The Historical Background to the Israel-Gaza Conflict

A brief review of the history leading up to the current conflict. Part One of the Project Witness webinar series.
For recommended reading, please visit: henryabramson.com/recommended...
Interested in studying more deeply? Join our learning community of students, researchers and colleagues by becoming a Channel Member: / @henryabramsonphd
Online Courses:
Biblical Jewish History: From Abraham to Bar Kochba
Course information and registration here: henryabramson.com/course/bibl...
A Thousand Years of Ashkenaz!
Course information and registration here: henryabramson.com/course/a-th...
The Holocaust
Course information and registration here: henryabramson.com/course/the-...

[@shescrafty2553]

Thank you once again for the level headed analysis that shows both sides of the issue. Please please post more videos with the points of view from both sides.

[@tomsuiteriii9742]

I’m surprised you didn’t mention the Moabite Inscription (Mesha Stele), Prof. Abramson. That’s another excellent, extra-biblical reference to Israel in the early Iron Age. A wonderful lecture, as always!

[@anapadilla7193]

where can i find more on this? recommendations plz :)

[@ems4884]

True. But the stele he referenced is of course the critical example when it comes to extra-biblical historical evidence for the existence of the Israelites.

[@Ricci.w]

Professor, thank you for this detailed history of the region. Such a delicate and much challenged topic in these turbulent times, but you handled it with professionalism and grace as you so often do. Shalom. #216

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

I’m glad you found it useful.

[@ems4884]

P.S. That James Tissot painting of the exile ... Wow. Orientalist painting, but so atmospheric. Stunning.

[@normanrobinson4624]

A great presentation of a very important, emotional and difficult topic to be discussed with students, educators and the general public. You deserve a lot of credit for your even handed approach and scholarly delivery. I have had the opportunity to share the same conversation with friends, family and colleagues about this subject and I know how divisive this topic can get. You should be applauded for your honest delivery of the facts and history of the Palestinian/Jewish conflict since the end of WWI. On a personal level it always makes me smile and feel that I have contributed to your understanding of late antiquity when you talk about the Bar Kochba rebellion and its tragic aftermath. It may have been one of the few instances where I was able to add to your knowledge base over the years that I was blessed to do research for you. May the One G-d bless you, protect and keep you all the days of your life.

[@iillii5]

how is it possible your comment tag says 2 days ago when the video is up for 2 hours? Are you a time traveller? lol

[@mrmiffmiff]

@@iillii5 Channel members probably get early access.

[@baraksteady1341]

38 days through the dessert ​@@iillii5

[@normanrobinson4624]

I’m a supporter of the channel and I am able to watch the lectures before they are available to subscribers.

[@lucretiuscaro]

Thank you professor Abramson for this video. It's been a pleasure to revisit those topics from an academic point of view.

[@nitathomas1691]

Excellent information. Thank you so much for sharing,

[@Jasn_Chvz]

Excellent work

[@carolinebenforado]

Rabbi, Thank you so much for this heartfelt and digestible history of the region. I grew up thinking of the Palestinians as terrorists, but your presentation portrays them more a victims of historical circumstance. Still I am troubled by videos of 80-year-old Palestinians who lived through the "Displacement," telling of mass murder (people lined up against walls), which hardly seems necessary for settlement purposes. I look forward to your next video!

[@cynthiafoster6381]

I know it feels like he's a Rabbi, but he is a historian, who happens to be an observant Jew whose niche is Jewish History. I ❤ him.

[@RunesandReapers]

What videos? There was only one recorder attack on villagers (which in itself is arguable). But people lined up against walls and mass murdered in 1948 this is highly untrue from the Israelie side. I don't think even the ARabs engaged in this either. I know they did go on massacres into villages at a more rapid level but as far as lining people up I think if that did occur it must have been super rare. Most of the displacement came from the flight the Arabs took as opposed to an actual forced disposition. In fact after 1948 Israel made concessions to bring many of these Arabs back (not just the ones who stayed)

[@lloydgush]

​@@RunesandReapershonestly, given it's an early century war, it's believable that war prisoners may be face a firing squad from both sides.

[@MarcosElMalo2]

@@lloydgush without solid historical data, we can speculate based on who the combatants were. Were they village militias or professional soldiers? Militias are notoriously less disciplined and less restrained. They might be retaliating for violence against their families or they might believe their excesses are necessary for their family’s survival. Lastly, there might be a score settling aspect.

[@lloydgush]

@MarcosElMalo2 you aren't wrong here. Specially because in both sides there were heavy use of militias.

[@zdzislawmeglicki2262]

The 70 CE "Roman exile" was not the first. The "Babylonian exile" preceded it and although some Jews had returned to Judea, many chose to remain in Babylon, where an influential community coalesced in time. In broader terms the "exiles" affected Jewish elites mostly, the ones associated with Jerusalem. Normal people, easily 80% of the country population, most of them farmers, pastoralists, and other labourers, stayed behind, and continued doing what they always did-producing food, wine, wool, ceramics, fabrics. Rather than talking of "exiles" perhaps we should talk about the national "decapitation," removal of national political, administrative, military, and intellectual leaders.

