities o% scholars>that it is the historian@s &uty to try to reach it by usin as many an& as 3arie& sources as hecan+ ?hen writin history, the historian shoul& inore contemporary politics an& struleaainst his political inclinations as he tries to penetrate the mur" o% the past+ PappeAan&,implicitly, my ;ionist critics such as !nita (hapira an& (habtai Te3ethAha3e arue& that noone is capable o% aban&onin his e&ucational, i&eoloical, an& political baae, an& that #,too, ha3e been moti3ate&, consciously or subconsciously, by my politics an& ha3e re%lecte&accor&in to Pappe5 my soli& ;ionist con3ictions or accor&in to the establishment ;ionists5my soli& anti);ionist con3ictions+

:ROM T.$ :#R(T P!PP$ allowe& his politics to hol& sway o3er his history+ #nitially he wasrather restraine&+ .is %irst boo", Britain an& the !rab)#sraeli 1on%lict, *647)*, publishe& in*677, was blan& an& %lat in tone+ Perhaps this was &ue to its oriins as a &octoral &issertation>perhaps there were other reasons+ #n any e3ent, the boo" a3oi&e& blunt iconoclasm, an& itsinno3ations are e=tremely hesitant unli"e !3i (hlaim in his 1ollusion !cross the Cor&an,publishe& the same year, where it was trenchantly arue& that the Dishu3Athe Cewishcommunity in PalestineAan& the .ashemite rulers o% Cor&an ha& collu&e& to limit their war in*647 an& to nip in the bu& the emerence o% a Palestinian state in the ?est Ban", as en&orse&by the +N+ partition resolution o% No3ember *64


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#n both boo"s Pappe in e%%ect tells his rea&ers/ 8This is what happene&+8 This is strane,because it &irectly con%licts with a secon& ma9or element in his historioraphical outloo"+ Pappeis a prou& postmo&ernist+ .e belie3es that there is no such thin as historical truth, only acollection o% narrati3es as numerous as the participants in any i3en e3ent or process> an&each narrati3e, each perspecti3e, is as 3ali& an& leitimate, as true, as the ne=t+ Moreo3er,e3ery narrati3e is inherently political an&, consciously or not, ser3es political en&s+ $achhistorian is 9usti%ie& in shapin his narrati3e to promote particular political purposes+ (hlomo

!ronson, an #sraeli political scientist, years ao con%ronte& Pappe with the ultimate problemrear&in historical relati3ism/ i% all narrati3es are eEually leitimate an& there is no historicaltruth, then the narrati3e o% .olocaust &eniers is as 3ali& as that o% .olocaust a%%irmers+ Pappe&i& not o%%er a persuasi3e answer, beyon& assertin lamely that there e=ists a lare bo&y o%in&isputable oral testimony a%%irmin that the .olocaust too" place+

This broaches the thir& element in Pappe@s historioraphical approach/ his %aith that oraltestimony is 3aluable an& 3ali&, an& that historians shoul& base their narrati3es also on thetestimony an& the memory o% witnesses, e3en &eca&es a%ter the e3ent+ But in his new boo", asin his pre3ious boo"s, Pappe ma"es no use at allAor almost no useAo% oral testimony, basinhis wor" on primary an& secon&ary written sources+ Perhaps he &oes not really belie3e in the3alue o% oral history> or perhaps he %oun& the wor" in3ol3e& too stress%ul an& time)consumin+

#n any e3ent, ! .istory o% Mo&ern Palestine ma"es no use o% oral sources+

My own 3iew is that the historian must base his wor" on primary written sources, that is, oncontemporaneous &ocuments, an& must be e=cee&inly wary o% oral history, especially whenthe e3ents that are bein remembere& are morally sensiti3e an& politically chare&, an&occurre& many years ao+ #n the absence o% contemporary &ocuments, the historian mayoccasionally &raw upon oral testimony %or 8color8 or a sense o% atmosphere, but ne3er toreconstruct what actually happene&+

(ince so much o% the &ebate about the New .istorians is political, # shoul& a&& that Pappe an &i%%er not only in our metho&s but also in our politics+ ?e are both men o% the le%t> butwhereas since the late *6F0s # ha3e consistently 3ote& abor or Meretz a ;ionist party to the

le%t o% abor5, Pappe, so %ar as # "now, has always 3ote& the #srael 1ommunist Party tic"etun&er its &i%%erent names5 an& has %iure& repeate&ly in the party@s list o% Gnesset can&i&ates+Hurin the past %ew years Pappe has 3eere& e3en %urther le%twar&+ !lthouh his party stilla&3ocates a two)state solution, Pappe, li"e his mentor $&war& (ai&, belie3es that the onlysolution to the !rab)#sraeli con%lict is a sinle bi)national state in all o% Palestine+ # shall returnto this theme+5

