From: naturman@uctvax.uct.ac.za
Newsgroups: talk.politics.mideast
Subject: Re: Who are the Occupiers?
Date: 10 Sep 92 17:44:16 +0200
Organization: University of Cape Town

In article <1992Sep7.022344.27498@cs.anu.edu.au>, bdm@cs.anu.edu.au (Brendan McKay) writes:
> In article 26010@discus.technion.ac.il, davidba@carmel.technion.ac.il (David Ben_Ami) writes:
>>Mythology or not mythology the fact is that Jews were related to this
>>specific piece of land for 3000+ years , the last 2000 mainly spiritualy
>>although throughout the ages Jews maintained small communities in cities
>>like Safed,Tiberias,Hebron and Jerusalem and billages in teh Gallilee.
>>
>>You may argue that Israel should return the lands to the Cannanites if
>>you want to fight ownership. Palestinian Arabs are VERY LATE invaders
>>occiupiers who have ENORMOUS NERVE to claim anything in this country.


When the right of Jews to Israel is discussed the Canaanites always turn up.
I would like to point out that there was no nation of people called Canaanites.
The term comes from the Hebrew Kna`anim which means people living in Canaan.
People living outside the region of Canaan used this term for all people in
Canaan including the Israelites. None of the people in Canaan actually used
the term for themselves. (The Carthaginians in Tunisia used this term for them-
selves when speaking to foreigners since their ancestors came from Tyre in
Canaan.) In the Bible the term is used inconsistently for either all the 
people living in Canaan besides the Israelites or certain groups among these
people. These Biblical Canaanites were not a single people. They can be divided
into two groups:

1) Native people who were part of the same Levantine (West Semitic) ethnic
group as the Hebrews. These people were usually named after the cities
in which they lived but are often called Amorites. (This term in its most
widest meaning actually refers to all Levantine people including the Hebrews.)
The distinction between these people and the Israelites is exagerated in Jewish
mythology. Historically they were all basically clans within the same larger
nation. Levantine civilization began in Canaan and so the modern Jews as the
last descendants of them have a very strong claim to the land. Those that
were not originally part of the Israelite tribes all assimilated into the 
Jews and had lost any separate identity by the time of the Babylonian exile.

Interestingly, Saul the first king of Israel was descended from the Gibeonites,
an Amoritic Canaanite group that became part of the tribe of Benjamin. The 
prophet Elijah was a Rahabite, descended from the Amoritic Canaanites of
Jericho who became Jewish.


2) Foreign invaders whose homeland was elsewhere: These include the Hittites of
whom the Jebusites and Perizzites were actually special clans. There homeland
was the land of Heth (Hatti) in Turkey. The Hurrites of whom the Hivites were 
a special clan. Their homeland was Hurria in Anatolia. Even these people in 
Canaan became part of the Jewish people. The Jebusites who had conquered
Jerusalem from its original Levantine inhabitants had already become Jewish
before David recaptured the city for the Semites. Solomons mother Bathsheba
was a Jebusite.

Thus both local and foreign Canaanites became Jews and so if anything they
provide support for the Jewish rights to Israel.
 
> I see, the Massive Recent Immigration myth.  It has been debunked so
> many times that it must take some courage to still believe it

It is not a myth but is supported by British population and immigration
records. Although people have tried to debunk it they have only used
fraudulent claims.

This does not mean that the Palestinians do not have the right to nationhood
and a homeland, but they must not prevent Jews from living in their historical
homeland of Israel. As a South African I know from experience that the Labour
governments plans for partion and a Palestinian homeland where Jews are not
allowed to settle will not work.  Jews and Palestinian Arabs must share the
same land.

Colin 
> 
>>David.
> 
> Brendan.
 
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* Baby Doc Naturman                                                         *
* USS Enterprise                           "Its life Jim,                   *
* Final Frontier                                  but not as we know it."   *
* naturman@uctvax.uct.ac.za                                                 *
*                                                       Spock of Vulcan     *
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