[@hansfrankfurter2903]

settlement by force is by definition settler colonialism

[@zdzislawmeglicki2262]

@@hansfrankfurter2903 According to the Book of Joshua the Hebrews returning from Egypt conquered Canaan by force. Was that a "colonial conquest" too?

[@ems4884]

I would be careful not to conflate the various exiles and conquests. The differences are important, historically speaking. Assyria cleared Samaria too. And it seems they took only people of certain classes and with certain Skill-Sets. But ... The Assyrians also walked up to Jerusalem and besieged it, only to fall prey to some kind of calamity (likely a plague) and give up. It's an incredible (but fairly credible, historically speaking) story. But if it weren't for that bit of luck the Judaites had in that moment, it would be Nineveh and Assur that became the reviled powers in ancient Jewish literature (the prophets, but also Genesis) instead of Babylon. Ezekiel might have been described lounging in the gardens of Ashurbanipal having his visions. But your main points are good reminders of the history to those who don't know it.

[@ems4884]

​@@zdzislawmeglicki2262 the historical and archeological record has positioned the narrative of the Israelite war against Canaanites as a literary myth - at best, legendary. In fact, there's quite a bit of evidence to conclude that the earliest Jews WERE Canaanites. You can't take all parts of the Bible as history. It's a mix of historical writing, poetry, mythology, legend and religious law. Joshua is likely some kind of historical allegory - an origin story which dramatizes the conflicts between Canaanite tribes that occurred during the bronze age collapse. The destruction of Jericho's walls is a great example. If you go to Jericho, you'll find the destroyed wall. But archeology tells us that the wall was destroyed centuries before the time Joshua is set in history. So, how did it get spun into this story? Remote historical memory f turned into a story passed down orally? Did the writer of Joshua find the wall and leap to conclusions? Or did he, perhaps, know about the wall and simply used it in a tale for good storytelling purposes?

[@zdzislawmeglicki2262]

@@ems4884 "How is Joshua spun into this story?" Conflation. Events and characters that were scattered over centuries became conflated into one story when looked at a millennium later. We've done the same with King Arthur in whose person two characters living a century or two apart became conflated.

[@michelgordon74]

Thank you so much, again! Looking forward to the second part!

[@evadnesmith475]

What an amazing history lesson. My knowledge of Israel is based on the Bible and I am constantly "beat down" by family & friends who do not believe the Bible. I will surely share this lecture with them immediately. Thank you Sir. God bless you 🥰🙏

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Glad you found it useful!

[@frjosemaria]

A FANTASTIC lecture. Thank you so much.

[@taniavarela1286]

Very informative-thank you!

[@mrstevecox7]

Well researched comment. You have not mentioned that the state of Jordan was created at about the same time as Israel, as part of the division of the Levant/ Palestine, intended as the "Arab portion" as opposed to the "Jewish portion" in the present administration of Israel.

[@davorkamatic1349]

Wrong, Jordan was not created at the same time as Israel. It was established as Emirate of Transjordan in 1923, it achieved full independence in 1946 when it became the Hashemite Kingdom of Transjordan. It was renamed the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in 1949.

[@mrstevecox7]

@@davorkamatic1349 good try, but I did not state that it was created "at the same time" - I said "at about the same time". If you check Wikipedia re Jordan it states "The Emirate of Transjordan was established in 1921 by the Hashemite, then Emir, Abdullah I, and the emirate became a British protectorate. In 1946, Jordan gained independence and became officially known as the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.." So Jordan only gained independence from the UK in 1946. I repeat; the intent of the UK between the years 1917 and 1946 was to create two separate states: one for Arabs and one for Israelites. This fact is often lost in the hubbub of rhetoric that surrounded the creation of Israel in 1948, 2 years later.

[@davorkamatic1349]

Well, than we agree.

[@LauraGlorybelle]

May the Almighty bless you for all your efforts for understanding and peace.

[@lawman3966]

Thanks!

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Thanks for supporting the research!

[@mare6419]

Wonderful lecture, thank you so much Professor.

[@CDGMR1]

Thank you!

[@TruthMattersOfficial]

Thank you for creating this video. It clearly took a lot of time.

[@markrossow6303]

thank you again -- shared to The Bird App

[@viramandybur]

Thank you for this education that we all sorely need.♥

[@samuelfleischman5932]

There are 5 crucial omissions in this video 1. The aliya in 1647 of Rabbi Yeshaiyahu Horowitz from Prague 2. The aliya in c.1877 of Rabbi Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld from Pressburg 3. The establishment of Mea Shearim 4. Influx of Egyptian laborers for the Turkish Railroad 5. Influx of Iraqi laborers for the British oil pipeline to Haifa

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Ok

[@54032Zepol]

Awesome cherry picking dude! Sure you back up your sources with social media and Wikipedia articles.

[@alecburkatovski8879]

What about aliya from Germany in 1286 and the famous tzadik Rabbi Meir Ben Baruch von Rothenburg from Worms?

[@alecburkatovski8879]

​@HenryAbramsonPhD Rabbi, are you trying to manipulate the facts? You didn't tell us about 1066. It's Granada, too. You didn't mention RAMBAM and his escape and his letters. You skipped the Damascus Affair but you would tell us about the Beilis Affair. You can tell the same wise about Charles the 4th as you tell us about Muslims. Usually, he was very good to Jews. Just sometimes, he literally sold them out. E.g. all Jews from Nuremberg were killed.