(O, !( # (!D, P!PP$ !NH # !?!D( were uncom%ortable companions in our historical tra3els+The outbrea", at the en& o% (eptember 2000, o% the current inti%a&a, which # rear& as aPalestinian rebellion aainst the occupation in the ?est Ban" an& Iaza (trip an& as a political)terroristic assault on #srael@s e=istence an& also as an o%%shoot o% %un&amentalist #slam@sonoin assault on the ?est, in which #srael, un%ortunately, %iures as a %ront)line outpost5,has, li"e a iant centri%ue, sent the New .istorians spinnin towar& opposite corners o% thepolitical uni3erse+ #t has separate& the anti);ionist oats %rom the ;ionist sheep, an& hasaccentuate& their oatish an& sheepish natures+ By now it woul& not be incorrect to call Pappe,as well as (hlaim, an anti);ionist+

(hlaim@s The #ron ?all/ #srael an& the !rab ?orl&, which was publishe& %i3e years ao, ishihly critical o% the ;ionist mo3ement an& #srael+ (ince the start o% the current inti%a&a, hehas mo3e& stea&ily to the le%tAor is it, really, to the rihtJ !%ter all, he shares his anti)#sraelianalysis with $uropean neo)%ascists an& the #slamic 9iha&ists, who openly a&3ocate #srael@s&estruction in the name o% me&ie3al reliious 3alues+ #n an op)e& in the #nternational .eral&Tribune, (hlaim recently i&enti%ie& with the anti)(emitic British o%%icial Cames Troutbec", who inCune, *647 &escribe& the emerent state o% #sraelAthe one that ha& 9ust been assaulte& by abe3y o% !rab states, in &e%iance o% the nite& Nations Partition Resolution o% No3ember, *64


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!s %or Pappe, the outbrea" o% the Palestinian re3olt has thrust him into aca&emic an& politicalprominence as one o% the most outspo"en #sraeli a&3ocates o% a ?estern boycott o% #srael@suni3ersities+ Hurin the past three years, many pro)Palestinian aca&emics in the ?est ha3ecampaine& not 3ery success%ully5 to persua&e their uni3ersities to cut o%% contact with their#sraeli counterparts an& to bloc" research an& in3estment %un&s %rom reachin #srael@suni3ersities> aca&emic 9ournals ha3e re%use& to consi&er or to publish papers by #sraelis> ahan&%ul o% aca&emics ha3e re%use& to super3ise #sraeli postra&uate stu&ents> an& scholars,

such as $uene Roan, hea& o% the Mi&&le $ast 1entre at O=%or&@s (t+ !ntony@s 1ollee, ha3ere%use& to i3e lectures in a country o3erne& by !riel (haron presumably they woul& i3electures in countries run by the li"es o% Bashar al)!ssa& an& the !yatollah Ghamenei5+ Pappehas been at the %ore%ront o% this e%%ort+ #t is worth notin that he has not &ecline& to recei3ewaes %rom a uni3ersity subsi&ize& by the o3ernment whose policies he %in&s so repulsi3e+ #tis also worth notinAhere Pappe@s loic becomes as %lawe& as his ethicsAthat #srael@saca&emic community, the one that has been boycotte& by 8proressi3es8 in the ?est, has beenin the 3anuar& o% the strule within #srael to reconize the Palestinians an& to reach apolitical compromise+ #srael@s uni3ersities, as Prime Minister (haron an& $&ucation Ministerimor i3nat reularly reconize, are a mainstay o% the #sraeli le%tAan& none more so than.ai%a ni3ersity, Pappe@s own institution, which has the hihest proportion o% !rab sta%% an&stu&ents the latter about 20 percent5 in #srael+

T.#( .!( B$$N P!PP$'( PO#T#1! e3olution+ ! .istory o% Mo&ern Palestine is a milestone inhis e3olution as an historian+ .e sets out to tell the story o% Palestine, which he %ar less%reEuently also re%ers to as the an& o% #srael, &urin the nineteenth an& twentieth centuries,startin with Napoleon@s in3asion in * but Pappe is at pains, as he tells us in his%orewor&, not to con%ine himsel% to the usual tale o% hih politics an& military historyAto thethouhts, the wor&s, an& the actions o% lea&ers an& enerals+ #n "eepin with the politicallycorrect norms o% the pro%ession in the contemporary ?est, he %ocuses, rather, on 8the 3ictims8o% 8the in3asions, occupations, e=pulsions, &iscrimination an& racism8 to which Palestine hasbeen sub9ect+ .is 8heroes,8 he says, are the 8women, chil&ren, peasants, wor"ers, or&inary

city &wellers, peaceni"s, human rihts acti3ists8Aan& his 8K3illains@ +++ the arroant enerals,the ree&y politicians, the cynical statesmen an& the misoynist men+8

