Palestinian uni. apologizes for map that includes only West Bank and Gaza

Al-Quds Open University (QOU), a Palestinian independent public university, on Saturday apologized for publishing a “Map of “Palestine” that includes only the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
Students at Al-Quds University demonstrate during student elections in 2011. (photo credit: SETH J. FRANTZMAN)
Students at Al-Quds University demonstrate during student elections in 2011.
(photo credit: SETH J. FRANTZMAN)
Al-Quds Open University (QOU), a Palestinian independent public university, on Saturday apologized for publishing a “Map of “Palestine” that includes only the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
The apology came after Palestinians expressed outrage with the university for publishing a map they claimed was similar to the one proposed by US President Donald Trump in his recently unveiled plan for Mideast peace. Several Palestinians accused the university of accepting the Trump plan, “Peace to Prosperity.”
Palestinians often publish maps that show there is only one state from the Mediterranean Sea to the Jordan River: “Palestine.”
Many Palestinians said they did not believe that the new map was published by mistake. “If the university administration made such a mistake, all its heads should go home,” said Facebook user Ishak Froukh.
Another Facebook user, Sana Hmamreh, said she too did not believe that the map was published by mistake. “This map coincided with the publication of the Deal of the Century,” she commented, referring to Trump’s plan.
Other social media users sarcastically suggested that the university change its name to “Deal of the Century University” and said it does not deserve to be called after Jerusalem (Al-Quds).
The university administration said that the map was a “newsletter for high school students that includes a drawing of the university branches in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.”
“This drawing is only illustrative of the distribution of the [university] branches in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and was not intended as a geographical map of Palestine, which we teach in our curricula and memorize by heart,” the QOU administration explained. “The university apologizes for this newsletter, although the drawing is illustrative and does not represent the map of Palestine, but rather the university branches scattered throughout the West Bank and Gaza Strip.”
The university said that the newsletter was issued by one of its centers without coordination with the administration. “The university and its branches and various departments has endorsed a map of Palestine from the [Jordan] river to the [Mediterranean] sea,” the administration added, noting that it has also rejected Trump’s plan for Mideast peace.
The administration appealed to Palestinians not to harm the university, “which instills in the hearts of its students that the love of sacrifice for the homeland is among its major missions.”
Founded in 1991 by the PLO, QOU has more than 60,000 students studying in 19 branches and centers distributed all over the West Bank and Gaza Strip.