How British Controlled Palestine between 1940 and 1945 - Essay Example

How the British controlled Palestine between 1940 and 1945? Number: Palestine was a part of the Ottoman Empire under the rule of Turks before the end of World War One. Palestine is the name given by the Arabs to an area in the Middle-East. Led by General Allenby, the Turkish forces were defeated by the British in 1917 who then occupied the Palestine. The British then controlled Palestine under a League of Nations Mandate from 1920 to 1948 (Wikipedia). The League of Nations entrusted the mandate to the United Kingdom to establish a home for the Jewish people. Following the London Conference in 1939 between the British government and representatives of the Arab governments, the Palestinian Arabs and the Jewish Agency, the White Paper was issued in 1939 by the British government declaring its intention of the future government of Palestine. The White paper also contained the Land Transfers Regulations to protect Palestinian land rights against Zionist acquisition (P4pd. 2004). The White paper further demanded conditional independence for unitary Palestinian State after ten years. In addition, it was agreed to allow 15,000 Jewish immigrants into Palestine annually for five years (Palestineremembered, 2006). Provision was also made for protection of Palestinian land rights against the Zionist acquisition. The British had made contradictory promises to both the Jews and the Palestinians and landed themselves in an untenable and difficult situation. During the World War I, Britain had promised the local Arabs through the Lawrence of Arabia, an independent Arab country covering most of the Middle East in exchange for their support (Wikipedia). Britain also promised to create a Jewish national home as per the Balfour Declaration of 1917. The Jews were fighting against the Arabs and the British while the Arabs were fighting against the Jews and the British. The Arabs attacked the British because the British failed to maintain the quotas as agreed and allowed illegal Jews to enter Palestine (Trueman, 2000). The Jews attacked the British authorities in Palestine because they believed that the quota system was grossly unfair. As a result, British were in the middle of the conflict with little control as the two other sides were involved in their own beliefs (Trueman, 2000). In an attempt to end the violence, the British placed restrictions on the Jewish immigration “in the ‘interests of the present population’ and the ‘absorptive capacity’ of the country” (Bard, 2007). The British actually partitioned the country by limiting the absorptive capacity of Palestine. They put a quota on the number of people who could enter Palestine in any one year. Contrary to the provisions of the Mandate, the British even placed restrictions on land purchases in what remained of Palestine, stating that “the Administration of Palestine...shall encourage, in cooperation with the Jewish Agency...close settlement by Jews on the land, including State lands and waste lands not acquired for public purposes” (Bard, 2007). Over 60,000 Zionist immigrants arrived which increased the Jewish population to 31% of total (P4pd, 2004). The Zionist movement pressed for mass immigration and setting up of a sovereign Jewish commonwealth in all parts of Palestine. The British government then imposed the Land of Ordinance in 1943 which sanctioned the confiscation of private land for public purposes. The British extended the five years Zionist influx to exhaust 75000 permits according to the 1939 White Paper (Palestine remembered, 2006). In 1944, the British labor Party passed a resolution recommending that Palestinians should be encouraged to move out of Palestine to make place for the Jewish immigrants. In 1940 the Jews of Palestine were allowed to enlist in Jewish companies attached to the East Kent Regiment. These companies were formed into three infantry battalions of a newly-established “Palestine Regiment” and even though they moved into Cyrenaica and Egypt they continued to be engaged in guard duties (JVL, 2007). The Jewish soldiers demanded to participate in fighting and they were engaged in the army but they were dispersed through out the British army and not allowed to concentrate into on unit. The British feared that concentrating the Jewish soldiers into one unit would give legitimacy to their yearning for national independence. The British did not encourage symbols of Jewish independence. After prolonged negotiations, only in 1944, the British government agreed to the establishment of a Jewish Brigade. It consisted of Jewish infantry, artillery and service units. During the Second World War temporary truce was maintained. The British did not allow the European Jews to enter into Palestine and placed them in detection camps or deported them to Mauritius (Wikipedia). Avraham Stern was the leader of the Lehi Jewish underground group. His will to fight the British was so strong that he offered to fight on the Nazis side and tried in vain to convince tem that emigration from Europe was the only solution to their problems. Stern received extensive financial and military support from Germany and Italy to terrorize the British mandate in Palestine (Palestineremembered, 2006). The Nazis were in favor of physical extermination and abandoned the idea of Stern. The priority for the Lehi was to allow the Jewish refugees to enter the country and establish a state of their own. This also led to the assassination of Lord Moyne, the British Minister of State for the Middle East. The British were more interested in the support of Arabs because of their interest in Egypt and the oil rich Saudi Arabia and hence continued the ban on immigration. Neither group got what they were looking for. The British continued to control Palestine. The Jews used terrorist tactics to push their claim. The military skills that they developed during the World War were used in acts of terrorism. Various forces combined to fight terrorism against the British forces. The Jewish Agency and the Hagana, the Irgun Zvai Leumi and the Stern Gang started a campaign against the British armed forces, the British Police, Palestinian Police and the Palestinian civilian population (Nakhleh, 2004). Each of these gangs specialized in inventing and committing a wide variety of terrorist crimes. These gangs united against the British forces when they refused to adhere to the provisions of the Mandate of 1939. The attacks against the British culminated in the destruction of the British Military headquarters in Palestine. Stern was killed by the British Police in February 1942. When the British found that they were unable to influence events in Palestine, they started to find a way to back out. The Second World War ended on 8th May 1945 after which, 250,000 refugees were stranded in the displaced persons camps in Europe (Palestineremembered, 2006). Despite the pressure from different world leaders, the British refused to lift the ban on immigration. They admitted 100,000 displaced persons to Palestine. Illegal Jewish immigration resumed into Palestine under Haganah control. In November, the British foreign secretary, Ernest Bervin issued White Paper announcing continued Jewish immigration to Palestine after exhaustion of 1939 White paper quota. The British decided on the Mandate but did not comply with the provisions. They did not even amend the immigration laws and always had their own interest at hand. They were interested in Egypt and the oil-rich Saudi Arabia. The British made contradictory promises to both the Jews and the Arabs and found itself fighting against both. Their restriction on the Jewish immigration led to partition. Finally the British found that all forces had united against them. In the process they also lost their Minister of State for Middle East. When they found situation beyond their control, they decided to terminate the mandate and withdraw. Bibliography Bard, M. G., (2007), Myths & Facts Online, 02 May 2007 JVL., (2007), Jewish Brigade Group, 02 May 2007 Nakhleh, I., (2004), Encyclopedia of Palestine Problem, 02 May 2007 P4pd., (2004), Chronology, 02 May 2007 Palestineremembered., (2006), Palestinian History, A Chronology, 02 May 2007 Trueman, C., (2000), Palestine 1918 to 1948, 02 May 2007 Wikipedia, British Mandate of Palestine, 02 May 2007 Read More