Israel Expanded by Taking Over Palestine?

To The Editor:
I am responding to the Spouter from Avalon who claimed that Israel expanded by taking over Palestine land. No disrespect, but here is more information regarding the tiny little country of Israel.
The entire region was part of the Ottoman Empire and shortly after World War I, the countries of Jordan and Lebanon were created mostly by the British Empire.
A pledge was made by the British government to allot a parcel of land to the Jews who had been massacred during the Holocaust and because of Biblical history, the area which had been called Palestine was approved by the U.N. in 1948 as an independent country and called Israel.
Having anticipated this, the surrounding Arab countries were already armed and preparing to invade this new country and although the new government of Israel encouraged the Arab population living in Israel to remain in their homes, the Arab countries, through intimidation and fear, persuaded most of the Arabs to leave their homeland. These people called themselves Palestinians. They were not chased out of the new country.
From this time in 1948, the surrounding Arab countries vowed they would not stop until the tiny country of Israel was destroyed. To this end, Israel was attacked three times by surrounding countries. Each time, the Israeli armies fought valiantly and beat back the invading forces whose mission was to destroy the Jewish State. So, yes, hard-fought battles did result in additional lands. Meanwhile the very people who had fled from the state in 1948 were living in refugee camps and multiplying and became a cause celebre by denying responsibility for having left their homes in the first place.
A few years back, Israel relinquished part of these lands called the Gaza strip, between Israel and Egypt. Did the Palestinians settle there and cultivate the land and create a homeland? No. The terrorist organization called Hamas took over the Gaza strip and they now fire rockets into Israeli settlements on a daily basis.
I would invite the Spouter to Google the area and check out the size of Israel in relation to the surrounding countries and ask yourself…what on God’s earth could be intimidating about this tiny area of land? I know the answer… Do you?
MICKI GOLDBERG
Swainton