Vic Alhadeff, NSW Jewish Board of Deputies
If John Scrivener took a moment to read about what really happened in Israel-Palestine 70 years ago, he would realise that his statement ‘It was the Zionist project that brought terrorism and conflict to Palestine’ has zero basis in reality (Letters, June 20).
John, in 1948 the UN General Assembly looked at the area we know as Israel-Palestine and divided it up with the intention of declaring two states – Israel and Palestine.
The Jewish world accepted the UN decision, but the Arab world flatly rejected it and the armies of five Arab countries sought to destroy the fledgling state of Israel.
Why did they do that? Because saying yes to Palestine would have meant saying yes to Israel. There is a clear and unambiguous nexus between the refusal to accept Israel’s existence 70 years ago and the conflict today.
The Palestinian and Israeli people deserve a place in the sun. There are two valid narratives here.
Until the Palestinian leadership comes to the table and talk peace, and Hamas is willing to rip up its charter, stating that Israel will be obliterated, the two protagonists are destined to remain just that – protagonists.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
