PA ministry official: Jews have no historical ties to “Palestine”, “all historical sites belong to the Palestinians”

Director-General of the PA Ministry of Culture and Antiquities in the Nablus District Dirgham Al-Fares: "Enough of harming our sites and our history, and enough of the unjust actions to Judaize these religious and historical sites through false claims. Those who spread these false claims are religious figures and politicians in the occupation entity (i.e., Israel). The historians and archaeologists fully know that the Palestinian people today is the continuation of the true inhabitants from the Stone Age until now. The Palestinian people who worshipped El, Baal, and Ishtar is the one who developed the concept of God and embraced the Jewish religion, the Christian religion, and Islam. Therefore, the holy site of Joseph's [Tomb] and all the archaeological and historical sites are part of our cultural heritage, and all the antiquities above the land of Palestine and within it belong to the Palestinian people. The occupation is only connected to Palestine through a religious connection, and not a historical or ethnic connection as they claim… The connection of the Jews from different parts of the world is a religious connection that grants them a right to religious tourism like any other citizenship, and completely does not justify the occupation, and there is nothing that will prove an ethnic or religious connection."

[Official PA TV, July 1, 2025]

The Palestinians have no history prior to the modern period, whereas an abundance of evidence proves Jewish history in Israel.