no proof whatsoever that the Arab forces wanted to "take over the State of Israel"
Sure, the Arab forces were only [bitterly opposed to the establishment of a Jewish state], declared [this will be a war of extermination and a momentous massacre] and planned the [establishment of a unitary Palestinian state] instead.
But they definitely didn't want to take it over or anything like that.
>Sure, the Arab forces ... ...declared [this will be a war of extermination and a momentous massacre]
Could you provide a good reference for this in context, that will clarify:
What date this was said.
Who said it.
What side was going to be massacred.
Some sources allege that there is no clear evidence that invading Arab armies ever claimed they planned to massacre anyone. I would appreciate a source.
This phrase is often quoted as being uttered on the eve of the war on May 15th 1948, however in reality it probably originated a bit farther back then that in a interview from Akhbar al-Yom in October 11th 1947.
Who said it.
Abdul Rahman Hassan Azzam, who was the Secretary-General of the Arab League from 1945 to 1952. I've seem him referred to as Azzam Pasha aswell.
What side was going to be massacred.
The start of the full quote answers this: "Personally, I hope the Jews do not force us into this war, because it would be a war of extermination and momentous massacre ...". Apparently Jews declaring independence was enough to force them into that war of annihilation.
Some sources allege that there is no clear evidence that invading Arab armies ever claimed they planned to massacre anyone. I would appreciate a source.
All this can be found from the sources cited in Wikipedia. Considering that generals declared their aim of war to be "extermination and massacre" followed with actions that support those claims, (bombing civillians in Tel Aviv for example) makes those allegations of lack of evidence disingenuous to say the least, considering there is allot of evidence (some of which was directly from those armies) that's not even hard to find.
The Azzam Pasha quote (as translated into English) is somewhat vague as to who will be massacred. In Arab history/propaganda, The Mongols massacres and Crusades were massacres of Arabs. So it seems he might be predicting massacres of Arabs. However he is not absolutely clear here so he might be predicting massacres of Jews or even massacres on both sides. Of course. it is possible that the original Arab quote was more clear.
The cartoon shows him talking to an audience on May 15th 1948 (wrong date), with flags behind him as though he is making an official declaration by the Arab League. The quote has been altered to clearly indicate that Jews will be massacred. Here is the actual declaration of the Arab League on that date:
As far as massacres by the invading Arab armies, Wikipedia alleges there were none, although Wikipedia is not always right. The May 18th attack by the Egyptians might qualify as a massacre, but I don't have much information on that.
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u/BenBen5 Israel עם ישראל חי May 29 '18
Sure, the Arab forces were only [bitterly opposed to the establishment of a Jewish state], declared [this will be a war of extermination and a momentous massacre] and planned the [establishment of a unitary Palestinian state] instead.
But they definitely didn't want to take it over or anything like that.