Benny Morris, one of the world’s leading authorities on the Palestinian refugee crisis of 1948, was in Oslo last weekend. One would believe that he would pull as large an audience as Norman Finkelstein, who drew huge crowds during his tour in Norway a few years back. Unfortunately this was not the case, all in all there were 120 people attending the conference, which took place in an airport hotel outside of Oslo. No journalists were present, neither was Benny Morris signed up to meet with any. One single newspaper, the christian DagenMagazinet, reported on his visit and provided an outline of his speech. One bottle of whisky says that if Ilan Pappe ever comes to Norway, he will be on the front page of Dagsavisen the very next day. Unauthorized translation below, from journalist Øystein Lid’s article in DagenMagazinet:
Willoch simplifies and misleads
When Kåre Willoch in May last year wrote an op-ed in VG where he used Benny Morris as a source in his allegation of a systematic and planned expulsion of the Palestinians during the war of liberation in 1948, he had scarcely imagined that Morris himself would confront him on his views.
No master plan
Accoring to MIFF, Willoch refused to face Morris in a debate, which did not stop newly reelected director of the board Morten Rasmussen from confronting Morris with Willoch’s quotes “Escaping the cruelties”.
- Willoch wrote that “Benny Morris found thorough Israeli minutes of horrifying massacres on Palestinians prior to the establishment of the state of Israel, with the purpose of forcing as many Palestinians as possible to leave areas which jewish leaders wanted Israel to have” quoted Rasmussen. Morris’ spontaneous reaction was to call this perspective “handy, simplified and misleading”.
- This completely disregards that there was a war. A war which was started by the Palestinian-Arab community against Israel. During the war there were committed atrocities on both sides. Neither was there any systematic execution of a master plan to expel the arabs, says Morris.
The “new historians”
Benny Morris was at one point asked about his own role as a historian with regards to other “new historians” holding other views.
- I was quite new for 20 years ago, when Israel started opening its archives from 1948. A new generation of researchers started to investigate the issues with relatively open eyes. They were not as closely attached to the events. When the other intifadah took place in 2000 it led to Israeli historians pulling in different directions. Some went in the direction of becoming propagandists who do not concern themselves with serious historical research. I have gone to the right and support Israel, and am at the sime time concerned with getting the facts right. To actually discover what happened, answered Morris.
Political pressure
- It is decisive to focus on how the Palestinian refugees are used for political pressure against Israel, said manager of MIFF, Conrad Myrland to DagenMagazinet after the speech.
- It is very important to clarify how Benny Morris, who is the most renowned of the new Israeli historians, rejects the claim that “the jews expelled the Palestinians”, Morten Rasmussen added.
Jewish refugees
Later Benny Morris held another lecture on “the other refugee problem”, on the jews who were driven out of the arab nations after 1948. After having drawn a picture of the cruelties the jews escaped from in countries like Iraq, Egypt, Morocco and Yemen, the historian commented upon how “there today no longer are any jewish refugees”. They were absorbed by Israel. The arabs did however not absorb the arabs.” All lectures from the Israel conference may be downloaded as audio files from Miff.no.
