An Arab refugee in Lebanon
described in an interview on Palestinian Authority TV how he and
other Arabs left for Lebanon from Israel during the 1948 war, after
Arab leaders said their absence would be temporary:
"They [Arab leaders] said: ´A week, two
weeks, approximately, and you´ll return to Palestine,´" said Sadek
Mufid.
 This
refugee´s testimony is yet another example of how Palestinian leaders,
writers and refugees themselves have begun to speak out in recent
years
and openly blame the Arab leadership for the creation of the Arab
refugee problem. Mufid describes a large departure to Lebanon from
Israel, which led to the creation of "11 or 15 refugee camps." He
does not place the blame on Israel. As Palestinian Media Watch has
previously reported, other recent Palestinian accounts likewise describe a
deliberate exit from Israel under orders by Arab leaders, which
contradicts the Palestinian leadership´s charge that the hundreds of
thousands of Arabs who left in 1948 were expelled by
Israel.
Sadek Mufid, who left Dir Al-Qasi (Acre region) in
1948, was interviewed on PA TV´s weekly program entitled Returning. Each program focuses on
a different refugee camp.
The following is from the text of the interview with the
refugee Sadek Mufid:
"We headed first from Dir al-Qasi [northern Israel] to
Rmaich [Lebanon], considering what they (Arab leaders) said at the
time: ´By Allah, in a week or two, you will return to Palestine.´ The
Arab armies
entered Palestine, along with the Arab Liberation Army. We left - we
and those who fled with us - and we all headed for Lebanon. Some
people
came to Rmaich and others came to the villages on the border, such as
Ein Ibl and also to Bint Jbeil. People scattered. And we have about 11
or 15 [refugee] camps in Lebanon."
[PA TV (Fatah), Feb. 9 and Feb. 12, 2010]
To view PMW´s earlier bulletin citing Palestinians
blaming the Arab leadership for the refugee problem, click here.
To view
statements on Arab leadership´s responsibility for the refugee
problem on PMW´s web site, click here.
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