#t oes almost without sayin that Pappe@s 83ictims8 are primarily Palestine@s !rabs> an& all, oralmost all, o% the 8ree&y8 an& the 8cynical8 are #sraelis+ #n %airness # shoul& a&& that he &oes&ish up some 8misoynist8 Palestinians, which is not surprisin, i3en the %act that in !rab anslamic societies women are by tra&ition, an& o%ten by law, thir&)class members, who o%tenlac" basic rihts in some countries they ha3e no 3ote, in others they cannot &ri3e cars, an& soon5+ #n this respect, Palestinian society is similar to (yrian or Cor&anian or $yptian society, butPappe papers this o3er by repeate&ly pointin to the continuously 8impro3in8 nature o%Palestinian women@s status at certain points in timeA%or e=ample, &urin the two Palestinianinti%a&as or rebellions aainst #srael+

n%ortunately, much o% what Pappe tries to sell his rea&ers is complete %abrication+ #n tryin to&emonstrate women@s rowin political in3ol3ement an&, inci&entally, #sraeli beastliness5, hetells us at one point that 8one thir& o% the o3erall LPalestinian casualties Lin the inti%a&a o%*67


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&iscusse&, an& sometimes &eci&e&+ #n&ee&, the recent sure in #slamic %un&amentalism inPalestinian society has restricte& women e3en more %irmly to hearth an& home than was thecase be%ore the *6


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an in3a&in people, the ;ionist Cews+ Pappe barely mentions the Cewish habitation o%, an& ruleo3er, #srael &urin the thousan& years between Coshua@s in3asion an& the crushin o% the Bar)Gochba Re3olt aainst Rome in * 1+$+ !n& while he mentions the causes that &urin the latenineteenth an& twentieth centuries propelle& a %raction o% the Cewish people to hea& %or thelan& in the e3antAanti)(emitic &iscrimination an& 3iolence in the 1hristian, an& later theMuslim, worl&APappe@s heart is clearly not in it+ .e sees the 8in3asion8 an& the ine3itable clashsolely %rom the !rabs@ perspecti3e+

#n Pappe@s account, there is no %aultin the Palestinians %or reularly assaultin the ;ionistenterpriseAin *620, *62*, *626, *6F)6, *64 that the Palmach 8between*64F an& *6478 %ouht aainst the British in *64 that Ben)Iurion in *626was chairman o% the Cewish !ency $=ecuti3e he was chairman %rom *6 to *6475> that the!rab .iher 1ommittee was establishe& 8by *648 it was set up in *6F5> that the !rabeion &i& not with&raw %rom Palestine, alon with the British, in May, *647 most o% its units&i&5> that the nite& Nations@ partition proposal o% No3ember 26, *64< ha& 8an eEual numbero% supporters an& &etractors8 the 3ote was thirty)three %or, thirteen aainst, an& tenabstentions5> that the 8Cewish %orces Lwere better eEuippe&8 than the in3a&in !rab armies inMay, *647 they were not, by any stretch o% the imaination5> that the %irst truce was 8sine&8on Cune *0, *647 it was ne3er 8sine&,8 an& it bean on Cune **5> that in !uust, *647 8the

success%ul #sraeli campains continue&, lea&in to their complete control o% Palestine, apart%rom the ?est Ban" an& the Iaza (trip8 the (econ& Truce pre3aile& &urin !uust an&(eptember, an& war%are was resume& only in mi&)October5> that the Iran& Mu%ti %le& Palestine

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in *67 he le%t in October, *6 that the .ebrew ni3ersity o% Cerusalem was 8built +++ in*6208 it was %oun&e& in *62 an& constructe& &urin the %ollowin &eca&es5> that Tel !3i3was 8%oun&e& +++ on a (atur&ay mornin in Culy *60 that the latenineteenth)century ;ionist pioneers "nown as the Biluim establishe& 8the %irst ;ionistsettlements in Palestine8 they &i& not5, an& that they 8were le&8 by Moshe ilienblum an&eon Pins"er they were not5> that 8the #sraeli :orein O%%ice +++ translate& L+N+ (ecurity1ouncil Resolution 242 into .ebrew in a way that implie& that it &i& not ha3e to with&raw%rom all the territories it ha& occupie& Lin the (i= Hay ?ar8 the resolution, in the

