Palestinians are the Indigenous People?

Again and again this Truth Seeker hears this cry. But the Palestinians were here first! They are the indigenous people of the land. To look at recent history one might at first agree with it. But recently genetic studies have shown them not as indigenous as one might have thought.

From Global Politician:

A study by the University of Chicago found that Arab populations, including Palestinians, Jordanians, Syrians, Iraqis, and Bedouin, have at least some sub-Saharan African genes. Non-Arabs from the region, including Turks, Kurds, Armenians, Azeris, Georgians, and Jews did not have any African roots. A possible explanation is the proximity of the Arabian peninsula to the Black African nations. This conclusion is favored by the fact that Yemenite Arabs have 35% Black African genes in their mtDNA (which passes through the mother), while others have less. Yemen, of course, is very close geographically to several Black African nations. Other Arabs, especially those far away from the Arabian peninsula, have as little as 10% African blood in their mtDNA. As such, it is possible that the African gene was merely diluted by the introduction of non-Arab (and non-African) genes to the pool when Arabs began to conquer other Middle East people after the rise of Islam. The "real" Arabs -- those who have Arab ancestors stretching beyond the last 1,400 years - are actually 35% Black in their mtDNA. These Arabs are from the Arabian peninsula.

Only the Christian Arabs have a genetic link to the land.

Palestinians, however, differ from other Arabs in some ways. As the web site for Harper's Magazine reported, one study showed that Jews and Palestinians have common ancestry that is so recent that it is highly likely that at least some of the Palestinian blood actually descends from Jews. [3] Another study by New York University confirmed a remarkable similarity between Jewish and Palestinian genes. "Jews and Arabs are all really children of Abraham," said Dr. Harry Ostrer, director of the Human Genetics Program at New York University School of Medicine, who worked on the study. "And all have preserved their Middle Eastern genetic roots over 4,000 years.

According to several other studies, Palestinians and Jews are genetically closer to each other than either is to the Arabs of Arabia or to Europeans. A study of congenital deafness identified an allele limited to Palestinian and Jews of Ashkenazi origin (those who lived in Europe in recent centuries), suggesting a common origin. Furthermore, Y-chromosome polymorphism is very similar among Palestinians and Sephardic Jews.

There is a significant Christian population among Palestinian Arabs, leading some to claim that at least part of the Palestinian population (the Christians) descended from the original followers of Christ, who were, of course, Jews (they were Jews ethnically, even if they didn't follow Judaism).

These people can claim decent from the original Christians who were once Jews in the land.

They claim a long standing claim to Canaan and how they are the original Canaanites. Again genetic studies show only Arab Christians with any of these genes, but surprisingly also show that Jews from Europe with these genes too.

It has been shown that Jewish men of the Cohen line (Priestly caste) has a deep genetic link to Israel. Jewish Genetics are being studied on the male line, and the female line studies should be out next year.

Forgetting genetics, something now the Palestinians are trying to do. Let us turn to history. History shows that there has always been a Jewish presence in Israel for the last 3500 years.


Historical evidence of this presences in found in the historical writings of the Babylonians, Greeks, Roman, Muslims, Crusaders, Turks and Westerners. Mark Twain mentions the Jews in his travels. The Greeks mention the Jews and their obscene practice of circumcision. The Romans mention them in many places. So looking at historical sources, I give you, the Truth Seeker the following:

• When Joshua led the people of Israel back to the promise land, he was fulfilling God's commandment to return to the land of their forefathers. God admonished him to kill everything and everyone. There were Jews again in the land.
• When the Babylonians conquered, there were Jews in Israel.
• When the Greeks conquered, there were Jews in Israel.
• When the Romans conquered, there were Jews in Israel.
• When the Muslims conquered, there were Jews in Israel.
• When the Crusaders conquered, there were Jews in Israel.
• When the Muslims re-conquered, there were Jews in Israel.
• When the Ottoman Turks conquered, there were Jews in Israel.
• When the British were given the Mandate, there were Jews in Israel.
• When in 1948, the Jews took back the land stolen from them, there were Jews in Israel.

For 3500 years there has never been a time when there wasn't a Jew in the land of Israel. We have always been there.

In conclusion, the only logical verdict there can be is:

The Jews are the Indigenous People of Israel. The Palestinians are the outsiders, mostly from Yemen and should be returned to their ancestral land.

Related reading:

Words Matter
Who and What are the Palestinians