[@kennbmondo]

Excellent overview inspite of the compressed timeline. Most excellent.

[@mikeklein9923]

That's my Dean. Touro College South lives on. As long as I'm here to carry on ...

[@paulweller3711]

Shoutout from Touro Berlin

[@jacovawernett3077]

​@@paulweller3711L'chaim. My Hebrew name Jacova is the female form of Jacob. I'm going to give you some testimony from God. God spoke fifty sentences to me from above to my ear. His first nine sentences were 8.4.2015 in the morning. Since then I have told people and timestamped many prescient visions that came true. 11.17.2015, Eve Beach, Waikiki early evening. I couldn't find a book reading so I sat under the stars alone. God asked me, What side of the blade are you on. I answered, The side of the righteous my words are my sword. He then showed me my ascension to Heaven. He said, Make Israel one. You are anchor. His last sentence to me was four years ago after many months. He said, You are Princess Messenger of God. 12 hours before the Gaziatep Turkey earthquake I was watching a video on AL Jazeera youtube about the Palestinians. I wrote that God said, Make Israel one. ( it means to bring peace and reconciliation between Jew, Christian, Muslim, cousins by Abraham) A muslim brother answered, Jews and Christians will be humiliated by God. I answered, No. We are all God's children. No one sticks a metaphorical rock in God's throat. The Prophet Muhammed knew this. Sometimes it feels like 500,000 Gazans are holding the world hostage. The earth will quake. And it did quake. It killed about 40,000 people. In Aramaic Khubba means love. Khubba to you and yours. Ahava Adonai Ahava Israel

[@jacovawernett3077]

Ahava Adonai Ahava Israel

[@mariavm9178]

Thank you for yet another wonderful lecture, Professor.

[@Franzosenkoenig]

Wasn't Jordan also part of the British mandate? Was there ever a plan to divide the land so that arabs get Jordan and jews Israel ?

[@baraksteady1341]

Ben-Gurion made a secret deal that took the government coalescing parties by surprise when he made a deal with britiah proxy of Jordan usurping east Jerusalem and beyond to take the place of theindependent plans of the Palestinians. ben guron almost lost his coalition government, most of whom were stunned why they had aligned against the independent movement of the region as just a state among other states all wanting the right to self-determination and instead had aligned against the region by bringing british back into the region right after they kicked the british out. Many were deeply disappointed, considering the national security considerations of placing british proxy and politically aligning with European colonial powers the region sought freedom from. This has never been rectified.

[@privateprivate4315]

If I’m not mistaken the Balfour declaration was referring to the entire Mandate including what became Trans-Jordan.

[@davorkamatic1349]

@@privateprivate4315You are mistaken, territory of Palestine was always considered separate from Transjordan. Transjordan was added to the mandate in 1921 after the Arab Kingdom of Damascus was toppled by the French but gained sort of the independence in 1923. as Emirate of Transjordan under the emir Abdullah bin Hussein from the Hashemite dynasty..

[@stephenl9463]

@@davorkamatic1349creative interpretation of the history. One that I disagree with. The whole area was ottoman and it fell to the British and French after the Arab revolt of 1916. So there were these tribes/kingdoms living on these lands and the British and the French eventually received mandates from the League of Nations to rule over these lands. They were not sovereign lands as in the concept of a nation states. In 1946, the hashemites were formally given the area of Transjordan and this became the nation state of Jordan at that time. The remaining area of mandatory Palestine was then partitioned and given to both Jews and Arabs. The Jews accepted the offer of a state and the Arabs rejected the offer. The Arabs then attacked the Jews with 5 armies Egypt Jordan Syria Iraq and Lebanon. The Jews won. (Please note the founding of Iraq as a country took place in 1932, Syria in 1946, Lebanon in 1943, and Egypt in 1922, Israel in 1948). These dates are easily checked. @davorkamtic1349 is wrong.

[@Graceyoutube]

Tant qu'il y aura une troisième partie qui tire un bénéfice dans le conflit entre juifs et musulmans, vous êtes condamné à revivre les mêmes traumatismes. Commencez par discerner vos vrais alliés dans ce conflit.

[@baraksteady1341]

I know what you are saying.

[@andreskorge1828]

Who is prepared to Agree ?? may Absolute, Honest, Unbiased and Objective TRUTH and JUSTICE be both Sought and Prevail !! towards Peace.................

[@mcut1217]

Great video. Am Yisrael Chai

[@ems4884]

Woohoo! Starting in the bronze age! That's bold. Canaan's history is still so hazy (for the Near East bronze age anyways.). I wonder .. have you visited the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. They've got some interesting bronze age artefacts from various digs. I had my eye on some peculiar terracota "shrine models" which they currently connect to Philistia (I'm assuming because of the location of the archeological dig they are from - Ashkelon maybe?) These little models are apparently relatively common and it makes me wonder if they represent some kind of syncretism in Philistina and the bronze age Canaanite religion (which seems like it must have had sacrificial altara given the references in the Torah,Tanakh, and later Phonecian and Ugarit sources.)

