Opinion

April 19 is a day of mourning for the Palestinians, a day when Nabka or catastrophe caused a mass exodus long before Israel was declared a state on May 14 1948. There were deaths, there were dispossessions and there were mutilations, too. Blood and tears for the dispossessed, but a pyrrhic victory for the Zionists. The blame must be squarely placed on the shoulders of the international community for its apathy. Apathy breeds atrocities. Alan Paton’s book, “Cry, The Beloved Country,” may be about Africa but it has some harsh words for all dispossessors: “It is not permissible to add to one’s possessions if these things can only be done at the cost of other men. Such development has only one true name, and that is exploitation.” If Israel wants the world and the rest of humanity to respect it, it must stop its hubris-ridden exploitation of the helpless Palestinians.