YMU: Your "facts" about the lush nature of pre-Zionist "Palestine" all come from a letter oenned by an Arab -American pastor in rebuttal of an NPR [National Public Radio] show called the "Savvy Traveller." In the edition in question, the host took an in depth look at Ottoman Era travellers' accounts on "Palestine." Of course the good reverend took offense at the suggestion that the land should ever be described as arid and inhospitable. So, unbeknownst to NPR, the reverend plagiarised almost an entire chapter of a self published book called "Encyclopedia of the Palestinian Problem" by Issa Nakhleh. The chapter in question is chapter II for any interested parties.
Why do I suggest that YMU got all his/her information from the letter and not the book [or the dozens of other "sources" aho have all repeated the errnoeous information almost verbatim]? Well, aside from the book being a real rarity [yes I have it ], the letter took on a life of its own and has become a staple of the revisionist crowd. Either way, the information is what is at the heart of YMU's post so let me adress it point by point.
I] Walter Lowdermilk [sic] the "Asssistant US Soil Conservation Agent who compared Palestinian soil to Californian soil, only Palestinian was uniformly better?" Aside from 1946 being 80 years after the Zionists first began reclaming the environment, there is no record of a Mr. "Lowdermilk" ever even existing, let alone working for the US Government.
II] Sandy's quote dated 1615 that roughly said, "A land [from which] flows milk and honey" was of course referring to a Biblical passage.
III] American Consul Henry Gillman who in 1856 recommends "Palestinian grafting techniques for the US Citrus Industry" means nothing in relation to the environment, only about "grafting techniques."
IV] Muqqadisi who is often claimed to have said inthe 10th Century of the Common Era [AD] that all manner of fruit grew in "Palestine" may or may not have said it. If so, so what? One tree can grow some fruit. It is a far cry from a "verdant land."
V] An anonymous person is quoted in the the 10th Century CE/AD as having claimed that "Palestine" "...was the most fertile of the Syrian provinces." Funny, as a person with roots in Syria , I can assure you that it is not saying much.
VI] Paul Masson says that in the 17th and 18th Centuries of the common Era [AD] "France was saved from certain starvation by wheat exports from Palestine." Some exports might have assuaged French hunger, again, so what?
All these little anecdotes add up to a big nothing. Noone is saying anything really. In fact, the real proof are in Ottoman [as the Ottomans hald onto the land for the roughly 500 years preceeding the Israel] censuses, appraisals, and such. All these point to land that was misused and abused for centuries.
Now, water...In 1967 Israel of course gained both Gaza and the so called "West Bank" after the nations [Egypt and Jordan respectively] who had claimed it last relinquished their hold. Almost immediately after gaining administration, the Israeli authorities provided more than 60 Arab towns with new water systems to replace the horrid, antiquated systems they had been left to use.
Then in the late 70s to early 80s the entire region suffered the worst drought in history. The drought ended about the mid 80s but its reprucussions were felt well into the 90s. Water levels sank to their lowest in recorded history...
As a result Israel was forced to prohibit all drilling for water. In dry times, overusage ofthe water table, which is shared by Israel Proper, would cause seepage of salinated water and ruin the resources of all peoples. In the absence of any kind of authority on behalf of the Arabs, this was completely Israel's call. In fact, International Water Law completely backs Israel up.
Due to this terrible drought, all regional nations agreed to a joint conference to be held in Turkey at the end of 1991. Syria sabotaged the meeting and it never took place.
Shortly thereafter, in January 1992, Moscow hosted multilateral talks, to be attneded by all regional nations. A working group on water issues was set to take place but Syria, Jordan, and the "Palestinians" boycotted these talks andagain a good opportunity was lost.
Finally Oslo I and some concrete progress. Taking advantage of this momentuum, a multilateral working group held talks on the issue in Oman in 4/94. It was there that Israel gained the endorsement for its plan to rehabilitate most water systems in mid-sized Arab communities in both Gaza and the so called West Bank."
It was at around the same time that Israel helped to create the "Palestinian Water Authority" [PWA] per the Oslo I agreements.
In 11/94 more multilateral working group talks were held. This time the location was Greece. Israel, Jordan, and the "PAlestinians" all agreed to regional cooeration on water issues. Sadly "Palestinians" never followed through.
A meeting was held in 95, in Jordan, and in Tunisia in 96. Neither produced much of anything and since then "Palestinians" have refused to meet on ths issue.
The bottom line, is just as in security issues, the "Palestinians" refuse to carry their own weight then complain when Israel makes unilateral decisons. They feel that there inequities? Come too the table.
