Don’t tell champions of the Palestinian nationalist cause, but apparently there’s some connection between the ancient kingdoms of Israel and Judah and the modern Jewish state of Israel!

The current Palestinian narrative is based on the lie that Jews have no history, and certainly no rightful historical claims in this land, and therefore the State of Israel is illegitimate and an act of “colonization.”

The United States of America this week once again implicitly signaled that it’s not buying what the Palestinians are selling.

The not-so-missing link

For the past 20 years, authorities both in Israel and the US have been tracking down and investigating an extremely rare 2,000-year-old coin that was smuggled out of Israel by antiquities thieves in 2002.

The coin was minted in 69 AD, in the fourth year of the “Great Jewish Revolt” against Rome, which its marking commemorate. It is only one of two such coins ever found, and has an estimated value of $1 million.

US authorities, who seized the coin in 2017, naturally viewed the coin as a piece of Israeli history, and on Monday returned it to the Jewish state in a ceremony in New York.

A stark reminder of Jewish history in the Land of Israel

Attending the ceremony was Israel Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan, who stated:

“This singular artifact is a stark reminder of the Jewish people’s millennia-old connection to the land of Israel. We thank the IAA, HSI, and the DA’s office for restoring this priceless coin to its rightful home.

“This event is especially important to me because the Palestinians are working at the UN to hide the history of our people and erase our connection to the Land of Israel. But no matter how many lies are spread, the truth cannot be erased, and the truth is laid out here this evening for all to see. This coin is evidence of the eternal bond between the Jewish people and the Land of Israel, and as Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, I can also utilize it in my mission to fight the lies of our enemies.”

With reporting by JNS.