[@mattaikay925]

Rabbi, there is no better historical background than Psalm 83.

[@bill9989]

Was the dwindling of the Jews in the Levant during the Middle Ages due to the Arab conquest and conversion to Islam (by choice or by the sword)? If so, then the dwindling wouldn't necessarily be by migration or simply dying out. So then, where are the progeny of these people? Could they be the people the Jewish Israelis are so much at odds with? Have they forfeited the "promise" to the land they stayed in since antiquity?

[@MarcosElMalo2]

There’s a video covering this, but the short version is that under the Mameluke caliphate, Jewish numbers dwindled. According to one source I read, the Jewish population in Jerusalem fell to as low as 5000 people. But the Jews never disappeared entirely.

[@bill9989]

@MarcosElMalo2 You didn't address my point. If a Jew converts to, say Islam, is he still a Jew? No. So the number of Jews would decline but not because of leaving (at least not those converts). Now, I respectfully ask you to address my point without citing stats that ignore those converts. But my larger point is: what are the rights to the land of Israel of the descendants of Jews WHO NEVER LEFT but who converted to Islam?

[@TizBaz5]

It's hypothetical, and you would have to prove that these hypothetical converts never left. Regardless of that, it doesn't affect the rights of Jews who didn't convert to Islam, and it certainly doesn't affect the status of the land in Judaism. It seems like a silly detour to me.

[@privateprivate4315]

Seems some genetic evidence supports the notion that Jews and Palestinians are likely descendants of Canaanites. We know that Israelites were in fact Canaanites themselves. Makes the entire thing even more pathetic really.

[@Crocalu]

​@@bill9989so youre saying that if Sauron managed to convert the Shire to orcism, future hobbits who survived have no claim on the land? Its for the orcs now?

[@johnabbe]

I'm certain you did not intend it this way, but the closing image of the modern flipside of the Roman coin, with the Jewish family and no Palestinians in sight, is kind of a chilling way to end a video about the conflict. Thank you for pointing me to the correspondence between al-Khalidid and Herzl, that is most enlightening! Locals often have limited options as far as allies go, but even so the choices have not all been bad. Aqil Agha was a local Arab notable who seemed rather canny in his choice of allies. It helped keep him in power (though mainly due ro his local knowledge and connections). It's just the Ottomans had too strong a position in that time period for him to achieve real local sovereignty.

[@jonathansamuel7033]

2 million Israeli Arabs live in perfect equality with Jews ( though the islamists try their hardest to destroy this harmony ) . But why should the rights of those who wish to destroy the Jews be respected . That’s irrational.

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Somber observation.

[@billr.2210]

I would have to disagree with you professor. I am an American Jew and would say that I find Christianity (not necessarily Catholicism) much closer to what I would believe and how I would think. That is besides the fact that the religion was founded by an Israeli Jew rather than an Arabian Camel driver. In addition, Christians accept the Old Testament verbatim while the others do not. I would not also agree with your statements about modesty and law. Christians encourage their followers to dress and behave modestly, while the others take it to an extreme and treat their women in ways foreign, I believe, then a Jewish or Christian society would. Let us not forget that the Early Christians were Jews, while the early adherents to the other faith were… I’m not even sure, warlords or polytheists? No, given half the chance, I would identify more with a Christian nation.

[@billsmith3593]

I just finished reading The Generals' Son by Miko Peled. He's Jewish and really gave me a better understanding of the noose that got tighter and tighter around the Palestinians lives as each year went by, especially when Israel put a blockade on Gaza/

[@ezraorlofsky7809]

I thought the clover leaf map goes back at least to the crusades and really it's based on "Who sits at the center of the land"

[@ezraorlofsky7809]

That coin is brutal. the Romans celebrated too soon, bc we're here and never going to leave praise God . And all who desecrate Gods name by harming Jews are setting themselves up for Gods ire.

[@steele0strella]

The word stele i think may be pronounced shtay-lay?🤔

[@jibr.8860]

great video, again! thank you! Dr. Abramson, what do you think about the theory that WE are the palestinians, since some northern tribes have been associated with the phoenicians and specially since it means the "wrestlers" in old greek, and who are those who wrestled with both humans and angels if not the Israelites? also the romans have been heavily influenced by the greeks and they would have renamed Judea with Palestina, the old greek term for Israel and it has therefore nothing to do with the plishtin people who have disapeared long before the romans came into the Land?

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Interesting--see the Koren Tanakh of the Land of Israel, Bereshit volume, for some discussion of the identification of the Philistines.

[@sombrachaful]

I saw this map 3:00 many years ago. It was explained that the map is describing Israel as the center of creation with the depiction of the female reproductive organs depicted although not anatomically correct, pictorially reminiscent

[@MitzvosGolem1]

Moshe also wrote several of the Psalms as per Chazzal Sages.

[@mattnewhouse1781]

I thought it was David ha melech who wrote it. Moshe was hundreds of years before.

