S.E.M. Safwat IBRAGHITH
Executive Summary: Retracing the history of the Palestinian question since the end of the Ottoman era, sheds light on the colonial, European and especially British roots of the conflict, with Zionism being favoured to serve imperialist interests. The Zionist movement was created in the 19th century and aimed at establishing a Jewish state in Palestine, perceived as a land without people. Although not binding, the Balfour Declaration (1917) legitimized this ambition by promising a “Jewish national home” to the detriment of Palestinian rights. After World War I, the SDN gave Britain the mandate on Palestine, thus formalizing colonization. Tensions culminated in the United Nations sharing plan (1947) leading to the outbreak of the first Arab-Israeli war and Nakba (1948-49), the forced exodus of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians. Since then, Israel has pursued a policy of colonization and ethnic cleansing supported by Washington and other Western powers while Palestinian refugees, scattered throughout the world, are still deprived of their right to return. Israeli and American policies were designed to erase the memory of Nakba and threatened UNRWA, and Peace in the Middle East required recognition of the wrongs committed against the Palestinians and respect for international law, the only basis for a just and lasting coexistence.
Keywords: Nakba, Palestine, State of Palestine, Israel, Near East, Ottoman Empire,
Colonisation, Europe, Great Britain, Zionism, Imperialism, Balfour Declaration,
League of Nations, Mandate on Palestine, 1947 Sharing Plan, Jewish State, Arab State,
First Arab-Israeli War, Exodus, Right to Return, UNRWA, United States of America, Peace,
Recognition of wrongs, International Law.
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