authoritati3e $nlish oriinal, spea"s o% with&rawal 8%rom Loccupie& territories,8 not 8theterritories8 or 8all the territories85> that in *6 that Blac" (eptember, the Cor&anian crac"&own aainst the PO, too"place in *6F6 it was in *6 that the %irst settlements in the ?est Ban" were establishe& in*6F7 they were establishe& in *6F that there was an anti).ashemite 8uprisin8 in Cor&anin *6F there were anti).ashemite or anti)Bah&a& Pact riots in Cor&an in *6, but not anuprisin5> that 8the neotiations on Palestine@s %uture pro&uce& L&urin ?orl& ?ar # three&ocuments/ the .usayn)McMahon correspon&ence, the (y"es)Picot !reement an& the Bal%ourHeclaration8 only the last %ocuse& on Palestine@s %uture5> that 8in (eptember *6*7 the north o%Palestine was ta"en Euietly Lby the British army8 it was ta"en in battle, the Battle o%!rmae&on or Mei&o5> that 800 Cews8 an& a similar number o% !rabs were "ille& in the

!rab riotin o% *626 9ust o3er one hun&re& Cews an& a similar number o% !rabs &ie&5> an& soon an& on an& on+

!I!#N, P!PP$'( $RROR'( are not merely a matter o% sloppiness born o% a contempt %or thatlea3en o% &ullar&s, 8the %acts+8 The boo" is also awash with errors resultin %rom the writer@si&eoloical pre%erences, his interest in blac"enin the ;ionists an& whitenin the Palestinians+.is &escription o% the e3ents o% *620 in which Pappe pro3es the &ictum that necessityAin thiscase, an i&eoloical imperati3eAis the mother o% in3ention5 is surely a classic o% the enre/

#n !pril *620, a Nabi Musa rally La Muslim celebration commemoratin the prophet Mosesclashe& with the most aressi3e o% the ;ionist oranizations, Beitar, whose members marche&pro3ocati3ely in the streets o% !rab Cerusalem at the time o% the %east, an& a &ay o% 3iolence

en&e& with &eaths on both si&es++++ ! LBritish commission o% inEuiry, the Palin 1ommission,conclu&e& the ob3ious/ that there was rowin &issatis%action amon the Palestinian elite withthe British pro);ionist +++ policy+

#n %act, Pappe@s e3enhan&e&ness, while morally commen&able, is out o% place+ There was no8pro3ocati3e8 Cewish march throuh !rab Cerusalem> there was no march at all+ ?hat occurre&was an unpro3o"e& assault on Cewish passersby an& shops by a politically an& reliiouslyin%lame& Muslim mob+ The subseEuent British in3estiation, embo&ie& in the Palin Report,%oun& that a Muslim !rab reliious procession, incite& by, amon others, .a9 !min al .usseinian& !ri% al)!ri% a Palestinian 9ournalist5, ha& attac"e& Cews alon Ca%%a Roa& in Cewish ?est5Cerusalem an& then insi&e the Ol& 1ity+ Beitar, the youth mo3ement o% the riht)winRe3isionist Mo3ement, was %oun&e& in *62, so clearly it coul& not ha3e ha& a han& in thee3ents o% *620+ $3en a postmo&ernist can see that5 The Palin Report, ac"nowle&in theporom %or what it was, state& that 8all the e3i&ence oes to show that these L!rab attac"swere o% a cowar&ly an& treacherous &escription, mostly aainst ol& men, women an& chil&renA%reEuently in the bac"8 thouh, to roun& out the picture, Palin &i& attribute the risin ti&e o%!rab aner to Britain@s pro);ionist policy5+

Brazen inaccuracy similarly mar"s Pappe@s treatment o% the !rab Re3olt o% *6F)*66+ Pappewrites that the !rab .iher 1ommittee ha& trie& to 8neotiate a principle& settlement with theCewish !ency8 it &i& not5> that in 8October *6F8 the !.1 8&eclare& a eneral stri"e8 it was&eclare& in May, *6F an& en&e& in October5> that 8in !uust L*6 an& that 8Euite a%ew8 o% the Palestinian &ea& in the *6F)*66 rebellion were women there are no accurate

%iures, but there can be no &oubt that only a han&%ul o% the three thousan& to si= thousan&Palestinian &ea& were women, who enerally too" no part in the riotin an& the %ihtin5+

