Salim Nazzal

If there exists any place that ought to be most dear to every cultured person, surely it is Palestine. - Pope Pius XII May 1948

Today is a glory day for Palestine and for the cause of freedom and justice. The view of the boats sailing towards Palestine touches every Palestinian and every justice lover. After decades of wide Zionist propaganda succeeded in brainwashing much people the human consciousness is awaking. Today everybody can see the real face of Zionism as it was from day one, an ideology of war and terror. Today Israel is frightened to see all those 800 people sailing to show their solidarity with Palestine. This explains why Israel threats to block the fleet of freedom and to prevent it from reaching the shores of Gaza.

The fleet sailing to Palestine is an Armada of peace and solidarity which sends a strong message that the conflict in Palestine is between Zionists and humanity, and between the culture of life and the culture of death. These boats are unlike the Israeli war boats which bomb schools and civilian residents. It is unlike the Israeli war boats which prevent Palestinian fishermen from fishing to earn the bread for their kids, and, at several occasions, tried to pressurize them to work spies for Zionist Jews on their own people to be able to fish. They are people of all continents and of all faiths, of all ages, and of all professions who represent the good will of humanity. There are poets, musicians, deputies, writers; workers, journalists and clergy men of all faiths headed by the 89 years old bishop of Jerusalem Hillarioun Cappouche the great Palestinian priest who declared long time ago that the Zionist occupation is an offense against God and against humanity. Today we remember the words of the great pope Pius XII who said Palestine is the dearest for all cultured persons. Pius XII is remembered with great respect in the Palestinian history as the brave man who stood in 1948 against the Zionist project to destroy the multi cultural society in Palestine and to replace it with a racist ideology.

The history of Palestine has been always a history of harmony among its population and a history of tolerance between the various cultural groups. The Jewish minority living in Palestine was fully integrated in the Palestinian culture. Before the arrival of the Zionist culture of war and racism Palestine was a multi cultural society where people of all faiths were living in harmony and peace. The guiding principle for Palestinians was “Religion is for God and the homeland is for all”.

M Dakwar the founder of the Palestinian centre for cultural heritage explains this .He said that “before the establishment of the Zionist state you would see in the market of the Palestinian town Akka Palestinians of various cultural backgrounds which reflects the cultural pluralism of the Palestinian society. You will see the Muslim Druze , the Shia Muslim, ,the Sunne Muslim, the oriental Jews, the Maronite Christian, the Catholic, the orthodox, the Armenian, the checianian.You would see all shopping and greeting each or smiling to each other as if they are in a multi cultural festival” .

“This is the society which Zionist Jews destroyed” ,added Dakwar with a sigh. He asked, “What Zionist Jews brought to Palestine instead? The culture of terror, and the culture of war which nobody knows when it will end”

Today will be remembered in history not only as the beginning of ending the siege on Gaza but as the beginning of the decline of Zionism racist project in Palestine. The decline of racism will open the road of brotherhood between Arabs and Jews as it was in the past.

And as I see on TV screens the boats heading towards Palestine I think of the words of pope Pius XII and the words of Dakwar and wonder how much time it will take to restore Palestine a multi cultural society where all can live in peace and in dignity.

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Dr. Salim Nazzal is a Palestinian-Norwegian historian in the Middle East, who has written extensively on social and political issues in the region