TRUST Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to play on Australian ignorance of historic Middle East politics.
During his recent visit, the canny leader milked that for all it was worth, particularly when any Australians dared suggest there should be a two-state solution to the region’s long, troubled history.
“You support the destruction of the state of Israel?” Netanyahu thundered on cue, eliciting further sympathy when he truthfully knows that the formation of a separate Palestinian state will result in no such conclusion.
Netanyahu even invited Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to the centenary commemorations of the October 31, 1917 Battle of Beersheba when Australian light horsemen charged and captured the town’s Turkish garrison.
Trust is not a characteristic many apply to Netanyahu, even in Israel.
As the Australian War Memorial acknowledges, the third Battle of Gaza and the capture of Beersheba allowed the British Empire forces to advance into Palestine, ultimately ending the Turkish Ottoman Empire’s long rule and heralding three decades of administration by British mandate.
On November 29, 1947 the UN General Assembly voted to partition Palestine, terminating the British mandate at midnight on May 14, 1948.
Zionist Organisation chief David Ben Gurion declared a new state of Israel in the lands described as Eretz Israel. As Eretz Israel’s historical borders have been disputed since time immemorial, the actual borders of the two states imagined by the UN were undefined.
On May 15, 1948 neighbouring Arab armies invaded the former British Palestine, creating conflicts which remain extant.
Read the full article by Ross Eastgate at the Townsville Bulletin (subscriber only).