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Pappe writes that 8in the *6F6 election, the mo&erate $sh"ol coul& not pre3ail aainst themore in%le=ible Iol&a Meir8 $sh"ol simply &ie& in o%%ice, an& his party, Mapai, selecte& Meir ashis successor, an& later, in the eneral elections o% *6F6, the incumbent prime minister Meir,hea&in the Mapai list, ran aainst, an& beat, a collection o% riht)win, reliious, an& le%t)winparties5> that there were one million Palestinians li3in outsi&e Palestine by the en& o% the*647 war the number was no more than three hun&re& thousan&5> that 8the %i&a@iyyunLliterally, sel%)sacri%icers or uerrillas +++ acti3ities initially consiste& o% attempts to retrie3e lostproperty8 this was probably true o% in%iltratin Palestinian re%uees, but the %i&a@iyyun, set up

by $ypt only in *64)*6, %rom the %irst were enae& in intellience an& terrorist acti3ities,not in property retrie3al5> that 8ebanon was &estroye& in L#sraeli carpet bombin %rom the airan& shellin %rom the roun&8 in *672 ebanon was not &estroye&, thouh se3eralneihborhoo&s in a number o% cities were ba&ly &amae&, an& there was no 8carpetbombin85+ !ain, the list is en&less+

?here Pappe@s i&eoloical bent is not responsible %or outriht in3entions an& errors, it lea&sinstea& to narrati3e lopsi&e&ness+ .e &e3otes a %ull se3en paes to instances o% ;ionist)!rabcooperation an& co)e=istence which he calls 8cohabitation85 &urin the !rab re3olt o% *6F)*66, but only two paes to the actual re3olt an& its conseEuences+ (urely the re3olt itsel% was%ar more important than the han&%ul o% concurrent inconseEuential !rab)Cewish contacts aiminat coe=istence+ !n& Pappe &e3otes a mere si=teen paes to the re3olutionary uphea3al o% the

*647 warAsurely the central e3ent in Palestine@s mo&ern historyAan& two o% those paes aremaps+ (till, *647 &oes relati3ely well in this rear&/ the *6 an& close to one an& a hal% million !rabs o% the Iaza (trip5+ There woul& beinstant chaos, as !rab an& Cewish communities woul& 3ie %or &ominance an& try to settle ol&scores, an& as the two to three million re%uees %rom *647 an& their &escen&ants, nowresi&ent in the ?est Ban" an& Iaza, woul& ma"e trac"s %or, an& try to repossess, lost housesan& lan&s in pre)*6F< #srael+

Moreo3er, were the 8riht o% return8 to be a&opte&Aas woul& be &eman&e& by Palestine@s!rabs an& the surroun&in !rab worl&, perhaps with $uropean en&orsementAanother million!rabs woul& pour into the country %rom the re%uee camps in Cor&an, ebanon, an& (yria,instantly creatin an !rab ma9ority in the 8bi)national8 state+ #% that state were &emocratic, thema9ority woul& &etermine its character, an& in %airly short or&er it woul& become an !rab statewith a ra&ually &ecreasin Cewish minority+ ?ithout &oubt, the !rab ma9ority woul& passleislation bloc"in %urther Cewish immiration into the country> an&, eEually without &oubt,Cews woul& bein to lea3e+

But e3en without implementation o% an instant or ra&ual return o% re%uees %rom outsi&ePalestine, Pappe@s binational state woul& Euic"ly become an !rab)ma9ority state, i3en relati3e!rab an& Cewish birthrates+ Palestinian !rab %amilies ha3e an a3erae o% %our or %i3e chil&renan& this inclu&es #sraeli !rab househol&s5, while #sraeli Cewish %amilies ten& to ha3e two orthree chil&ren+ ?ithin a &eca&e or so o% its creation, the bi)national state woul& ha3e an !rabma9ority+ # %in& it &i%%icult to imaine what sort o% li%e Pappe really belie3es that he an& hischil&ren an& ran&chil&ren can e=pect as members o% a Cewish minority in an !rab state+ !%ter

all, the Cewish minorities in the #slamic !rab worl& ha3e %are& poorly o3er the centuries, alwayssub9ect to secon&)class citizenship an& o%ten to brutal oppression an& massacre> as late as the*640s they su%%ere& %rom &iscriminatory laws an& poroms in Bah&a&, Tripoli, !&en5> an& by

1F


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the *6F0s they ha& all %le&, or been e=pelle& %rom, their nati3e lan&s+ #raE, with one hun&re&thirty)%i3e thousan& Cews in *647, has to&ay about %i%ty Cews> $ypt, once with se3enty)%i3ethousan&, has about one hun&re&> Morocco, with two hun&re& si=ty)%i3e thousan& in *647, hasabout si= thousan&+ :or all practical purposes, these countries ha3e been ethnically cleanse& o%their Cews+ !lmost no Cews at all are le%t in Demen or !leria, an& none, as %ar as # "now, li3ein (au&i !rabia, ibya, Oman, Guwait, or the nite& !rab $mirates+

