Is the ordinary Israeli citizen aware of this?

Question

Syria filed a complaint yesterday with the UN protesting Israel's chopping down of trees in the occupied Golan Heights to harass farmers and to put pressure on Syrian villagers to force them to leave their land.
Also Palestine's plant life is under threat. As an example there is a rare kind of fern that is not found anywhere in the world except on Jarzim Mountain in the Bab Al Hawa area in Kufr Kalik in southern Nablus, were currently an Israeli military point has been established.
In many cases the plants are stolen and marketed as being from Israel, just as other Palestinian cultural artifacts and food such as the embroidered dress, falafel, maqluba and musakhan.
Such Palestinian cultural artifacts and food are being commercially marketed worldwid under false pretences as being part of the Jewish heritage in Palestine.

What do ordinary Israeli citizen know about that?

http://www.gulfnews.com/region/Middle_East/10163074.html

edit Riviva: I consider myself being smart enough what to believe and what not. Things mentioned by you I won't believe anyway.
Btw. nice to remain me that this "political" question does not belong here. Have not seen this kind of comment on anybody elses question. No matter if it was regarding politics or religion. Wonder why.

It is not my intention to change anybody's love for Israel etc. I just asked if the ordinary Israeli citizen is aware of these things, too. Going by the answers I received so far, I guess not.

Answer 1

I don't know whether I am an 'ordinary Israeli citizen', but yes I am aware of this. So I'm sorry to burst your bubble lemoncream, but the construction of the West Bank barrier wall has required the clearance of many olive trees, and Worldluv's description of Har Homa is entirely accurate - I was there just a week ago, and it is a hill covered in modern residential towers, while the hill opposite it is still covered in trees.

But I have to say that if the Palestinians want to stop their trees being cut down in the name of security or other Israeli interests, the best way would be to strike a peace agreement with us - that way you'll have complete control over your land, and we'll have the same with ours. So stop your crazy militants from firing rockets at us, come to the table as one, and let's sort it out!

Edit: Regarding the cherry trees in the Golan, I heard the story yesterday, but the details are extremely sketchy, and so it is difficult to pass judgment. Majdal Shams is a Druze village high up in the Golan Heights, and relations are generally quite good with them. I am inclined to agree with Michael J that if we did clear any of their trees, we probably had reasons to do so.

Edit to HopelessZ00: The answer to your question is yes. Perpetual conflict is not in the interests of Israelis any more than it is good for the Palestinians, and the desire to strike a deal here is strong - Israel made peace with Egypt and Jordan to everyone's benefit, and would love to do so with the Palestinians as well. Handing over the West Bank would clearly be part of such a deal, but the border would be modified to allow many of Israel's West Bank settlements to be kept within Israel, including for example Har Homa which is very close to the 1967 line. Mahmoud Abbas has recently signalled his agreement for such a modification, provided that the Palestinians receive land of equivalent size further South in compensation.

Answer 2

I am an American and as such feel that the article you cite is biased. The reporter only quotes one source. By doing this the reporter could be accused of fabricating his own story. An example of what I mean is during the Watergate Scandal that lead to the resignation of President Nixon here in the USA, the lead newspaper was the Washington Post. Their editors made sure there were at least three sources for any news worthy story. I read the policies of the Gulf News and from my understanding this article does not fit its own standards. Now, as for whether the article is true or false, I do not know. From its tone I would believe probably half is true and half is false. The truth is exaggerated to make the article so one sided. I am sure you can find other examples of this story in other Arab Newspapers and not just a tabloid in the UAE.

Answer 3

I get really tired of hearing that Israel doesn't have a legitimate claim to calling Falafel and other things as Israeli - these ignorant statements are just dumb and don't do anyone any service. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falafel for more of a discussion on the matter of what cultures can claim Falafel for example as a part of their heritage. Syria is a joke filling complaints on anyone and anyone with any sense knows these. The only thing Syria is good for is massacring its own people which it does well.

Next think you will be telling us is that Israelis can't market Matzah as Israel food because the people who orginally were eating it were traveling out of Egypt - an arab nation.

Good Luck!!!

