.@martharshulman By calling maftoul "Israeli couscous" you participate in Israel's ethnic and cultural cleansing of Palestine of its people.
— Ali Abunimah (@AliAbunimah) September 1, 2014
Only one problem: What people call "Israeli couscous," which is called "ptitim" in Israel, is not maftoul. It is not even couscous! And it is very Israeli:
"Ptitim" was invented during the austerity period in Israel (from 1949 to 1959).[1] Israel's first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, asked Eugen Proper, one of the founders of the Osem food company, to quickly devise a wheat-based substitute to rice.[1] Consequently, it was nicknamed "Ben-Gurion's rice" by the people.[1] The company took up the challenge and developed ptitim, which is made of hard wheat flour and roasted in an oven.[1] The product was instantly a success, after which ptitim made in the shape of small, dense balls (which the company termed "couscous") was added to the original rice-shaped ptitim.Abunimah doesn't even know the cuisine of his own supposed people!
Meanwhile, Arabic sites are buzzing about another terrible appropriation of "Palestinian" culture - the "Dabke" dance - by Tzipi Livni, who attended a wedding in a Galilee village and danced with the bride:
The Arabs are complaining that it is inappropriate for Livni to ever be happy for any reason whatsoever when Israel has attacked Arabs who were firing rockets at it.