! Muslim)&ominate& Palestine woul& be e3en less benin or hospitable towar& its Cewish

minority+ !%ter all, the Palestinians are not a particularly %ori3in people the cry %or re3eneseems to be on the lips o% e3ery suici&e bomber5, an& what they ha3e su%%ere& at Cewish han&ssince *64< will not easily be erase& %rom their collecti3e an& in&i3i&ual memories+ Moreo3er,the #slamic !rab worl&, inclu&in !ra%at@s Palestinian !uthority, has shown little penchant %or&emocracy+ More enerally, tolerance o% the 8other8 is not a &eeply inraine& tra&ition in theMuslim !rab worl&, as the %ate o% the !rab worl&@s 1hristian communities in the nineteenth an&twentieth centuries will attest+ oo" at (u&an+5 Nor woul& the social an& economic apbetween the Cews an& the !rabs o% Pappe@s bi)national state ma"e %or peace%ul co)e=istence+

(o # &oubt that #&o an& Donatan will en9oy li%e in their new Muslim !rab)&ominate&en3ironment+ My pre&iction is that, whate3er their politics, they will Euic"ly repair to $urope or!merica+ !n& i%, contrary to loic, they stic" it out, they will en9oy an e=istence in%initely less

%ree, creati3e, an& pleasant than that currently en9oye& by #srael@s !rab minority citizens+ Thistruly is an appallin boo"+ !nyone intereste& in the real history o% Palestine#srael an& thePalestinian#sraeli con%lict woul& &o well to run 3iorously in the opposite &irection+

Benny Morris teaches Mi&&le $ast history at Ben)Iurion ni3ersity+ .e is the author, mostrecently, o% The Birth o% the Palestinian Re%uee Problem Re3isite& 1ambri&e ni3ersityPress5+ This article appeare& in the March 22, 2004 issue o% The New Republic+

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Benny Morris's ies !bout My Boo" by #lan Pappe,$lectronic #nti%a&a, 0 marzo 2004

Mr+ Pappe is a senior lecturer in the political science &epartment at .ai%a ni3ersity+#n March the New Republic publishe& Benny Morris's harsh re3iew o% #llan Pappe's new boo", !.istory o% Mo&ern Palestine/ One an&, Two Peoples+ Mr+ Pappe wrote a response an& as"e&TNR to publish it+ TNR &ecline&+ .is response appears below+

Benny Morris tells his rea&ers in the New Republic that he an& # wal"e& a stretch o% roa&

toether as 're3isionist historians+' This is how an article beins with a %actual mista"e> anarticle which is meant to show that my wor"s are a %abrication+ This is a %alsi%ication o% historyas # coul& not be a partner to a person who ha& alrea&y in *677 hel& 3iews # %oun& morallyunacceptable+ # was pri3y to the 3iews he only aire& later on, alrea&y in our %irst meetin bac"in the late *670s+ # was %ully aware A as he seeme& to trust me A o% his abominable racist3iews about the !rabs in eneral an& the Palestinians in particular+ nli"e others, # &i& not %eelthat his oo& Eualities as a chronoloist which came out in his most %amous boo", The Birth o%the Palestinian Re%uee Problem 1ambri&e *67


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his re3iew in the New Republic when he smeare& my %rien& !3i (hlaim who %ell %rom race inMorris's eyes because o% his ;ionism+ Morris accuses (hlaim %or i&enti%yin with a British&iplomat o% the *640s whom he calls Cames Troutbec" an& whom he sees as an anti)(emite+There was ne3er such a person+ Morris probably means Cohn Troutbec" who was not an anti)(emite as Morris writes, Euite the contrary+

Hoes this misspellin o% the name, or that o% almost all the !rab an& Palestinian names hementions in his %irst boo" &isable us %rom un&erstan&in the points he ma"es or miss the zeal

with which he &ri3es them homeJ Or &oes his manipulation o% the Ben)Iurion &iary's te=t, ashas been e=pose& un%ortunately by a ri3al o% both o% us, $phraim Garsh who re9ects the 'newhistory' but none the less e=pose& a serious ap between Morris' te=t an& the oriinal &iary o%Ben)Iurion, the %irst prime minister o% #srael5 o% all people, un&ermine our respect %or hiswor"J Not in my boo"s at least+ # am worrie& about moral issues not the natural human %ollieso% pro%essional historians+

But Morris wants to persua&e us that this is not the nature o% the historioraphical &ebate+ .is3iew as state& in the New Republic article is/ 8that while historians, as citizens, ha& political3iews an& aims, their scholarly tas" was to arri3e at the truth about the historical e3ent orprocess, to illuminate the past as ob9ecti3ely an& accurately+8 The 8noble &ream,8 an !mericanhistorian calle& it in the beinnin o% the last century+ But this in Morris's case is not a noble

