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Palestinian Authority Claims That Ancient Jews and Pagans Were All ‘Palestinians’
The Israeli flag at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. Photo: Hynek Moravec via Wikimedia Commons.
One of the Palestinian Authority (PA)’s biggest problems is its identity complex. It knows that the Jewish people have been in the Land of Israel for thousands of years, while there is no Palestinian Arab history prior to the last few decades and therefore no ancient Palestinian identity.
The PA often lies that Palestinians are the descendants of Canaanites, and denies the authenticity of thousands of archeological finds attesting to the kingdoms of Israel and Judea.
Now, the PA has created a new magic trick: Turn everyone in the land since the Stone Age — pagans, Jews, and Christians — into Palestinians.
By saying that the kingdoms of Israel and Judea were Palestinian kingdoms, all the antiquities proving Jewish/Israeli history then magically instead prove Palestinian history.
All of this idiocy is being disseminated by the director-general of the PA Ministry of Culture and Antiquities, Dirgham Al-Fares:
The Palestinian people are a direct continuation of the original inhabitants from the Stone Age to the present.
The Palestinian people were pagan, who worshipped El, Baal, Ishtar, and Anat, and it is the people that developed the concept of God and adopted the Jewish religion, Christianity, and Islam.
Therefore, the Palestinian people own the land and history, and all the antiquities in it are the property of the Palestinian people. The Palestinian people [of today] is the legitimate heir, and everything the occupation [i.e., Israel] says is untrue … Everyone knows that the Zionist claims are no longer historically acceptable. [emphasis added]
[Official PA TV, Resolve and Confrontation, Nov. 27, 2024]
After turning the Biblical Jews into Palestinians, the PA turns today’s Israeli Jews into “foreigners who stole the name ‘Israel’”:
Syrian political commentator Husam Shuaib: “Those who remain today in Palestine as occupiers are Talmudist foreigners who stole the name ‘Israel,’ and with this name they succeeded in marketing a religion with which they are not in fact affiliated, but they convinced the West that they are affiliated with it.” [emphasis added]
[Official PA TV, Capital of Capitals – Damascus, Nov. 10, 2024]
Once the magic trick is performed, the PA turns the narrative on its head and says that it is the Jews who “falsify the narrative and falsify the antiquities”:
PA Nablus District Governor Ghassan Daghlas: “We say to the world that we have antiquities. We have a history, and we have an existence [from] before the occupation [i.e., Israel] arrived. The occupation wants to falsify the narrative and falsify the antiquities, and we say to the world that the occupation is fake, while the roots of the Palestinian people are planted in its land.” [emphasis added]
[Official PA TV, Nov. 20, 2024]
After fabricating the idea that the Jewish people have no history in the Land of Israel, and that all evidence proves the Palestinian narrative, the PA can then totally delegitimize the Jews. And, when it delegitimizes them, it can encourage violence against them in order to drive them out so that those with the “real roots” remain:
PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’ Advisor on Religious Affairs and Islamic Relations Mahmoud Al-Habbash: “The Al-Aqsa Mosque is our mosque. They [the Jews] have no right to even one millimeter of it. It is an Islamic mosque, and if they are talking about an alleged Temple, let them look for it somewhere else, because there was never any Temple, presence, or sovereignty of theirs here at this pure Islamic place, the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, and occupied Jerusalem.” [emphasis added]
[PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’ Advisor on Religious Affairs and Islamic Relations Mahmoud Al-Habbash, Facebook page, Aug. 27, 2024]
Al-Azhar Cleric Sheikh Yasser Mustafa Younes: “I say to Israel, to this Zionist entity, and to those who stand behind it that you will not impose this reality on the Muslims… This Al-Aqsa Mosque and lofty Jerusalem are a right of Muslim waqf (i.e., an inalienable religious endowment) and a red line that is not up for negotiations, bargaining, or half-solutions. We have no partners there at all. It is Muslim and it is Muslim land, Arab land, Islamic land – the Al-Aqsa Mosque and all the 144 sq. meters around it [i.e., the entire Temple Mount, reaching the Western Wall] are all an Islamic waqf … The right will return to its owners sooner or later… History will repeat itself and you [Jews] will be removed from this land.” [emphasis added]
[Official PA TV, Topic of the Day, April 23, 2024]
Itamar Marcus is PMW’s Founder and Director, and Ephraim D. Tepler is a contributor to PMW. A version of this article originally appeared at PMW.
The post Palestinian Authority Claims That Ancient Jews and Pagans Were All ‘Palestinians’ first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel Pounds Gaza City Suburbs, Vows to Press on with Offensive
Smoke rises following an Israeli strike, in Gaza City, August 24, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Israeli planes and tanks pounded the eastern and northern outskirts of Gaza City overnight Saturday to Sunday, destroying buildings and homes, residents said, as Israeli leaders vowed to press on with a planned offensive on the city.