[@MitzvosGolem1]

@@mattnewhouse1781 As per Chazzal Sages Moshe author a few Tehillem

[@joelgoldberg2040]

And korachs sons

[@MitzvosGolem1]

@@joelgoldberg2040 תודה רבה שלום

[@josiepens4480]

Accordingly Ashdod, Ashkelon, Ekron, Gaza & Gath (where Goliath came from) were cities of the Anakim (giants) & were never fully conquered by Joshua.

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Apparently so

[@zafirjoe18]

Thanks Dr.! The tree depicted on the coin is a run of the mill palm date tree . Only that the Judean date were exceptional and sought after. The ones grown and harvested in and about Jericho ( Jordan valley and Ein Gedi) were considered extraordinary. Rabban Shimon ben Gamaliel says, we do not bring first fruits from dates, except for the dates that [grow] in Jericho, תוספתא בכורים פ״א And you shall take for yourselves on the first day, the fruit of the hadar tree, date palm fronds.. (Leviticus 23) [Eglon] brought the Ammonites and the Amalekites together under his command, and went and defeated Israel and occupied the City of Palms.(Jericho a city in Judean desert) (Judges 3:13) The Israelites return the Judean captives to Jericho city of dates; Then the men named above proceeded to take the captives in hand, and with the booty they clothed all the naked among them-they clothed them and shod them and gave them to eat and drink and anointed them and provided donkeys for all who were failing and brought them to Jericho, the city of palms, back to their kinsmen. Then they returned to Samaria. (2nd Chronicles 28:15) Josephus in war of the Jews Book 1 chapter 6 speaking about Jericho; “Now here is the most fruitful country of Judea, which bears a vast number of palm trees besides the balsam tree,” R’ Obadiah of Bartenura in his 2nd letter from Jerusalem laments the fact that according to his inquiry only 2 date trees that don’t bear fruit are to be found in all of Jericho.

[@richardsreviews8820]

22:29 Is it true that there were time periods were Jews were banned from traveling to the land of Israel?

[@mikeklein9923]

so King David wrote the Psalm knowing his descendants would fail ? and that Solomon's temple would be destroyed ?

[@mattnewhouse1781]

Does psalm talk about destroying the temple, it was isiah i believe that spoke of the destruction of jerusalem. I guess i have to reread my bible.

[@tuvoca825]

Warning!!! Mini-sermon: King David knew he would be the lineage of the Messiah. But he was a sinner himself, with Uriah and his wife, but otherwise was pretty good, BUT is was such a high sin in his office... it was not something that an impartial G-d can overlook. David's first baby with Uriah's wife died, and his second baby was named after Nathan... that same prophet who called him out or rather caused him to pass judgment... on himself. He spent the rest of his life and still suffers for that, but much of beauty came from that suffering and Uriah will be reimbursed by G-d somehow.... in ways I don't understand. Uriah was a just man as you can see by the biblical account. David is still suffering from that and I don't know how his story will end and he be redeemed but the cost for a sin like that from someone in that public an office, I can't imagine but knowing that justice is measure for measure and what kind of a man Uriah was... I can't imagine that Uriah would wish that on Kind David even with the serious damage and wrong King David perpetrated against him and his family. I suspect G-d will make it right somehow and settle the account, but it isn't going to be effortless, easy, comfortable, but in the end it will be made right. Such it is with the Word/Law... we judge ourselves against it by testing ourselves, revealing our own weakness and dependence on G-d. The scriptures often follow a pattern of repetitions that can overlay on each other to make one superstory... all pointing at G-d, the great prototype and perfect, not opposing himself. Once you see it clearly, you don't unsee it. A And once you know the story, you can see it everywhere. Nothing eternal can have a high tolerance for sin, or else it would be self opposed. It is an engineering principle that is eternal... imperfection won't last forever in a system, unless it is isolated from that system. It is a state of self-opposition that sides with the Prosecution instead of the Defender. Our relationship with the Devine is essential to reach our potential.

[@PremjitTalwar]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@iillii5]

Dr Abramson the counter argument would be that many different peoples have coexisted in Eretz Israel/Palestine region for centuries at this point for the ancient history to be relevant. Who knows whose ancestors converted after the destruction of the temple or whose ancestors actually had any claim to any land there. Jews probably lived all over the Near East since the times of the temple of Elfil. One could make a strong argument for Israel from the late 19th century and the events surrounding WW1 itself. All national movements were equally entitled to nation states. The Arab got the Arab majority states so the Jews equally deserved a Jewish majority state. Today Israel is not exclusively Jewish anyway many other religions and ethnicities are proud to be Israeli: Druze, Arab Muslims, Arab Christians, Bedouins, Samaritans, Circassians and apparently Armenians maybe Bosnian origin too. The divide was between Palestinian Jews and others who wanted an independent state and a subset of Palestinian Arabs who originally wanted to be absorbed into an Arab majority state. Of course the aims changed with time.

[@BrentChurchill-tj2tw]

Not disagreeing with what you have said, but I would add that minorities in Israel enjoying political rights only works if Jews are still a majority which makes Israel still both a Jewish state and a democracy. At the core, Israel must accept that fact that they are first and foremost a Jewish state, and second a democracy and if anything in democracy threatens Israel being a Jewish state, then the democracy part has to be altered.

[@VandalIO]

Who’s winning

[@stephenohara3014]

That's a date palm on the coin, not a balsam pine.

