ISRAEL REVIEWS TEXTBOOK

The Ministry of Education in Israel has decided to pull a history textbook because it includes a passage that talks about the expulsion of Palestinians in 1948 for the creation of the state of Israel, describing it as ‘Ethnic Cleansing.’ The textbook, which will be taught to secondary classes, would be reissued after changes are made. The quoted passage in question reportedly says, “The Palestinians and the Arab countries contended that most of the refugees were civilians who were attacked and expelled from their homes by armed Jewish forces, which instituted a policy of ethnic cleansing.” Meanwhile, Israeli historian, Ilan Pappe has published a book called The Ethnic cleansing of Palestine. Pappe’s book, which created a wide-scale criticism among Zionists around the world, is based on documents he retrieved from Israeli ministry of defence archives. The book reveals that the Zionists have planned for the establishment of Israel on the land inhabited by a Palestinian population, giving details set by the Jewish leaders on how to get rid of the existing Palestinian population.