Subscribe to Print Edition | Sat., April 26, 2008 Nisan 21, 5768 | | Israel Time: 11:12 (EST+7)
Haaretz israel news English
web haaretz.com
  Back to Homepage
Rosner's Domain
Diplomacy
Defense Jewish World Opinion National
Print Edition
Advertising
Books Arts & Leisure Business Real Estate Easy Start Travel Week's End Anglo File
Last update - 00:14 20/03/2007
New Palestinian high-school textbooks reject existence of Israel, peace
By Or Kashti, Haaretz Correspondent

New textbooks for 12th-grade Palestinian students reject the existence of Israel and make no attempt to educate students about peace or coexistence, according to Palestinian Media Watch, an organization that monitors Palestinian Arabic-language media and schoolbooks.

The primary findings of the report will be presented to the Knesset Education and Culture Committee today.

"The teachings repeatedly reject Israel's right to exist, present the conflict as a religious battle for Islam, teach Israel's founding as imperialism, and actively portray a picture of the Middle East, both verbally and visually, in which Israel does not exist at all," the group wrote in a February report entitled "From nationalist battle to religious conflict: New 12th Grade Palestinian schoolbooks present a world without Israel."
Advertisement
According to the report, the book describes the establishment of the State of Israel by saying: "Palestine's war [in 1948] ended with a catastrophe unprecedented in history, when the Zionist gangs stole Palestine and expelled its people from their cities, their villages, their lands and their houses, and established the State of Israel."

The textbooks were written by the Center for Developing the Palestinian Curricula and introduced by the Palestinian Authority at the end of 2006, according to the report.

"Defining Israel's founding as a 'catastrophe unprecedented in history,' a theft perpetrated by 'Zionist gangs,' together with numerous other hateful descriptions of Israel as 'colonial imperialist' and 'racist,' compounded by the presentation of the conflict as a religious war, leaves no latitude for students to have positive or even neutral attitudes toward Israel," write PMW director Itamar Marcus and associate director Barbara Crook in the report.

Marcus and Crook note that Israel does not exist in the maps printed in the textbook. "Maps of the region likewise teach children to visualize a world without Israel, as Israel does not exist on any map and its area is marked as 'Palestine,'" states the report.
Bookmark to del.icio.us  
 
