The previous article discussed the era when al-Quds was under British rule, when its mayor surrendered it to the British High Commissioner. The British then laid the groundwork for the establishment of a Zionist state on the land of al-Quds. Herbert Samuel, a British Jew, emerged on the British political scene to become the first High Commissioner for his country in Palestine. The Palestinian people protested against British policies supporting the Jews through numerous demonstrations, leading to the dispatch of Winston Churchill to the region to review British policy there. A Palestinian delegation met with him and presented a memorandum protesting the British policy of establishing a national home for the Jews in al-Quds. The delegation demanded a halt to the sale of Palestinian land to Jews, a ban on their immigration, and the cancellation of the Balfour Declaration.
On November 2, 1917, British Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour sent a letter to Baron Edmond James de Rothschild, a leading Jewish supporter of Zionism in Britain. In the letter, Balfour expressed Britain’s sympathy with the Zionist movement’s efforts to establish a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine. Balfour requested that Rothschild inform the Zionist leaders in both Britain and Ireland of the British government’s stance on the Zionist movement.
The text of the letter reads as follows:
“Foreign Office
2nd of November, 1917
Dear Lord Rothschild,
I am pleased to inform you, on behalf of His Majesty’s Government, of the following declaration of sympathy with Jewish Zionist aspirations which have been communicated to and approved by His Majesty’s Government:
‘His Majesty’s Government views with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country.’
I should be grateful if you would communicate this declaration to the Zionist Federation.
Yours sincerely,
Arthur Balfour
Despite the fact that the letter did not explicitly mention “the establishment of a Jewish state”, but rather a “national home for the Jewish people,” it served as the cornerstone upon which the state of Israel was established on Palestinian land in 1948.
As for Churchill’s stance on the Palestinian demands, he simply ignored them. This led to demonstrations and protests. “Quds News Network” mentions “However, the British minister paid no heed to any of these demands, and Arab demonstrations and protests in Palestine against Britain intensified. The British responded with force and violence, even firing on demonstrators demanding their rights, resulting in Palestinian casualties and further inflaming the protests.”
In 1921, al-Quds witnessed a conference of Palestinian Arabs demanding that the Balfour Declaration not be implemented. A Palestinian delegation toured the country, including London, but was not welcomed. It was stated, “The Palestinian delegation went to London itself, but it was not given any attention, under the pretext that it was an unofficial delegation. The British refused to grant the Arabs in Palestine any elected body to establish a representative government, and they rejected the delegation’s memorandum demanding the cancellation of the idea of establishing a national home for the Jewish people on Palestinian land, stopping Jewish immigration, and refraining from separating Palestine from its Arab surroundings. Obstinacy remained a hallmark of British policy towards the Palestinians until the end.”
The tension between Britain and the Palestinians continued to engulf their homeland regarding their issues after the rejection of the Arab demands presented by a second Palestinian delegation in 1922. This delegation demanded that Palestinians be given the right to choose the legislative and executive authorities of the country, after Britain had sought to impose a legislative council with a Jewish majority, chaired by its High Commissioner. Churchill affirmed in a letter that Britain would not cancel the Balfour Declaration or the establishment of a national home for the Jews.
Speaking of al-Quds still amazes us for stories of “Beautiful Egypt” are endless!
The General Bishop
President of the Coptic Orthodox Cultural Center
