JNF eBook Vol 4 - JNF eBook Series

JNF eBook Vol 4
JNF UK: “For over a century, JNF has been engaged in its historic mission of turning the
Land of Israel green. The trees and crops that were planted were crucial to making the Zionist
dream a reality. Israel is now a mature state in its 63rd year, but the imperative of greening the
land still remains vital to Israel’s future.” http://www.jnf.co.uk/index.html
JNF US: “Go for the Green.” “Some 25 percent of all tree plantings in the 1980s were
carried out in the Negev, bringing its forest area to a total of 45,000 acres. Army camps that
had been set up in the Negev after the evacuation of the Sinai were planted with JNF-KKL
trees to create shelter from the burning sun, shield soldiers and equipment from dust storms,
and provide some respite for those soldiers stationed in the harsh desert.” http://www.jnf.org/
(Comment: the evacuation of the Sinai refers to the withdrawal of the Israeli army from the
Sinai in 1982, the agreement reached at Camp David. However, the soldiers stationed in the
Negev “forcefully evacuated Bedouin from their homes to areas where they are to be
concentrated, terrorizing women and children, shooting animals, destroying tents, and in
general behaving in the manner that has typified the bloody and brutal career of [Ariel
Sharon]…” (Chomsky 1999). A further twist on greenwash is the Green Patrols, directed by
Sharon, preventing Bedouins from encroaching on “national lands.”
JNF France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Holland. “JNF For the Environment.”
“Israel's forests and parks were not always here. The first Jewish settlers in the country, at the
end of the 19th century, found a desolate land with not a mite of shade.”
“Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael-Jewish National Fund was founded in 1901 to purchase land in
Eretz Israel on behalf of and for the Jewish People. In 1904, in addition to this work, it
embarked on a project to plant olive trees on the lands of Ben Shemen and Hulda, which it
had recently purchased. The idea was to plant top-quality, fruit-bearing trees for which there
was demand.”
“KKL-JNF Helps Combating Desertification Worldwide; Green at the Edge of the Desert;
The International Arid Lands Consortium”
http://www.kkl.org.il/kkl/english/top_toolbar/kkl_offices/office_addresses/franceguate.x
(Comment: as detailed below, this is a hypocritical assertion, given Israel’s confiscation and
squandering of water particularly in Palestinian areas).
JNF Canada: “Go Neutral: An Environmental Movement for Tomorrow.” “When the JNF
was founded, over 104 years ago, much of the ancient homeland of the Jewish people had
deteriorated through centuries of neglect into a patchwork of quagmires and arid land.
Through its care for the land of Israel, the JNF has made it bloom again.” Also from this
website: “Calculate your personal carbon footprint, and then counter it by supporting
afforestation programs in Israel,” as tree planting has offset “about 110m tons of carbon.”
JNF Canada funded Canada Park, Begin Park, and also plans Park Rabin, “as testimony to the
hopes, dreams and accomplishments of a courageous leader. Park Rabin will embrace the very
hills on which he fought.” http://www.jnf.ca/
(Comment: this is an entirely erroneous description of Palestine. Of note, both Begin and
Rabin are well- known for their extreme violence).
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