By Daoud Kuttab

In Arab tradition it is not customary to say bad things about a dead person even if he/she is your biggest enemy. I am not sure that this tradition will work on most Palestinians regarding the Israeli king of the settlement movement, but for some reason the passing of Ariel Sharon after the withdrawal from Gaza and the long years in a coma have taken away some of the bitterness that many felt about Ariel Sharon.

Ask any Palestinian about Sharon and they will rattle almost verbatim the terrible things he has done. Gazans will quickly recall his role in crushing the Palestinian fedayin (guerrillas) in the strip shortly after the 1967 occupation. In Lebanon Sharon’s role in the war to destroy the PLO, his unholy alliance with the Lebanese Phalanges and the role of the Israeli army in allowing for the Sabra and Shattilamassacre will probably be the quick answer to many.

West Bank Palestinians have the image of Sharon with his maps planning one settlement after the other and his calls on the eve of the Oslo Accords to settlers to take over every available hilltop, still ring in many ears.

Sharon’s legacy in Jerusalem can be seen daily by Palestinians walking down from Damascus Gate to the Al Qsa mosque. Halfway down a lWad quarters is a two-story house that Sharon took over as some kind of symbol of Jewish presence in the Palestinian populated neighborhoods of the old city of Jerusalem. A huge Israeli flag and a Jewish menorah remind all of Sharon’s house. Close circuit cameras (among 2,000 in the old city) ensure that no one tries to bring down the flag without being spotted and no doubt later arrested. Continue Reading »