The land of Israel/Palestine has been fiercely disputed throughout the last 3,000 years. Through the Roman occupation, Crusades and the most recently the Arab-Israeli conflict, this small strip of land has a continuous history of conquest, war and bloodshed.When I talk to friends about teaching this, their knowledge is often good and they have heard a lot about the problem. But, many also say that they don't know enough about it to have a full viewpoint on the issues.
It's difficult to fully understand all of these issues but there are many aspects to find fascinating (and deeply distressing) about the study of this area but the deep feelings expressed by either side are perhaps some of the most hard-hitting.
This was recited by Palestinian school children at the beginning of their school day:
Palestine is our country
Our aim is to return
Death does not frighten us
Palestine is ours
We shall never forget her
Another homeland we shall never accept.
The second is one (probably very popular) Jewish view from the 1940s:
There is no room for both peoples in this country. If the
Arabs leave the country, it will be broad and wide-open for us. If the Arabs
stay, the country will remain narrow and miserable. The only solution is Israel
without Arabs.
The question is: How did the two sides end up so divided and will there ever be a solution?