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Correct

[@guitarsandbongos]

Professor, I'm sure you noticed, but forgot to mention, that in the nice "Help him build Palestine" poster, the Yidish says Eretz Israel instead of Palestine. :)

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Yes

[@michaelzaroovabeli2233]

can you forward the link of the expulsion of the Mizrachi Jews from Arab lands? thanks

[@develentsai3215]

We all came from Africa, No mater who comes first or in what religion the land belongs to who ever live there right now

[@Bravetrain13]

The out of Africa theory is becoming more and more a dated theory. It is being heavily challenged by Paleo-Archaeology. At this point, it should not be spouted as fact

[@Bravetrain13]

This is mostly due to the FACT we are finding Neanderthal and Denisovan dna in the human genome meaning there was no pure replacement centralized to Africa.

[@ordsmedensmening9702]

Did the Israelis and Falestine peoples believe that the individual could exist outside and independent of the whole world? Did they believe in a creator figure that out of free will and materials spawned world into being?

[@dodiewallace41]

I expect that the only way forward to a sustainable future here is equal rights for all. Israelis are here to stay, and Palestinians have to accept this. Palestinians are here to stay and deserve equal rights in the land they were displaced and excluded from. Not "separate but equal" but actual equally. Not you don't belong here because we colonized your land, and your existence doesn't fit our agenda. No more Palestinian concentration camps. No more bulldozing Palestinian homes and farms. No more separate Palestinian IDs (remember the yellow stars?). No more denying Palestinians access to any part of Israel, including roads, settlements, services, and voting. Palestinians must have the same rights as all other citizens in Israel. The idea of creating a Jewish settler state in the Middle East was at least as stupid as the movement to send blacks back to Africa, but here we are. What happened to the Jewish people of Europe was absolutely horrific. However, those people had not lived in the Middle East for a couple thousand years. If a Jewish state was to happen it would have made more sense to carve it out in Europe as thats where most of the settlers were from. But displacing a bunch of Europeans was too problematic. They thought that doing so in Palestine was doable as Palestinians were(are) considered to be less human and without human rights compared with Europeans. There is no justification for what Israel has and is doing to the people they pretend never existed (a land without a people).

[@channahcastelobranco]

🇮🇱🇮🇱🇮🇱🇮🇱🇮🇱🇮🇱🇮🇱

[@mikeklein9923]

you mentioned a shul with a mosaic of the zodiac ?

[@carlharmeling512]

This is not a matter of history but of real time atrocities. No amount of historical analysis can justify what is being done at this very moment.

[@grahamfloyd3451]

I wish to learn history, but absolutely, mass killings of civilians is immoral. I am a veteran of war, and meeting hate with hate is the real tragedy here. 13,000 children have been killed. That is a war crime, except the concept of war crimes is fake unfortunately. To save a life is to save the world entire.

[@isaakpdm]

No one is saying that history justifies current events, but understanding it is valuable. If you're interested, I suggest watching the video and to learn more about it, but that's your choice. However, to say that the situation is not complicated is to oversimplify a complex issue. This approach may indicate that your perspective is being shaped by others who may not be giving you the full picture

[@SerginhoPMoura]

Don't start wars you can't finish. 🤷

[@carlharmeling512]

@@SerginhoPMoura Yes, this applies to Israel as well as everyone else.

[@carlharmeling512]

@@isaakpdm The full picture is that the IDF is making the Gaza Strip uninhabitable for the Palestinians and starving their children, targeting hospitals and aid workers, and committing mass murder of civilians and then lying about the whole thing. It’s viscerally disgusting. I remember Vietnam and the same kind of things were being done. Making it a complex issue is a coverup.

[@eskokauppila1327]

Syria Lebnon Jordania and Irak atacked first in 1948, but No-one must ever atack🏳🏳🏳

[@MR-dm1gx]

Arabs were there before Islam came.to them. As they are children of Abraham and his son Ishmael.

[@hortenseclarke2589]

Yes, they maybe descendants of Abraham, but the land was given to the descendants of Isaac, Jacob..., not Ismael.

[@TheIsraelProphetess]

Arabs existed before Ishmael. All Arab is is a semetic people, descendants of Shem. Arab and Jews are semetic people. The only difference is spiritual. The Jews are the heirs because of Abraham’s covenant with God through Isaac.

[@stephanandren]

@@hortenseclarke2589 I haven't read Josephus (apart from some selected parts). Does he mention Arabs living in the area?

[@monicaucdm1091]

West Bank is Galilee, Judah and Samaria. West Bank is a very Arab name.

[@hhyling8483]

Islam may have been started in Petra , not Mecca (Dan Gibson has done a lot of research)

[@valerieprice-wn9qb]

Dr Jay Smith has come up with that same conclusion

[@jonnieinbangkok]

Please heed Naomi Klein's words on worshipping the "golden calf" of colonial Zionism. It's leading Isrealis and diaspora Jews down a very dark road.

[@TizBaz5]

It may be that "worshipping" zionism in itself is incorrect, but the age of ideological debates over the correctness of a Jewish state is long over. Israel is de facto the refuge and sole home for half the world's Jews and must be treated accordingly.

