To think that this really can't be true about young people's thoughts about Israel?

This!!!

@TinyYellow Oh dear, so you think someone recounting their education in the 70s means that you can dismiss young people's education on matters now?

Maybe it isn't them that needs the education?

Pakistan is actually a good example of why a country created purely on religious grounds (and causing mass displacement of people in both directions) is not a good idea. It was created sort of by mutual agreement but caused a lot of misery and death, after which both India and Pakistan sort of settled down to their own countries. East and West Pakistan both were Muslim majority, but they had different language and cultures, bound together only by religion. When the government of West Pakistan started treating East Pakistan in a discriminatory fashion (forbidding the local language, imposing unfair taxes, taking away voting rights) Bangladesh was born. So Pakistan had/has the right to exist but didn't have the right to oppress the people of now Bangladesh. The result was a two-state solution.

The difference with Israel is that the two-state solution was implemented fast (with help from India) and Pakistan did not have the ability to hinder the formation and survival of Bangladesh. Neither does it have the power to occupy or seriously inconvenience India (though it does seem to breed terrorists). So these countries (Islamic states of Pakistan and Bangladesh and the secular state of India) are co-existing (albeit uneasily) as sovereign countries. Israel, on the other hand, with the help of western governments, has been actively hindering the formation of Palestine and oppressing the people of Palestine. Israel has funded Hamas to weaken the Palestinian authority. Now their own Frankenstein's monster rose up to hurt them and they are using that as an excuse to annihilate Gaza. Young people can see the sheer injustice of this war and are reacting by saying Israel shouldn't exist.

I don't think Israel shouldn't exist, btw, but they need to accept the two-state solution seriously. And our governments need to stop propping them up.

@TinyYellow Then why @ me then?

Or are you trying to make the point that history education in the UK is appalling which is why young people have these view points? Seems a bit weak to imply that due to this person's poor education in the 70s ( which would indicate she isn't that "young"),

It was me who tagged you because you seemed to think that because it's taught at GCSE the kids know what they're talking about. And my point is, that's utter BS, and the post I tagged you in helped point that out.

personally I think we’re at the point that the UN needs to go back and enforce the borders that was made in the first place

You mean 1948 ceasefire line? That would leave Egypt in Gaza and Jordan controlling the West Bank and Jerusalem. I don't think that's what you want is it?

"but had no idea that the invasion of Gaza was prompted by a mass slaughter by Hamas and that Israel is constantly under attack."

Good god if there are people that believe this started on October 7th then the young really aren't the ones in trouble.

Didn’t assume you’d be interested, my reply wasn’t to you.

@TinyYellow why would I be interested when the comment here is about how badly it was taught in the 70s, which is obviously not what young people are learning now?

@Aladdinzane might be interested to read your comment about how inadequate the teaching at schools often is when it comes to history.

He didn't know anything at all about 7th October? 😲

You seem determined to make this about anti semitism but as long as you continue to assume that that’s where all anti Israel feeling comes from, you will be looking at the entire situation with a massive blind spot.

I’m going to assume I’m similar to many who were British educated in the late seventies/early eighties and all I grew up knowing about Jews was that Jesus was one and the Germans were terrible to them in WW2 (wrongly, we were taught Germans not Nazis). Absolutely no reason to have a problem with Judaism or the people that believe in it. Never heard of anti Semitism until adulthood.

Since you asked, I don’t want anything wiped off the map, but personally I think we’re at the point that the UN needs to go back and enforce the borders that was made in the first place because Palestinians have more right to live there than random American Jews who already have a safe home and just had a great time on their ‘birthright’ trip. The British should be as ashamed in their part in that as they they should Pakistan/India partition. The only difference is that Pakistan hasn’t been committing international crimes for decades and it isn’t committing war crimes right now.

Oh ok so which countries are more legitimate - ones created by force during war or ones divided up by negotiations?

@LuluBlakey1

Please, the Israel/Palestine conflict is on the GCSE history curriculum, many, many young people are entirely clued up on the situation and history of the issues in the region.

Dismissing young people and their opinions for jumping on the bandwagon or not knowing enough about something however is a tactic as old as the hills. The young people were right about Vietnam, for example, but were dismissed in exactly the same way.

I feel the same and I am 43

Well it isn't surprising is it? The said country is basically carrying out a genocide on a stolen land. I'm not at all surprised that people are finally waking up and seeing the reality.

I'm not the one claiming a right of return based on a 2000 year old heritage- you are. Also not sure about conspiracy theories. I'm basing all my comments on the brilliant work of Illan Pappe. He used Israeli archives which were made public in 1990s to detail what happened in 1948.
I recommend his book:
The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine.

I think if they asked questions to ascertain what they understand of the situation- historically and currently, the answer in most cases would be very little. Most answer questions like this in ignorance of fact and lacking any depth of understanding. They are on the 'cool' bandwagon, whatever that happens to be, that's all.
Several months ago, there was some work done, I think by The Guardian but am not 100% on that, where they did background conversations to find out what students protesting against Israel knew and understood - it amounted to almost nothing with many of them. They did not even know what had taken place, they'd just joined protests like lemmings.

everyone I know on social media is anti Zionist. Israel has taken it all too far according to them. There is so much coming out of Palestine; awful photos and videos. That everyone is seeing Israel as the aggressor, breaking International law. Rafah has featured everywhere.

I would be fearful of being Pro Israel.

Bangladesh fought a war of independence from Pakistan. That's not analogous either. Both are majority Muslim nations.

Ahhh, conspiracy theories. I see.

Anyway, I didn't realise you were the one to decide when history started. How did you get that job? Was it a difficult interview process? What kind of degree did you get at uni that lead to this job?

Yes my kids are 18 and 21 and say most of their friends think this way.

And none of them wants Israel not to exist.

I think someone should be made to write an essay on Israel and its history before giving an opinion like that.

The right of return as applied by Israel gives Jewish people who last lived in this area of the world over 2500 years ago a right of return. That is preposterous enough but it's actually a supremacist policy when this right is given to those people in preference to those that lived in the land for 800 years before 1948 who were actually expelled from the land to give others a right of return.
As for Jews being expelled from Muslim lands in 1948- just read some Avi Shlaim. It is another one of Israel's founding myths. The kids can see through it.

@noblegiraffe if young people genuinely think that, I’d wager it’s less to do with grooming and more to do with anger at what they might deem an unfair and disproportionate response. Israel is losing sympathy at an alarming rate and that’s going to put the west in a more precarious position.