The US Congress is ahead of the Israeli government itself in calling for recognition of the Jewish refugee issue. Writing in the Jerusalem Post, Yossi Ben-Aharon of WOJAC explains why the Jewish refugees should be firmly on the agenda at the Middle East peace conference in November.
" One of the topics to be discussed at the November meeting of Middle East leaders in Washington is the Palestinian refugee issue. UN Security Council Resolution 242, which remains the sole agreed basis for an Arab-Israel peace agreement, contains a reference to "a just solution of the refugee problem." It makes no reference to Palestinian refugees. The omission was not accidental, because the council understood there was also the problem of Jewish refugees from Arab countries.
"Over the years, Arab and Palestinian spokesmen have presented a strong case regarding the plight of the Palestinian refugees. They have argued that the Palestinians are the original owners of the land, the Jews were foreign invaders who took it by force, and as a result, the Palestinian refugees became the innocent victims of the Arab-Israel conflict. Hence, they insist on the "right of return" of the Palestinians to the land and properties they left in 1948.
"This narrative ignores another aspect of the story. Shortly after the November 1947 Partition Plan was passed by the UN, a wave of anti-Jewish pogroms took place in several Arab countries. By May 1948, the situation of Jews in these countries became untenable. The Arab invasion of Israel triggered a massive movement of populations in opposite directions. Jews fled to Israel and Arabs fled to the countries bordering on Palestine. In making their case, the Arabs have consistently refrained from acknowledging the mass exodus of some 800,000 Jews from Arab countries. Jewish communities had lived in the Arab world long before the advent of Islam - and before the Arabs gained their identity as a people.
"Successive governments of Israel have embraced a proposal to conduct a survey of Jewish property which was confiscated by Arab governments, or left behind by Jews who were expelled or who emigrated to Israel. The idea is to prepare a dossier for negotiations on the refugee issue and addressing possible claims for restitution by both sides.
"Referring to the refugee issue in a recent statement in the Knesset, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said: "Clearly, a Palestinian state is the sole, complete solution for Palestinians everywhere, the integral national solution to the refugee problem."
"Unfortunately, she made no mention of the Jewish refugees from Arab countries, thus missing an opportunity to call the world's attention to the fact that there were two refugee crises and both should be addressed."
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