This year was no exception. On the occasion of Christmas, a top Fatah official spoke of Jesus as “the first Palestinian,” claiming that “Christmas is one of the permanent Palestinian symbols.”
By Itamar Marcus, Palestinian Media Watch
For years, the Palestinian Authority and Fatah have presented Jesus as a Palestinian, as part of its fabricating an ancient Palestinian history.
This year was no exception. On the occasion of Christmas, a top Fatah official spoke of Jesus as “the first Palestinian” and said that “‘Christmas is one of the permanent Palestinian symbols.”
In their historical revision, the PA and Fatah ignore that Jesus was a Jew (“Judean”) according to Christian tradition and that the Roman Empire changed the name of the land Judea into “Palestine” only a hundred years after Jesus lived. In spite of the dishonesty, senior PA and Fatah leaders have consistently presented Jesus and his mother Mary as Palestinians and Jesus as “the first Palestinian Martyr,” and the first Palestinian refugee, as documented by Palestinian Media Watch.
The following is a statement from PLO Executive Committee member and Fatah Central Committee member Azzam Al-Ahmad made Monday, Christmas Eve, at Khan Al-Ahmar, a site where Palestinian Bedouins have illegally erected buildings and dwellings.
“The lighting of the Christmas tree each year has many meanings in Palestine… Christmas is one of the permanent Palestinian symbols, and the whole world follows Mass in Bethlehem…
“The children of Khan Al-Ahmar are happy about the lighting of this tree, as it is the symbol of the first Palestinian, Jesus, peace be upon him. We, the members of the Palestinian people, are celebrating Christmas together with everyone in the ‘land of Palestine.'”
The same false claims about Jesus were repeated by Secretary-General of the National Initiative [and PA Parliament member] Mustafa Barghouti. who stated, as reported in the official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida (Dec. 20, 2018): “Jesus, who was born on this land, was a Palestinian and defeated his suffering.”
Among the many examples of this claim is a Facebook post from two years ago by Tawfiq Tirawi, member of Fatah Central Committee, shows a house in a snowy, picturesque setting with the words: A magnificent Christmas… a happy New Year.” Underneath the picture is the text: “For Christmas, the birthday of Jesus the first Palestinian and the first Martyr (Shahid), peace be upon him, we will surely stop the path of suffering (i.e., referring to the Via Dolorosa, which Christians believe to be the path Jesus walked on his way to crucifixion) and go up to the free Palestine, happy New Year.”
In 2017, PMW posted the following video of Abbas Zaki, also a member of the Fatah Central Committee, claiming that Jesus was a Palestinian.
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