&ream A as he is not a &reamer li"e mysel% A this is pure cynicism+ !n #sraeli historian who9usti%ies ethnic cleansin, writes about it in The Birth o% the Palestinian Re%uee Problem an&e3en recently republishe& an up&ate& 3ersion o% this boo"5 cannot claim to be a 8neutral8historian+

?hy &i& he twice write the boo" on that episo&e in historyJ Cust by sheer acci&entJ Morris tellsus in the pre%ace to the up&ate& boo" on the *647 war that new material prompte& him tore3ise the boo"+ But in %act this is not what &istinuishes his two boo"s+ The %irst was writtenat a time when it was bon ton to be a 'peaceni"' an& his 3ersion o% history was that the ethniccleansin in Palestine the massi3e e=pulsion o% about


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there%ore he lists an en&less number o% mista"es+ .e %in&s them all in my recent boo", !.istory o% Mo&ern Palestine/ One an&, Two Peoples 1ambri&e ni3ersity Press, 2005+ Thisboo" tells the history o% Palestine %rom the point o% 3iew o% its wor"ers, peasants, chil&ren,women an& all the subaltern roups that ma"e the society an& not its political elite+ #t is also aboo" that wishes to see Cews an& Palestinians li3in one &ay in one state+

There are, accor&in to Morris, to bein with/ the ran& mista"es+ .ere they are+ The %irst,that the Palestinians were the main 3ictims o% the con%lict in the last two hun&re& years5+ #

thin" e3en the ma9ority o% the rea&ers o% the New Republic are %amiliar with that %act+ But %orsomeone who rear&s the !rabs as barbarians an& almost semi)human it is clear that theirsu%%erin is not eEual to that o% the ci3ilize& ;ionists+

(econ&ly, there was no Palestinian %eminism or women's participation in the national strule>nor were they oranize&+ Morris &oes not only lac" !rabic, he &oes not as a rule rea& or Euoteany wor" o% Palestinian women A or %or that matter other women's wor" or Palestinian malehistorians+ 8There are no oo& Palestinian historians8 he tol& a crow&e& hall sittin ne=t to mean& $&war& (ai& in *667+ My "nowle&e an& rea&in, an& in&ee& wor"in with %eministhistorians, is a 8%actual8 mista"e+ Ta"e the Euestion o% women casualties A he uses only #sraelisources to show that he is riht an& # am wron+

Des, # use Palestinian sources %or the #nti%a&a/ they seem to me to be more reliable, # a&mit+ #nhis inorance, an& as he has not been in the occupie& territories %or years, which # 3isitreularly, he claims that, e3er since *677, that #slamic %un&amentalism restricte& women'sparticipation in the con%rontation with the occupyin %orces+ Ten minutes %rom where he li3eshe coul& ha& witnesse& the %irst &emonstration o% the present #nti%a&a+ Only women A many o%them 3eile& A participate& in it in the un%ul%ille& hope that the #sraeli army woul& not shootthem5+ But e3en $ast Cerusalem, its history an&, yes, e3en its &ocuments are not 8leitimate8bric"s in the house o% history he buil&s+

Thir&ly, he claims # in3ent a history o% chil&ren> presumably they are not a sub9ect matter inhis rea&in as they &o not appear in the political archi3es+ Ho the rea&ers o% the New Republicreally nee& remin&in o% the reat wor"s &one on chil&ren's history here, in $urope an& the

Mi&&le $astJ But, Morris ne3er rea& one wor" on Ottoman history there%ore he claims no onecan write the history o% chil&ren in Palestine+ The #H: archi3es, his shrine o% truth, has notwritten about them, unless they were 3ictims o% massacres+

.is %ourth point is that # ha3e not mentione& Bar)Goch3a A a Cewish hero who %ouht aainstthe Romans+ This alleation comes %rom someone who says in the beinnin o% this article thathe is on the le%t+ Des we "now that in the name o% Bar)Goch3a an& other Cews who ha& roame&Palestine two thousan&s years ao, Palestinians were e=pelle& %rom their homes+ But #thouht, as Morris says in the beinnin o% the article, he came to &econstruct ;ionisthistorioraphy not to propaate it+

Then there are the smaller mista"es+ #n some cases he 9ust openly lies+ :or instance # write in

the boo" in pae *07/ 8The Palmach, the (tern Iroup an& Menachem Bein's #run woul&emere at the en& o% the man&ate+8 Morris writes in or&er to in%late the list o% 8%abrications8/8accor&in to Pappe, the (tern Ian an& the Palmach e=iste& be%ore the Re3olt8 withouti3in a pae number o% course5+