[@willielee5253]

Isaiah 2:3 says the Jews are on course, it's our generation that's seeing the worse and in cases feeling the heat, but the foundation is set, and the course laid out, might seem otherwise, but the Almighty is Mighty and in control.

[@jonnieinbangkok]

@@willielee5253 Your "Almighty" was in control on October 7th 🤔

[@willielee5253]

@jonnieinbangkok Our understanding doesn't equal His intentions, that's why it's best to pray 🙏 otherwise, we'll soon become horrified on what's going on one hour to the next.

[@jonathansamuel7033]

Colonial Zionism - nonsense words . The Jewish immigrants were colonial representatives of which empire ? They have an ancestral attachment to the land unique in world history. Secular zionism is spiritually dangerous to the Jews . A Jew Living in israel should be a spiritual endeavour.

[@monicaucdm1091]

If Jews, Israeli have a story thousands years before then Catholic and Islam took the same story with same actors and make their own religion means all of these religions come from a Jews roots.

[@benkei7530]

Henry you not on Twitter are you??

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Have a look

[@NEOM6736]

So now it has become the Israel - Gaza conflict.....LOL LOL

[@emmanuelwood8702]

Its dishonest to say jews were treated as second class citizens under Islamic caliphates . THe caliphs treated anyone who wasn't Muslim as second class they weren't treating jews in a special way .THey actually favored jews because they people of the book like Christians and other avbrahamic sects . Everyone else had to convert or be killed they were giving jews lots of privileges in reality .The best place to live for a jews at the time was under the caliphates .

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Not exactly. But true, there were third-class members of society as well. Probably fourth too.

[@julianvijarro22]

I must give u respect for calling them Palestinians. Even if we disagree atleast u give them their humanity and equality by not calling them something that invokes them being lesser then or not deserving of equal rights under the law. Let us not forget the Balfour Declaration says nothing shall be done the restricts the rights of people already living in the region. It was never a land without a people. we also know through historical revision that zionists attempted to appease Hitler as well and the US turned away thousands of Hebrews attempting to leave Europe. And we now know the land was not partioned fairly and the arabs couldn't get arms like the western connected Hebrews with connections to Rothschilds financing as well as the Kosher Nostra in the US. No side is without their serious transgressions and need to make serious concessions. And we know some of the attacks in Arab lands around the time of WWII and after where actually conducted by Israel as in the false flag bombing in Egypt in the 1950s. And we know Jordan had no plans to attack as they could barely muster a defense in 1967.

[@icesphere1205]

Never an attack... Just assurances on how (eye) view, "Reality" Knowing full-well, nothing is real We exist... Just always (changing), so not real

[@RS-bc9qg]

Rabbi, I respect you and I respect your insight however, the pink elephant in the room is Israel is currently a secular state and you and I both know we are not allowed to live in the land if we don’t follow especially when there’s a western stylized democratic constitution set in place Instead of the Torah Nobody wants to address the real issue very telling

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Thank you but I don't exactly understand what you are saying. Also, not a Rabbi, just a regular guy.

[@monicaucdm1091]

Rabbi, in other you tube video you talk about the Soviet Union and Jews. Please with all respect to who read this post please research yourself and probe me if I am wrong ❤ Sad that you did not mention that “Soviets union” concept was created by a Jew , Leon Trosky and after many plots against him he came back from New York to save and support Lenin on the Civil War against White Army plus British and French that all were invading Russia to defeat Lenin. Leon Trosky was in New York and he received money from Jewish rich people to save the Communist Revolution. Leon Trosky created and finance the Red Army, which was the fundamental key to win the civil war. Trosky was the guy. Some say he was so cruel but so was Churchill and Roosevelt to win a war. Leon Trosky was afraid and shame sometimes to be a Jew so he refused Lenin offering to become his successor and his worry was because being a Jew could get criticism from other countries. That was a big mistake. The Soviet Union was his invention together with other Jews and non Jews leader they created Soviets all over Russia. He was the one who assaulted the Petrograd Palace, he was the strategic mind. Then Stalin under his manipulations defeat and took over when Lenin died, Trosky was taken to a remote land, and after years he got killed in Mexico under Stalin orders. Still the Soviet Union was the principal lobby to support the State of Israel in 1947.

[@mikeklein9923]

Another example of poor parenting skills in the bible. Maybe if Solomon wasn't associating with Queen of Sheba etc..

[@RunesandReapers]

If columbia has more professors like this the overreacton to Israel's response would be far more mellow.

[@baraksteady1341]

Well, I'm glad he doesn't teach there then. It's been mellow way too long.

[@Earlscourt33]

Islamist Students....Just ask all of them how they would balance the forced dispossession of the 1.2m Jews that lived in neighbouring countries (since 1880 in 1948 numbers) and the 600k Arabs that left Israel of their own accord due to invading Arab armies and apportion just compensation to both groups on an even per capita basis. Exclude Arab itinerant workers in Israel who should be termed temporary work visa holders, they and their children in 1920-1948 would quite possible have numbered 300k. Clearly the loss by the Jews of Arabia and the Middle East is many times greater than the Arabs of the Kingdom Israel. Consider also that the descendants of the Jews of Arabia and the Middle east number almost 6m in Israel today. Why should they ever be subservient to an Arab Islamist government. Study history and don't read Al Jazeera as it is run by the Brotherhood to further Islamic ideology. The 2 state solution was always Israel and Jordan The Syrian and Egyptian Arabs rejected the split to this day.

