Are Gazans really Turks?

As far-fetched as it sounds, someone has made an argument as to why Gazans should be repatriated as Turks.  

The surprising claim was made by former Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu who, in a personal message to Trump, professes that “the last legitimate state for Palestinians in Gaza was the Ottoman Empire.”  He continues by saying that, “after that, the British Mandate was established but granted them no citizenship. Then came Israel,” who Davutoglu does not recognize as having any legitimacy, while contending that they, also did not grant Gazans citizenship. 

Consequently, he sees the Republic of Turkey as the only legitimate continuation of the Ottoman Empire, concluding that “Gazans should be treated as their historical kin and citizens.” In fact, he suggests that Gazans hold a referendum to join Turkey as an autonomous region, until such time as an independent Palestinian state can be established. 

It is this powerful contention, which more sounds like a warning to America, not to even consider seizure of Gaza, because Turkey will not take it lightly.  From the former prime minister’s point of view, his country would have an obligation to protect the people whom they view as Ottoman subjects, especially since they have had no other citizenship.  

Ending in what sounds more like a tirade, Davutoglu says that if there is to be any migration, it should be that of the “Zionists” who should be moved out and “sent to America’s vast lands where they should be relocated – land which was “stolen from the Native Americans.”   

So, there you have it, not only does the former Turkish prime minister believe that Gazans, are their sovereign protectorates, who should be defended in the event of an American takeover of the area, but he also believes that the Jewish homeland should be emptied out and handed over to these protectorates in order to furnish them with their own state. 

That plan, in no way shape or form, is compatible to the two-state solution, for which those who advocate on behalf of Palestinians, have long promoted. In fact, while pitching his absurd rant, Davutoglu mocks and delegitimizes both the U.S., as an immoral country, built on stolen land, while also ignoring the 1947 U.N. partition vote, granting Israel statehood after recognizing the majority of world nations who agreed to the formation of a Jewish homeland.

Does Davutoglu really believe that his words will frighten Trump and cause him to reassess his plan for Gaza, fearing that Turkey will be prepared to militarily act on behalf of the people they claim as their kin?  Where have they been all this time? 

We’ve barely heard a peep out of them throughout the Israel incursion, which sought to eliminate Hamas, after perpetrating a brutal massacre upon innocent Israelis. Where were they when false accusations of genocide and starvation of Gazans were being hurled at the Jewish state. Weren’t they kin then?

Where were their truckloads of humanitarian aid to relieve the suffering of those they call “their citizens,” because it’s hard to remember any offers of generosity or aid coming from Turkey. Oh, that’s because there weren’t any!

When Egypt and Jordan closed their doors to Gazans, essentially preventing them from leaving the Strip for safer venues or greater opportunities to build a more productive future, why didn’t Turkey open its doors to allow them entrance and the promise of a better life?

It's sad to say, but the former prime minister’s words are the hollow and empty promises which offer Gazans nothing but, instead, relegate them to living under the bondage of savage terrorists who require the optics of a suffering population in order to manipulate the world into the type of sympathy which will conclude that their misery only comes to an end once Israel is no more. 

But here’s the truth. The history of Gaza is very complex, riddled by constant conquest, where Philistines once lived, followed by Bedouins and the Hasmoneans.  Ending up in Roman hands, it was then conquered by Muslims until taken by the Crusaders. Later in Mamluk hands, it eventually went to the Ottomans until the British captured the city. With the Arab exodus in 1948, the population grew, but no one claimed ownership which is how a terrorist government took advantage of the vacuum. (excerpted from Wikipedia)

With the intention of eventually seizing Israel by force, Hamas began a 20-year campaign which included everything from recruitment of Gazan youth for the purposes of the warfare they would wage. Constructing hundreds of tunnels, they built an entire underground encampment which would secretly house weapons, facilitate undetected movement, with the ability to reach Israeli territory.  Finally, those tunnels would become the dungeons used to hold the hostages, held captive by them.

Rather than use the massive wealth of funds which were constantly sent to them, intended to build schools, hospitals, infrastructure and a prosperous society, they squandered the money on resources to destroy Israel.  Anything leftover went to enrich their leaders, who made an early exit to live in the lap of luxury, far from the hell of war.

Now that one world leader has come forward to offer Gazans a better way of life, from the only one they’ve known, these cruel and dishonest actors, such as Davutoglu, have to scramble to come up with a justified reason to keep Gazans in their perpetual state of imprisonment, lest there no longer be an excuse for why Israel cannot legitimately exist. 

Ironically, Donald Trump’s plan, which is the only one that will allow the people of Gaza to become productive and useful members of society, which the same unlimited potential afforded to all free people, is being demonized and threatened by those who prefer to continue with the status quo, perpetuating a life of anguish and suffering for the people who must remain their pawns in this deadly game of doing whatever it takes to extinguish Israel.

According to All Israel News blogger, Arthur Flower, this latest effort of invoking ancestors, who were once under Turkish rule is actually a moot point, because he references that “In article 16 of the Treaty of Lausanne, the new Post Ottoman government of Turkey signed off on all claims to the Mandates on July 24, 1923.” It reads, “Turkey hereby renounces all rights and title whatsoever over or respecting the territories situated outside the frontiers laid down in the present Treaty and the islands other than those over which her sovereignty is recognized by the Treaty.”

Sounds as if the claim of being “kin” expired long ago.