7th - 9th October, 1947 - Hi jinks at a "Quizz", a wild goose chase and Ron is shocked at a lack of hospitality!

Tuesday, 7^th October, 1947

No entry 

Wednesday, 8^th October, 1947

This evening there was a “Quizz” held in the club between the officers and the men.  The former were the winners.

It was very amusing at times; the Superintendent and all the officers very gay in mood were faced by the more serious men.

The presence of some of the wives who had recently returned to the country kept the party, which was apt to be crude, in hand.

source: palestineremembered .com [1]

Thursday, 9^th October, 1947

I went with an investigation party to Qabalan village to investigate a charge of theft of olives reported from there.

When we arrived after a very steep & rough ride we found the complainant and the two accused persons had gone to Nablus.

I do not envy the mounted if they are greeted in that village in any manner similar to our welcome.  We were not even offered coffee.

[1] In my reading and research I am coming to recognise more and more the importance of websites such as www.palestinerembered.com  in recording and documenting Palestine then and now.

One of the worst aspects of the building of the state of Israel has been the systematic destruction of Palestinian villages many of which have been literally razed to the ground.  Others are simply unrecognised and have been left off the maps of Israel especially, but not exclusively, those of the Bedouins in the Negev desert in the south of the country.  By not recognising the existence of these often ancient villages the State grants itself licence to do what it will with the land they have occupied with no regard to the original inhabitants.  Israel prides itself on being a modern democracy but it seems that the history of the last 50 years has demonstrated that actually the democratic process is actually only extended to the powerful.