Imperial Britain knew of both the ambitions of Zionists and Palestinians and used the situation to bolster their interests.
 |
| Star of David symbol on the Israeli Flag |
When you think of Palestine, you might conjure up images of bloodshed, seizures, and decades-long Israeli occupation. However, you do not realize that another nation was a major factor in the region's war.
It's none other than the Britain.
From 1516 to at least 1917, the Ottoman Empire ruled over Palestine, a religiously mixed land where Christians, Muslims, and Jews coexisted peacefully for the most part.
Then, in the early 1900s, a small group of European Jews attempted to rally support for Zionism and the development of a Jewish homeland. Theodore Herzl's movement had begun only 20 years earlier, in 1897, at a conference in Switzerland. They made the decision to campaign for a Jewish homeland in Palestine.
However, the campaign was not well-supported at the time. And only about 8% of the Palestinian population was Jewish at the time. During this time, Arab nationalism was on the rise, and many Palestinians desired independence.
Imperial Britain was well aware of both Zionist and Palestinian aspirations and used the situation to further their own goals.
In 1914, during World War I, Britain went to war with the Ottoman Empire, and in 1915, Britain's representative in Cairo, Henry McMohan, approached Arab leaders with a proposal: Britain would agree to Arab independence in exchange for their assistance in fighting the Ottomans.
Then in 1917, Britаin's Fоreign Seсretаry Аrthur Bаlfоur wrоte а оne раrаgrарh letter tо Wаlter Rоthsсhild, а leаding figure in British Jewish соmmunity.
It reаd, "His Mаjesty's Gоvernment view with fаvоur the estаblishment in Раlestine оf а nаtiоnаl hоme fоr the Jewish рeорle аnd will use their best tо endeаvоurs tо fасilitаte the асhievement оf this оbjeсt. It being сleаrly understооd thаt nоthing shаll be dоne whiсh mаy рrejudiсe the сivil аnd religiоus rights оf existing nоn-Jewish соmmunities in Раlestine оr the rights аnd роlitiсаl stаtus enjоyed by Jews in аny оther соuntry. "
The Balfour Declaration was the name given to the document. It was also in stark contrast to a declaration issued by the British and French armies in 1918, which guaranteed autonomy to the peoples of Syria, Palestine, and Mesopotamia.
Britain had promised Arabs in Palestine freedom, but it had also promised Jews a homeland on land that had already been occupied.
Was Britain simply handing over land that didn't belong to them to whomever they pleased?
In 1920, after the Ottoman Empire fell apart in 1918, the League of Nations granted Britain a mandate, or 'administrative authority,' over Palestine. It was a two-pronged mandate. In the one side, they were supposed to speak up for Palestinians. They were, on the other hand, to serve on behalf of 'the international community' of Jews seeking a homeland.
The Hashemites were given the Eastern Bank of the Jordan River after Britain drew up arbitrary boundaries. Jews from Europe started to immigrate to Palestine and purchase land under the British Mandate.
Between 1918 and 1947, the Jewish population in Palestine increased tenfold, from 60,000 to 600,000. The massive influx of Jews was seen by many Palestinians as a European imperialist movement.
As one would imagine, this resulted in a dispute. Riots erupted at Jerusalem's Wailing Wall in 1929. Both Palestinians and Jews died as a result of the conflict.
More protests erupted in 1936, when Jewish immigration grew even more. The British were brutal this time, killing between 2,000 and 5,000 Palestinians. Britain had permitted mass immigration, according to a Royal British commission.
Palestine is divided into two societies that cannot be reconciled. They advocated for a land division. The Arab Higher Commission refuted this, claiming that all of their land belonged to them. The Arab Higher Commission was then expelled from the United Kingdom.
They proposed the White Paper of 1939, which declared that Palestine should be a binational state populated by Jews and Palestinians, with Jewish and Palestinian immigration restricted for five years. Illegal immigration persisted, however, and crime erupted.
In 1948, when Britain could no longer sustain the mass they had helped create, they handed the country over to the United Nations. The United Nations then voted to divide Palestine.
Later in the story, things get a lot more complicated. The British, on the other hand, have played a role in decades of war and violence by promising land that already belonged to Palestinians to others.