I appreciate your comments, especially the desire not to be bound (or at least as bound) by decisions made in the past.

One day ... perhaps.

I'd just like to clarify, however, that while I believe historical background to the Arabs' presence in Palestine is a valid rejoinder to the accusation that modern Israelis are settler colonialists (which they absolutely are, no doubt), I don't think the actions of Arabs in other regions, e.g. Sudanese slavers, has any bearing on how we should evaluate the merits of the Palestinian cause.

In short, I remain a Zionist because I don't think the Jews had any other choice but to create a national & political homeland in Israel. An ideal circumstance would have been to create potentially vibrant, secure homelands for Palestinian refugees in Gaza & the West Bank. Would that have satisfied all Palestinian desire for return? No. Certainly not. But it might have been the start of an effective modus vivendi. Instead generations of Israeli leadership effectively destroyed the West Bank & strangled Gaza, leading one to conclude that they, like Hamas, have no real interest on compromise. Alas.