?hy &oes he lie openlyJ # hope this is out o% commitment to his new cause an& not malice+ Onpae 26 # write that Ben Iurion became the chairman o% the Cewish !ency in *6+ Morriswrites/ 8accor&in to Pappe, Ben)Iurion in *626 was the chairmen o% the Cewish !ency+8 !n&so on an& so %orth, e3ery %act, apart %rom two or three, is bein brouht be%ore the rea&ers asa sheer lie+ But o% course he nee&s this list so as to show that in what counts A minute &etailsA there is no en& to my mista"es+ ?ell, it seems to recap on $+ .+ 1arr's &ictum that to praisethe historian %or his %acts is li"e praisin the architect %or the timber o% the woo&+ Morris'stimber is not o% best Euality, an& his architecture is monstrous+

Morris attributes my mista"es %or bein almost a Palestinian+ The moment you are a Palestinian

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you can only be a ba& historian+ .e &etests, as he a&mits, my si&in with the Palestiniannarrati3e o% &ispute& e3ents, such as the &ebate o3er the Euestion o% who pro3o"e& the *620an& the *626 riots+ Morris relies on the British reports when they en&orse& the ;ionist claimsan& &isrear&s the British reports when they en&orse the Palestinian claims+ # probably &o theopposite in many cases, # a&mit it> he &oes not+ .e is an 8ob9ecti3e8 historian+

(imilarly amazin is the way Morris treats thins he &oes not "now+ Ta"e %or e=ample the%ollowin sentence/ 8Brazen inaccuracy similarly mar"s Pappe's treatment o% the !rab Re3olt o%

*6F)*66+ Pappe writes that the !rab .iher 1ommittee ha& trie& to 8neotiate a principle&settlement with the Cewish !ency it &i& not5+8 ?hy &i& it not A Morris says so+ ?ell thehistorian Dizhar .erzo mine& the belo3e& archi3es o% Morris A the ;ionist !rchi3es A an& hasi3en us a &etaile& picture o% these neotiations+Q #n his haste Morris e3en contra&icts himsel%when he &isarees with the %iure # a3e %or the number o% re%uees li3in outsi&e Palestine inthe en& o% the *647 war, which is base&, amon other thins on his own wor"+ #n other cases,he echoes #sraeli propaan&a when he claims no &amae was in%licte& on ebanon in the *672war+

My boo" has in it mista"es o% the &ates, names an& numbers as &o his boo"s+ ?e shoul& all tryan& minimize them to note, # aree+ ery %ew o% us succee& an& one can only hope to becomeper%ect in the ne=t wor" A which has not as yet been written the ?ell Gept (ecret amon

historians who ser3e& as rea&ers %or other historians5+ They shoul& not howe3er be pointe& outas part o% an i&eoloy or a basis %or a& hominem attac"+ ?orse, a re3iewer is not allowe& to lieopenly about them as Morris &oes+

:inally, Morris &eci&e& to in3ol3e my two boys, whom he "nows well, in his narrati3e+ They, hee=plains to the rea&ers, woul& be the %irst ones to lea3e Palestine or to be "ille& there, i% mypolitical 3ision woul& become a reality+ My boys "now Morris/ they ha3e met him+ They alsoha3e met all my Palestinian %rien&s+ # lea3e to the rea&ers to &eci&e with whom amon my3isitors an& %rien&s they woul& wish to share the lan& o% Palestine+ They ha3e se3erala&3antaes/ they are learnin !rabic, they &o not &istinuish between my %rien&s accor&in tonationality or reliion an& # hope they will ne3er row to be mature supporters o% massacres,ethnic cleansin an& bloo&she&+

nli"e Morris, they &o not tell my Palestinian stu&ents that i% there were to be too many o%them A as a result o% the riht o% return or birth A it is the en& o% ci3ilization as the Nazis ha&tol& the Cews5+ They are luc"y to be rowin up in an atmosphere where maybe they ot !&ol%.itler's birth&ate wron by a year, but they will &o all they can to pre3ent the Nazi 3enom %romslippin throuh the 3eins o% its own an& ultimate 3ictims who came an& colonize& Palestine,uproote& its population an& occupie& an& brutalize& many o% them+ Morris will probably %eelunwelcome in such as society o% eEuality between people an& races an& yet woul& write itshistory an& claim to be 8ob9ecti3e8 about it all+

Q(ee his article 'Neotiations between the Cewish !ency an& the Palestinians' in #lan Pappe

e&+5, Cewish)!rab Relationship in Man&atory Palestine> ! New !pproach to the .istoricalResearch, Ii3at .a3i3a *662, pp+ **)42+

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Ilan Pappe Versus Benny Morris

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