Answer 4

Here are the proofs that you needed LemonCream, H, plz note i could not find the 3rd one, "Such Palestinian cultural artifacts and food are being commercially marketed worldwid under false pretences as being part of the Jewish heritage in Palestine." I'm sure others will come along shortly. And be able to help, Cheers!

Reviva: I hope you can understand me, plz, but I think if H had put this in the political section, Im sure there would have been 100 replies, and alot not positive, and perhaps even hurtful. Its only my opinion, that this has everything to do with the Israeli section. I may be wrong , its just my opinion. Peace!

Londoner in Israel: thumbs up for your knowledge, as to come to the table and talk about a peace plan, (lets leave Gaza out of this one , this conversation I mean) Do you think that Israel ever will one day let the west bank go? Meaning move the settlements out in the name of peace? I don't mean to sound like its not a compromise on their part. I just mean to say compare the west bank with the whole of Israel, do you think that could be done? Peace!

edit at Londoner: :) Thank you. Peace!

Answer 5

Yes indeed each and every Israeli is aware of this, if you look to some photos for Jerusalem published by the Israelis, you will realize that they are trying not to show any mosque or church in the photo.
In Israel, there are no traditions because their roots are only 59 years old and not from Palestine, how you want the Russian, American, Moroccan, Iranian, Yemeni, Tunisian, German, to have the same food and same tradition, that is why, they steal our food and they said it is theirs.

I don’t have much to add…. but I have to say that you are the best asker H,

Answer 6

What do you mean by the "occupied" Golan Heights????
It is a part of Israel, and Israel can do with it what it wants.
You Muslims have 52 countries of your own, 22 of which are Arab.
We Jews only have ONE.
It is time you leave us alone and live happily ever after in the 99.99% of the Mid-East which supposedly belongs to you.

Answer 7

I read the article from which you nearly copied word from word, and it was perhaps the most biased and misleading article I've ever read. For starters, prior to the foundation of Israel, the concept of natural conservation was non-existent. Israel was mostly deforested by the occupying powers between the existence of the Jewish kingdoms. It is by virtue of the Jewish settlers themselves that the Israeli habitat is being restored and reforested. Due to such organizations as the JNF, Israel has actually experienced a net gain in woodland in the 20th century, continuing into the 21st. Furthermore, Israel today has a reputation for saving endangered plants, and has often prevented construction to protect the habitats of endangered species. The simple basis of the articles arguments is that he considers the areas under discussion to be Palestine, whereas history and I disagree. For example, one of his arguments is that Israeli plant experts name plants from southern West Bank Judean and northern West Bank Samarian. In fact, Judea and Samaria are the true names of those geographic locations, mentioned in the Old Testament. There is no reason why the name Palestine should be ascribed to them, as that is a name ascribed to a much more general region under the Romans more than a thousand years later. The second argument that Israel is "stealing" ancestral Palestinian culture is pure rubbish. Israel stole falafel from the Palestinians? That's pure absudity, plain and simple. It's a point that has been discussed many times on this board, and been universally rebuffed. Falafel for example is widespread in all Arab culture, including Jews from Arab countries, as well as other mediteranean locales. If you claim that it is in fact Palestinian, you are in effect claiming no distinction between Palestinians and many other Arabs. If this is true, than they have no claim to a homeland as they aren't a distinct cultural or racial group. Is that really your argument? The second article about Syria's complaint I read did not include any response by an Israeli authority. I don't believe anything that Syria claims to be true, and I will not break that and trust them on this point. As Israel sees the Golan as part of Israel, it seems unlikely to me that they are attempting to deforest it. If it is indeed something that happened, I am sure there is an alternate reason to the one Syria suggests.

Answer 8

the ordinary Israeli citizen is not aware of this and dosnt want to know.
i personaly know some of this facts, but i am not the ordinary Israeli citizen... i am what is called here the radical left.
but most peole dont realy care.

Answer 9

Hey I ate falafel today for lunch, it is palestinian not Jewish heritage.
Supporting your claim with a webiste is enough now lets wait for them to prove the opposite if they can..
Thanks to Londoner In Israel, I always like your answers.

Salaam/Shalom

Answer 10

I feel some know but it is a shame such hatred is on this I feel it should be stopped