In his memoirs, al-Azm wrote the following revealing statement:

"Since 1948, it is we who demanded the return of the refugees… While it is we who made them leave… we brought disaster upon… the Arab refugees, by calling on them to leave their homes."
— Khaled al-Azm, Memoirs, Part 1, p. 386–387

This quote has been cited in discussions to highlight that Arab leadership bore responsibility—in part—for the mass departure of Arabs from British Mandate Palestine during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. Many Arabs fled expecting the invading Arab armies (from Syria, Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, and Lebanon) would defeat the Jews quickly, after which they could return.

Al-Azm's admission is particularly significant because it came from an Arab leader and contradicts the often-repeated narrative that the Arab exodus was solely the result of forced expulsion by Israeli forces.

Arab leaders admit: We caused the Palestinian refugee crisis

When the Arab world lost the 1948 war against the new State of Israel, hundreds of thousands of Arabs fled their homes. To this day, that exodus is blamed on Israel.

BUT WHAT DO ARAB LEADERS THEMSELVES SAY?

Syria’s prime minister: “We made them leave”
Khaled al-Azm, Syria’s Prime Minister during the 1948 war, wrote in his memoirs:

“We brought disaster upon... the Arab refugees, by calling on them to leave their homes... We made them leave.”
(Memoirs, Part I, p. 386–387)

This shocking confession came from the very top of the Arab leadership.

OTHER ARAB LEADERS CONFIRM IT

Al-Azm wasn’t alone. Many Arab officials admitted that it was Arab states who urged the Arabs of Palestine to flee.

Edward Atiyah (Arab League, London):

“The majority of the refugees… fled in panic… encouraged by Arab leaders.”

Emile Ghoury (Arab Higher Committee):

“The refugees are the direct consequence of Arab states opposing the Jewish state.”

Habib Issa (Arab League, New York):

“The Arab states… encouraged the Palestinians to leave their homes temporarily.”

Jamal Husseini (to the UN, 1948):

“The Arabs left the country to make way for the Arab armies.”

King Abdullah of Jordan:

“The Arab armies… forced them to emigrate.”

WHY THEY LEFT: ARAB LEADERS PROMISED VICTORY

The plan was simple: Arabs were told to leave temporarily so that invading Arab armies could destroy Israel. Once the Jews were defeated, they would return.

But the opposite happened. Israel survived and won. The refugees never returned—and the Arab states refused to absorb them.

THE TRUTH IGNORED FOR 76 YEARS

While Israel took in nearly a million Jewish refugees from Arab countries, the Arab states kept their own refugees in camps—and used them as a weapon against Israel.

Even Arab leaders themselves admitted it.