Who Has A Historical Right To The Land of Palestine?

Debunking the Myth: Do Jews Have a Historic Right to Palestine?

One of the most commonly repeated justifications for the occupation of Palestine is the claim that Jews have a historic right to the land. But does this claim hold up under the lens of scripture and unbiased history? Let’s examine this using Jewish scriptures and academic historical records – including those by non-Muslims.

The Origins: Canaanite Land

Long before Israelites existed, the land was inhabited by Canaanites – native people who settled there as far back as 6000 years ago. When Abraham, originally from Iraq, migrated to Canaan (modern-day Palestine), he was a foreigner. His descendants – Isaac, Jacob (Israel), and the 12 tribes – were also strangers in the land.

A famine later drove Jacob’s descendants to Egypt. They only returned to Canaan centuries later under Moses, and eventually under Joshua, who began the first wave of violent conquest, killing men, women, and children – as described in the Old Testament (e.g., Joshua 6, 8, 10).

A Brief Rule Through Violence

The Israelites’ control of the land lasted only about 420 years – from Joshua through Kings Saul, David, and Solomon. After Solomon’s death, the kingdom split into two and soon fell to Assyrian and Babylonian invasions. Both empires exiled the Israelites, and by 586 BC, Jewish rule in Palestine had ended.

Historically, their presence in the land was marked by genocide, forced tribute, and sporadic, limited rule. The Babylonians, then Persians, Greeks, and Romans controlled Palestine for centuries. Jewish revolts against the Romans resulted in their expulsion by 132 AD.

1300 Years of Muslim Rule

Jews did not return to rule Palestine again until European Zionist movements pushed for it in the late 19th century. In contrast, Muslims ruled the land for over 1300 years, starting from the caliphate of Umar ibn al-Khattab in 636 AD until British colonisation in 1917 – with a brief interruption during the Crusades.

This sustained Muslim governance dwarfs the Israelites’ brief 420-year rule.

Zionism: A Political Movement, Not a Historic Right

In the late 1800s, Zionist leaders like Theodor Herzl began calling for the return of Jews to Palestine, not based on native presence, but on political and religious ambitions. In 1882, Jews comprised just 3% of Palestine’s population. Through six waves of immigration and British collusion, that figure rose to 31% by 1948.

In 1948, under British colonial facilitation, a European-rooted Zionist movement forcibly established a state on Palestinian land—displacing native Arabs, the true descendants of Canaanites, as confirmed by historians like Ilene Beatty.

The Verdict

Historically, the indigenous people of Palestine are the Canaanites, many of whose descendants are the modern-day Palestinians. From both scriptural and historical perspectives, the Zionist claim to Palestine lacks legitimacy. Their state was established through colonial force, not ancestral right.

Supporting such an occupation, especially one that involves killing civilians under religious pretext, mirrors the rationale of terrorist groups throughout history. The truth remains: Zionists are colonial occupiers with no religious, political, or historical claim to Palestine.

And that is a fact history will never erase. See video