Okay, maybe I missed something here, or are we getting into objective relativism here? Let's simplify and edit the statements a bit to clarify statements of fact, or "truths.":

Roots of the Conflict



1. When the United Nations proposed the establishment of two states in the region -- one Jewish, one Arab -- the Jews accepted the proposal and declared their independence in 1948.

The Jewish state constituted only 1/6 of one percent of what was known as "the Arab world."

The Arab states rejected the UN plan.

In 1948, five Arab armies invaded Israel in an effort to eradicate it.

2. The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was founded in 1964 -- three years before Israel controlled the West Bank and Gaza.

The PLO's declared purpose was to eliminate the State of Israel by means of armed struggle.

To this day, the website of Yasser Arafat's Palestinian Authority (PA) claims that the entirety of Israel is "occupied" territory.

3. The West Bank and Gaza (controlled by Jordan and Egypt from 1948 to 1967) came under Israeli control during the Six Day War of 1967.

During their 19-year rule, neither Jordan nor Egypt had made any effort to establish a Palestinian state on those lands.

4. Many leaders of the Palestinian cause have long supported our enemies. The Grand Mufti of Jerusalem allied himself with Adolf Hitler during WWII.

Yasser Arafat, chairman of the PLO and president of the PA, has repeatedly targeted and killed Americans.

In 1973, Arafat ordered the execution of Cleo Noel, the American ambassador to the Sudan.

Arafat was very closely aligned with the Soviet Union and other enemies of the United States throughout the Cold War.

In 1991, during the Gulf War, Arafat aligned himself with Saddam Hussein.

5. Israel has, in fact, returned most of the land that it captured during the 1967 war. Israel returned the Sinai desert, a territory three times the size of Israel and 91 percent of the territory Israel took control of in the 1967 war.

6. In 2000, as part of negotiations for a comprehensive and durable peace, Israel offered to turn over all but the smallest portion of the remaining territories to Yasser Arafat.

7. [Part on 1974 "Plan of Phases" deleted because I could find no original reference to this document that I was satisfied with]

8. The recently deceased Faisal al-Husseini, a leading Palestinian spokesman declared that the West Bank and Gaza represented only "22 percent of Palestine" and that the Oslo process was a "Trojan Horse."

9. To this day, the Fatah wing of the PLO (the "moderate" wing that was founded and is controlled by Arafat himself) has as its official emblem the entire state of Israel covered by two rifles and a hand grenade.

10. Depictions of Jews in Arab and Muslim media [include] claims that Jews use Christian and Muslim blood in preparing their holiday foods.

Sheik Ahmad Halabaya stated, "They [the Jews] must be butchered and killed, as Allah the Almighty said: 'Fight them: Allah will torture them at your hands.' Have no mercy on the Jews, no matter where they are, in any country. Fight them, wherever you are. Wherever you meet them, kill them."

11. Over three-quarters of Palestinians approve of suicide bombings.

12. There are 21 Arab countries in the Middle East and only one Jewish state: Israel, which is also the only democracy in the region.

13. Israel is the only country in the region that permits citizens of all faiths to worship freely and openly. Twenty percent of Israeli citizens are not Jewish.

14. While Jews are not permitted to live in many Arab countries, Arabs are granted full citizenship and have the right to vote in Israel. Arabs are also free to become members of the Israeli parliament (the Knesset).

Several Arabs have been democratically elected to the Knesset and have been serving there for years.

15. Israel is smaller than the state of New Hampshire and is surrounded by nations hostile to her existence.

Some peace proposals including the recent Saudi proposal demand withdrawal from the entire West Bank, which would leave Israel 9 miles wide at its most vulnerable point.

16. [Resolution 242 legal opinion omitted. It's a legal opinion, not a "fact."]

17. [Pretty much identical to Item 6]

18. Israeli settlements -- which constitute less than two percent of the territories -- almost never displace Palestinians.

19. The area of the West Bank includes some of the most important sites in Jewish history. East Jerusalem is the site of Judaism's holiest monument.

While under Arab rule (1948-67), this area was entirely closed to Jews. Since Israel took control, it has been open to people of all faiths.

20. [No specific facts mentioned--basically a question]



Now, I am not saying all of these are true, but which of these exactly are not facts, or are actual lies? E.P. says there are so many mistakes he can't even count them. Where?

Please feel free to point them out.