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Hope you found the video useful

[@johnmiller0000]

But there were people leaving there before the twelve tribes of Israel occupied the land. Much like today.

[@User9681e]

Can you find any population that lived before and they kept a genetic or historical connection like the Jews ? if not it's impossible to allow anyone who isn't living today other then Jews the term indigenous people

[@johnmann8659]

@johnmiller0000 The Canaanites were evil and were to be driven out as the Bible says (Deuteronomy 4:37-38, Joshua 1:1-6). The Arabs (Palestinians) have no right to Israel. Genesis 21:8-13 Nehemiah 2:18-20 Israel belongs to the Jews forever. Romans 9:4 Exodus 32:13 Psalm 105:8-11 Amos 9:14-15

[@MarcosElMalo2]

I think there’s a point being made here because of another argument I’ve been hearing wrt to the current conflict. That argument is that Palestine was colonized by Europeans to form Israel. When you hear people making the argument that Israel is a settler-colonial state (often in conjunction with the claim that Israel is committing Genocide), that is what they are saying. 1) They are saying that the Ashkenazi Jews were European (and not merely Europeanized). 2) They are saying that there were no other Jews or too few to be meaningful. These arguments, wrapped in the language of anti-colonialism and Marxist historical analysis, ignores the evidence: the permanent prescence of Jews and the ebbs and flows of diaspora. The anti-colonial argument against the existence of Israel pretends there aren’t and weren’t Sephardic Jews (let alone Sephardic Jews living in Jerusalem all through the Middle Ages). The ironic thing about this use of Marxist historical analysis is the users of it are ignorant of the historical facts. 😂 Wrt to your point about who was there first, I don’t think anyone knows. What we do know is that in the late Neolithic there were tribal groups in the area forming farming settlements and pastoral groups. We can call these people Canaanites or proto Canaanites. Some of these tribes began to develop Judaism. Ethnically they were the same as the non-Jewish canaanites, who worshipped other gods. Who the proto-Canaanites displaced or absorbed isn’t established, if such a people existed. There aren’t written records from the late Neolithic, at least none preserved.

[@johnmiller0000]

@@User9681e Nonsense.

[@User9681e]

@@johnmiller0000 might be as I'm still learning about the history of the region but one thing is certain the Arab occupiers aren't native And that we both need to dig deeper to understand the history

[@mikeklein9923]

trying my hand at kabbalistic astrology, find somewhat confusing

[@MarcosElMalo2]

Then go look for videos on that topic. Why do you think you’ll find answers here on a history video? You’re shaking a peach tree, hoping walnuts will fall down.

[@saimbhat6243]

Furthermore, I consider that palastine must be free.

[@dogbert52]

Roman province or british mandate?

[@michelleg7]

Can I just say that according to archaelogical finds is that the philistines are from various wave of southern europeans who settled in the levant during the bronze age and according to archaelogical finds they intermarried with the local population and that there is no archaelogical findings that suggest they were a militarily aggressive people with the finding of very little weapons in cemeteries. However, it is assumed that likely there was competition for land and resources likely with israelites who both had settled in the region. Now for the annexation of East Jerusalem in the 6 day war, it is considered an occupation and illegal under international law. I am not going to debate right or wrong on that, but it's what the current consensus is by the United Nations.

[@TM-100]

UN is a garbage institution 🤷🏼‍♀️ and has lost most of it's credibility. They envisioned some kind of "international city". Ya, right 🙄

[@emmanuelwood8702]

This is a very propagandized pseudohistory.

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Thanks for the feedback

[@54032Zepol]

So all archaeology is made up? Therefore Palestine never existed until 1988.

[@geraldgooding9790]

FAKE

[@HenryAbramsonPhD]

Real

[@XD226]

34:00

[@mya4126]

Not true, many scholars don't agree with the interpretation. The stele reads Yisriar "ysrỉꜣr", meaning "wearers of the sidelock", it refers to Libyans, because the whole stele is about wars with Libya

[@joelmarks2257]

Also not true the bottom portion talk about Canaan, Gezer, yanoam, and Ashkelon in the same part that Yisrisr is mentioned. So it’s totally plausible that it was talking about Israel. Along with the fact that Jews wear side locks and the Hebrew name for Israel is Yisrael which sounds very close to your supposed Egyptian word I’d say that they’re more than likely talking about Israel not Libyans.

[@miketuggle9273]

Read the Koran and the Hadiths and then you will know the background of this stupid conflict. Those thieves, the followers of Muhummad, have no capability of critical thought and so they are carrying on with Muhummad's problem with Jews. Please, don't think I am talking nonsense, read the Islamic religious texts and you will understand.

[@hhyling8483]

Islam may have been started in Petra , not Mecca (Dan Gibson has done a lot of research)

[@hhyling8483]

Islam may have been started in Petra , not Mecca (Dan Gibson has done a lot of research)

[@astroflyinsights]

I think the Yemen hypothesis makes much more sense.