One of the lynchpins of the palestinian narrative is the “Naqba” and the palestinian refugees. Over time, the official palestinian narrative has evolved to claim that Israel expelled all 700,000 palestinian Arabs from what is now Israel, even though there are those Israel haters who do mention fleeing.
For instance, last year I noticed how in 2014, PA President Mahmoud Abbas told students in Ramallah
Someone asked me: How [could we receive] Israeli citizenship? I said: You are returning to the state of Israel. After all, the refugees, numbered at five million, and their children – were all expelled from the 1948 territories. There is no refugee from Nablus or Ramallah. They are all from Tiberius, Acre, Safed, Nazareth, Jaffa or Beersheba. If you want to return to Israel and receive an Israeli citizenship or not – you are free [to decide].”
changing his tune from this previous statement of his in 1976
“The Arab armies entered Palestine to protect the Palestinians from the Zionist tyranny but, instead, they abandoned them, forced them to emigrate and to leave their homeland, and threw them into prisons similar to the ghettos in which the Jews used to live.”
But now it seems we have proof on film of Abbas admitted that for the most part, the palestinian Arabs fled.
“We shall not repeat the mistakes of the past. We shall not repeat the mistakes of 1948 and 1967. We shall stay here regardless of the occupation and the settlements. We shall not leave this country.”
In the context of stating they had made a mistake but will now not leave, Abbas seems to be admitting they fled when they had a choice not to. This seems to align with his 1976 statements.
Note how Abbas here also mentions 1967. The Arabs fled and, in a fact not known by most, were offered a chance to return, which they refused.
Hat tip: Liad