Witnesses reported the sound of explosions non-stop overnight in the areas of Zeitoun and Shejaia, while tanks shelled houses and roads in the nearby Sabra neighborhood and several buildings were blown up in the northern town of Jabalia.
Fire lit the skies from the direction of the explosions, causing panic, prompting some families to stream out of the city. Others said they would prefer to die and not leave.
The Israeli military said on Sunday that its forces have returned to combat in the Jabalia area in recent days, to dismantle militant tunnels and strengthen control of the area.
It added that the operation there “enables the expansion of combat into additional areas and prevents Hamas terrorists from returning to operate in these areas.”
Israel approved a plan this month to seize control of Gaza City, describing it as the last bastion of Hamas. It is not expected to begin for a few weeks, leaving room for mediators Egypt and Qatar to try and resume ceasefire talks.
Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz on Sunday vowed to press on with the offensive on the city where famine has been declared, which has raised alarm abroad and objections at home. Katz has said that Gaza City will be razed unless Hamas agrees to end the war on Israel’s terms and release all hostages.
Hamas said in a statement on Sunday that Israel’s plan to take over Gaza City showed it wasn’t serious about a ceasefire.
It said a ceasefire agreement was “the only way to return the hostages,” holding Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responsible for their lives.
The proposal on the table calls for a 60-day ceasefire and the release of 10 living hostages held in Gaza and of 18 bodies. In turn, Israel would release about 200 long-serving Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
Once a temporary ceasefire begins, the proposal is for Hamas and Israel to begin negotiations on a permanent ceasefire that would include the return of the remaining hostages.
On Thursday, Netanyahu said that Israel would immediately resume negotiations for the release of all 50 hostages – of whom Israel believes around 20 are still living – and an end to the nearly two-year-old war but on terms acceptable to Israel.
‘HUNGRY AND AFRAID’
Around half of the enclave’s two million people currently live in Gaza City. A few thousand have already left, carrying their belongings on vehicles and rickshaws.
“I stopped counting the times I had to take my wife and three daughters and leave my home in Gaza City,” said Mohammad, 40, via a chat app. “No place is safe, but I can’t take the risk. If they suddenly begin the invasion, they will use heavy fire.”
Others said they will not leave, no matter what.
“We are not leaving, let them bomb us at home,” said Aya, 31, who has a family of eight, adding that they couldn’t afford to buy a tent or pay for the transportation, even if they did try to leave. “We are hungry, afraid and don’t have money.”
A global hunger monitor said on Friday that Gaza City and surrounding areas are officially suffering from famine that will likely spread. Israel has rejected the assessment and says it ignores steps it has taken since late July to increase aid.
The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led gunmen burst into southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mainly civilians, and taking 251 hostages.
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Iran Signals Willingness to Scale Back Uranium Enrichment to Ease Tensions
Atomic symbol and USA and Iranian flags are seen in this illustration taken, September 8, 2022. Photo: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
i24 News – Iran may be prepared to significantly reduce its uranium enrichment levels in a bid to stave off renewed UN sanctions and limit the risk of further strikes by Israel and the United States, according to a report published Sunday in The Telegraph.
Citing Iranian sources, the paper said Tehran is considering lowering enrichment from 60% to 20%.
The move is reportedly being championed by Ali Larijani, the newly appointed secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, who is holding talks with regime leaders.
“Larijani is trying to convince the system to reduce the level of enrichment in order to avoid further war,” a senior Iranian official told the paper.
The proposal, however, faces stiff resistance from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which has long opposed concessions on the nuclear program. Still, the report suggests Iran’s leadership may be open to greater flexibility, including the possibility of reviving engagement with Western powers.
Last month, i24NEWS reported exclusively that a delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is expected to travel to Iran. The team of technical experts would seek to resume monitoring of nuclear sites, inspections that have been heavily restricted in recent years.
The development comes amid mounting regional tensions and could represent a critical turning point in the long-running nuclear standoff.
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Major Brush Fire Erupts Near Jerusalem, Evacuations Underway
A view of the new Tel Aviv-Jerusalem fast train seen over the HaArazim Valley (“Valley of Cedars”) just outside of Jerusalem, Sept. 25, 2018. Photo: Yossi Zamir/Flash90.
i24 News – A large brush fire broke out Sunday in the Cedars Valley area, near Route 1 and the Motza interchange, prompting an emergency response from Jerusalem district fire services. Several water-bombing planes were dispatched, and authorities have declared a “fire emergency.”
As a precaution, residents of Mevaseret Zion are being evacuated. Access to the town from Route 1 has already been blocked, and officials are weighing a full closure of the major highway.
Fire crews from the Ha’uma station are on site working to contain the flames, while motorists in the area are urged to heed traffic updates and follow instructions from emergency services.
Eight firefighting aircraft are currently operating above the blaze in support of ground teams. The fire comes amid one of the hottest, driest summers on record, with conditions fueling a series of destructive wildfires across the country.
Officials warn the situation remains critical, as the blaze threatens a vital transportation corridor leading into Jerusalem.