Israel's 'New Historians' and Palestinian academic colleagues have in recent years thrown new light on much that has been hidden from public view about what happened in Palestine whilst Britain was in control. They have especially debunked the myths and lies about the creation of Israel and the Palestinian refugee crisis and exposed Britain's role in it.
"Imagine that not so long ago, in any given country you are familiar with, half of the entire country had been forcibly expelled within a year, half of its villages and towns wiped out, leaving behind only rubble and stone. Imagine now the possibility that somehow this act will never make it into the history books and that all diplomatic efforts to solve the conflict will totally sideline , if not ignore, this catastrophic event." Ilan Pappe (2006)
The Palestinian Nakba is unsurpassed in history. For a country to be occupied by a foreign minority, emptied almost entirely of its people, its physical and cultural landmarks obliterated, its destruction hailed as a miraculous act of God and a victory for freedom and civilised values, all done according to a premeditated plan, meticulously executed, financially and politically supported from abroad, and still maintained today, is no doubt unique (Abu Sitta 1998: 5).Dr Salman Abu Sitta is author of The Return Journey (2007) Palestine Land Society, Atlas of Palestine, 1948 Palestine Land Society (January 2004) , the Palestinian Nakba 1948: The register of depopulated localities in Palestine (1998 reprinted 2000).