Peer pressure
Facing widespread pressure, Nadine Gordimer may pull out of Israel writers meet.
My struggle
German Jewish leader backs the publication of an annotated version of Hitler's Mein Kampf.
  1.   another lost pal generation. real pal not other smoke screen. 00:01  |  ralph 20/03/07
  2.   well haaretz and its reporters this is the real pal you make excu 00:02  |  ralph 20/03/07
  3.   send copies TO THE NORWEGIAN 5TH COLUMN 00:02  |  paul harris 20/03/07
  4.   ASK NORWAY TO HELP 00:02  |  Brant 20/03/07
  5.   textbooks 00:07  |  peter 20/03/07
  6.   What`s the point of learning facts about a country 00:07  |  Andreas 20/03/07
  7.   Where are the haaretz lefties defending them? Let`s hear it... 00:10  |  Mark 20/03/07
  8.   With words like that I suppose someone cannot exist 00:14  |  Chick Corea 20/03/07
  9.   TRUTH BITES ZIONISTS 00:16  |  JACKAL 20/03/07
  10.   Keep them blindfolded 00:19  |  Harry 20/03/07
  11.   Jews have been oppressed more. 00:20  |  Omran 20/03/07
  12.   what a shock 00:39  |  vik 20/03/07
  13.   New Palestinian Textbooks Reject Existence of Israel 00:40  |  John Hubers 20/03/07
  14.   Why should we accept this racist regime 00:51  |  Palestinian 20/03/07
  15.   Well, Jewish textbooks view non-Jews as cattle 00:52  |  KA 20/03/07
  16.   Ah, future partners for peace! 00:53  |  Nik Miller 20/03/07
  17.   Palestinian Media Watch 00:53  |  Ramzi 20/03/07
  18.   Of course Israel is a crime against humanity 00:54  |  NA 20/03/07
  19.   Peace 01:12  |  Philippe 20/03/07
  20.   now that is not so strange 01:23  |  Ernst 20/03/07
  21.   The Palestinians prepare to raise another 01:33  |  Gina 20/03/07
  22.   This was supposed to stop under Oslo 01:35  |  Steven 20/03/07
  23.   Why is Truth Banned? 01:45  |  Ahmed 20/03/07
  24.   Nu?!!! Vats niu? 01:48  |  Salomon S Mizrahi 20/03/07
  25.   textbooks 01:49  |  Shmuelshachor 20/03/07
  26.   Ernest the wheerdo... 01:51  |  even 20/03/07
  27.   KA #7 02:06  |  Jon 20/03/07
  28.   Call me politically incorrect, but... 02:09  |  Moe 20/03/07
  29.   Racism alive and well in Arab books, too bad truth isnt 02:14  |  David 20/03/07
  30.   What really matters 02:14  |  Jon 20/03/07
  31.   #11, KA, wtf? Judaism teaches tolerance..learn some 02:16  |  David 20/03/07
  32.   KA# 15 02:17  |  Philippe 20/03/07
  33.   Palestinian / Khalid -- who cares 02:18  |  Gina 20/03/07
  34.   Why do Arabs struggle against peace and truth? 02:18  |  David 20/03/07
  35.   Ahmad # 19 I`ll tell yu what`s the problem 02:19  |  ChanahS 20/03/07
  36.   # 14 NA - would that stand for not applicable? 02:22  |  ChanahS 20/03/07
  37.   # 14 NA - would that stand for not applicable? 02:22  |  ChanahS 20/03/07
  38.   How is any of that quote factually wrong? 02:23  |  Simon 20/03/07
  39.   # 13 Ramzi 02:24  |  ChanahS 20/03/07
  40.   # 10 Palestinian 02:26  |  ChanahS 20/03/07
  41.   # 10 Palestinian 02:26  |  ChanahS 20/03/07
  42.   Itamar Marcus is a right-wing settler 02:29  |  peacelover 20/03/07
  43.   THIS IS UN PROPERTY 02:30  |  TOBIA 20/03/07
  44.   John Hubbers # 9 02:31  |  ChanahS 20/03/07
  45.   and what is wrong with the TRUTH?? 02:38  |  Sam (UK) 20/03/07
  46.   To KA 02:47  |  sasha 20/03/07
  47.   To all the Jew haters, you proove Arabs are Liars 02:53  |  Steven 20/03/07
  48.   some truth there 02:57  |  garrick 20/03/07
  49.   Ahmads universal law of justice 03:03  |  Honi 20/03/07
  50.   To all the Jew haters, you proove Arabs are Liars 03:11  |  Senia 20/03/07
  51.   #14 I see you read the book already 03:25  |  bosshog 20/03/07
  52.   Ka #15 03:32  |  bosshog 20/03/07
  53.   whos paying for these books 03:36  |  zionist forever 20/03/07
  54.   They have too many children 03:42  |  garrick 20/03/07
  55.   #14 Why should we accept - Palestinian 03:44  |  JW 20/03/07
  56.   Sam #43 03:57  |  X` 20/03/07
  57.   PALS.preparing the next generation of haters,bombers&martyrs. 03:57  |  PETER. S.M 20/03/07
  58.   KHALID Where does Hatanya(sic) and Shulhan Aruch teach that? 04:03  |  PETER. S.M 20/03/07
  59.   14 - palestian 04:08  |  zionist forever 20/03/07
  60.   18 - NA 04:21  |  Zionist forever 20/03/07
  61.   Itamar Marcus 04:22  |  KT 20/03/07
  62.   left of their own volition 05:35  |  keith 20/03/07
  63.   At least they will not be able to blame Israel 05:45  |  Dan 20/03/07
  64.   palestinian...that` s why terror... 05:48  |  maria 20/03/07
  65.   Pals children should know their land is Arabian peninsula 05:59  |  Ali 20/03/07
  66.   re: Sam (UK) 06:54  |  Efox 20/03/07
  67.   This article says it all! - how tragic. 06:59  |  bat yam 20/03/07
  68.   14 palestinanian. Unfortunately, you have put your finger... 07:05  |  bat yam 20/03/07
  69.   Studying the Koran alone would be better for them 07:11  |  Jason 20/03/07
  70.   Israel Textbooks 07:14  |  J Olson 20/03/07
  71.   brant--#4 07:27  |  simon 20/03/07
  72.   38Israel does not exist on map and its area is marked as Falastin 07:34  |  Logician 20/03/07
  73.   MOE If Israel wanted that.They would have fixed you Arab style- 07:43  |  PETER SM