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official Israeli position
holds that the refugees fled on rders from Arab political and
military leaders. One Israeli military intelligence document
indicates that at least 75 percent of the refugees left due
to Zionist or Israeli military actions, psychological campaigns
aimed at frightening Arabs into leaving, and direct expulsions.
Only about 5 percent left on orders from Arab authorities.
There are several well-documented cases of mass expulsions
during and after the military operations of 1948-49 and massacres
and atrocities that led to large-scale Arab flight. The best-known
instance of mass expulsion is that of the 50,000 Arabs of the
towns of Lydda and Ramle. The most infamous atrocity occurred
at Deir Yasin, a village near Jerusalem, where estimates of
the number of Arab residents killed in cold blood by Israeli
fighters range from about 125 to over 250.
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