Israeli FM: Compensating for the Jewish refugees is an integral part of any future negotiations

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - Deputy "Israeli" Foreign Minister, Danny Ayalon, said yesterday (Tuesday) during a special conference held on the matter of Jewish refugees from Arab countries," At this juncture in time I call for putting an end to the historic injustice and call upon the Arab League to assume responsibility and admit it was they who caused the Jews from Arab countries to become refugees."

He presented at the conference a report, prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in cooperation with the National Security Council on his activities done for the recognition of the Jews refugees from Arab countries. Ayalon stated that the issue of compensation for the Jewish refugees from Arab nations will be an integral part of any future negotiations or settlement. Financial restitution will be based on the "Clinton fund" principles of 2000, according to which the Jewish refugees would be recompensed, as would the countries that took them in, such as "Israel" and Jordan. Ayalon made it clear that "Israel" would insist on the Palestinian refugees being integrated into the Palestinian state when it is established, just as the Jewish refugees were absorbed into "Israel".

The deputy foreign minister further added, "Today some 50% of Israel's residents are the same refugees from Arab countries and their progeny, who were fully integrated and who contributed to the establishment and development of the State of "Israel". Just as the State of "Israel" absorbed the Jewish refugees, so the Arab refugees who left Mandatory Palestine should receive the same treatment, all the more in light of the establishment of the Palestinian Authority, the existence of which renders the continued existence of the Arab refugee camps unjustified."

The main points of the report and of the Deputy FM's guidelines for action gained overwhelming support from the organizations' representatives, who also spoke at the conference. Meir Kahalon (chairman of the organizations of Jews from Arab countries and Iran) said, "The Jews from Arab nations are entitled to help and support," while Levana Zamir (on behalf of Egyptian Jewry) said, "I support your raising the subject at the United Nations and I urge you to call upon them not only to return the property but also to restore custody and ownership over the Jewish heritage sites and holy places. Your success is our success."

Ayalon instructed all of "Israel's" missions abroad to persuade the world's parliamentarians to adopt a resolution recognizing the Jewish refugees from Arab states, just as the American Congress did by passing House Resolution 185 in 2008, " to help bring an end to the conflict. Acknowledging and taking care of refugees is not just a matter of historic justice but also one that is valid based on UN Resolution 242."

According to the report, between the years 1948 and 1951, about 850 thousand Jews from Arab countries were expelled and became refugees. He wrote in the report " In fact, a two-way migration of populations began, along with the creation of two different refugee groups. The ratio between the two refugee groups was 2:3, with the Palestinian group numbering around 600,000 as opposed to the Jewish refugees, which numbered about 850,000 (up until 1968), and their descendents now account for about one half of the population of the State of "Israel".

The report also pointed that A 2008 study estimated that the ratio of lost property stands at almost 1:2; the Palestinian refugees lost property totaling roughly 450 million dollars (in today's prices around $3.9 billion) whereas the Jewish refugees lost property totaling 700 million dollars (around $6 billion dollars).

Nevertheless, the issue of Jewish refugees was pushed to debate before. In February 2010 the issue did gain recognition in "Israel", with the legislation of the Law for Preservation of the Rights to Compensation of Jewish Refugees from Arab countries and Iran, passed by the Knesset. According to law, the State of "Israel" is obligated to make sure that any negotiations for peace in the Middle East include the subject of compensation for the Jewish refugees as well. At the same time, the National Council for Jewish Restitution, chaired by Rafi Eitan, was established under the auspices of the Ministry for Senior Citizens which was given the task of advising the government and the Prime Minister regarding the issue of restitution.

During the 60 year celebrations of the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees in December 2011, DFM Ayalon spoke in the United Nations plenum in front of the international community about this issue.

An international conference is expected to be held in the near summer in cooperation with the Jewish organizations in the country and the world and all those working on the subject.

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