The impact of World War II

World War II had a significant impact on the future state of Arabic countries, particularly Palestine and Israel. Post-World War II accords included the British Palestine mandate and the proposal for a binational state. The Holocaust had far-reaching consequences, and the methodical slaughter of millions of Jews in Europe and others in Hitler’s camp became a tragic part of the Middle East. The depth of the Nazi regime’s atrocities was astounding, and many Jews perished as a result of the suffering. Many Palestinians atoned for the evils perpetrated on them by Western civilisation. In the United States, this attitude had substantially prevailed, and it casted aside the deficiencies of enthusiasm which had characterized their view towards the Zionism (Cleveland and Unton, 5). Numerous of the American Jews were a force to ardent the supported of the Palestine Jewish State. Besides, the significant public expression on the position of the states was contained in Biltmore Program which comprised of sets of resolutions that were adopted at a meeting of US Zionists. Biltmore Program called for open immigration to the Palestine nation and the advancement of the Jewish commonwealth.

It could be pointed out that in the awakening of the Biltmore program meeting, the US had become the center of the international activities of the Zionists. An intense publicity was beginning by the Palestine Zionists and the US which was aimed at involving the American’s politicians and thee electorates in the problem of the Palestine Zionist. The president of US, Harry Truman also publicly endorsed the Biltmore program and demonstrated humanitarian and a growing effect of the Zionist in the Democratic Party. President Truman was committed to the establishment of the Jewish state, and this became necessary to America (Yale Law School 7). Due to its expansion in the industrial economy and the reduced military base due to WW II, it did emerge as a global superpower with the ability to exert immense pressures on its allies such as the Soviet Union. It is the power that US had against USSR that led to the growth of tension between the two and later culminated in the cold was causing even more destructions and nations were still nursing the impact of the Second World War on their economies.

The Britain-Palestine mandate agreement was directed at fostering peace and prevention of another war or violence outbreak. In this agreement, the British administration did restrict the Arabic political activities and denied the exile of the Arab leaders to return. Consequently, the Arabic society, still nursing the impacts of the British suppression of the 19936-1939 revolt, became politically quiescent at the time of WW II. Furthermore, the agreement committed itself to the attempts of British war against the reign of Hitler and it tried to subvert and prepared itself for a confrontation if Germany defeated.

The impact of the British Palestine mandate made thousands and thousands of the Jews to join the British forces which later led to the formation of Jewish Brigade which was responsible for the fight off British army that was in Italy. Haganah was provided with trained veterans who were used in the fight, and in Palestine, the administration of Britain did allow the Haganah to have an acquisition of weapons in an open manner and participation into the British forces in the preparation of the defense of the Palestine against the anticipation of Axis invasion.

The agreements led to Terror and the intercommunal war. Three stages of conflict did bring the nation of Israel into existence. They included the Yishuv’s campaigning, the intercommunal war and the last one was the war of Israel and the invading forces in 1948. The first stage was aimed at sabotaging the British administration in the Palestine while the second was the war between the Jewish societies and the Arabs. Accompanying the stages were a flurry of diplomatic activities which continually failed to arrive at an agreement that was acceptable to the Jews and the Arabs (Avi 295). The initial phase was a strategy that was contained in the decision reached by the Jew’s Agency towards the terminal of the Second World War and the push for the Jewish State to be established.

The Goals of the Palestine Mandate

The main goal behind the British Palestine mandate was to provide powers for the administration of the territory of Palestine that was previously under the ownership of the Turkish Empire. This was provided in Article 22 of The Covenant of the League of Nations. This article entrusted an obligatory selection of the authorities that would administer the said objective and address the issues that arose from the boundaries. It also aimed at enforcing the declarations that were originally made in 1917, on 2nd of November by the Britannic Majesty government was well known as the Balfour Declaration. It was also supposed to ensure that this declaration was adopted among the Allies and a favorable establishment in the Palestine territory which was a home for the Jewish individuals (Yale Law School 4). It was also directed at ensuring that the position and rights of the parts of the population were not prejudiced. This was under article 6 and article 4 called for facilitation of the Jewish immigration under conditions that were suitable and encourage cooperation with the agencies. Article 4 further stipulated a close settlement of the Jews on lands of state and waste. By the document, the government of British was given responsibility for the territory of Palestine. It was a clear mandate of going forward with the Zionist program of the Jewish settlement and immigration.

The goals for Bi-national and Baltimore Program

This argument was directed at ensuring a secure future for the Jews and to establish a home for the Jews in the Palestine nation. This agreement aimed at creating peace in countries found in Arabia and to stop the content conflicts that were experienced. Lebanon, Israel, and Palestine were prone to conflicts, and they were slowly becoming irrelevant with particular marginal and worldwide international politics (Khater 182). The situation needed attention as the uprising changed the Palestine self-awareness and did increase self-confidence. This had forced the Israel community and the political system together with the decision makers to raise the question of the Occupied Territories which were at higher political agenda. Right after that, intifada outbreak and the Soviet union-weakening made a retreat from the politics of Middle East and a series of dramatic events significantly impacted the region (Avi 291). Therefore the National state aimed at cultivating peace in the Arabic region and establish a home in Palestine. It stipulated that:

Israel has to withdraw from Occupied Territories in which the East of Jerusalem is included.

The Occupied Territories have to be placed under a neutral control

Palestine should choose its representatives without any objection or interference of Israel

The selected representatives have a right to table issues with no any previous decided limitations.

Proposed Alternatives to the Agreements and the Contribution to the Situation on the Ground

The call for United Nations involvement was a proposed alternative made by Ernest Bevin who was a Foreign Secretary. From this decision there followed sequences of alternatives and policies that led to the formation of the new Arab and Jewish states. It was recognized that Britain had lost control of the situation in Palestine. Bevin did request the United Nations to formulate strategic solutions to the Britain-Palestine mandate. This was done months later after feverish diplomatic activities was done in UN at New York and White House in Washington. A United Nations special Committee on Palestine (UNSCOP) was created by the General Assembly and given the mandate of carrying out investigations in Palestine. It was to make a submission of its recommendations on 1st of September 1947 (Cleveland and Unton, 42). The committee comprised of representatives which came from 11 countries. In the recommendation, it was stated that the deteriorated situation in Palestine called for the plight policies that will bring peace in the region.

The report did recommend the termination of the British mandate and proposed that Palestine should be granted their independence. However, there was a division of the type of state to be established with the minority calling for the federal state and the majority for the partition of the state into two with one to comprise of the Jews and the other for the Arabs. Jerusalem was proposed to be the designated international district. Even though this situation seemed to be far from reality the provisions that were in the majority report did offer a possibility of Arabic independence and the Jewish states of the Palestine. The leaders of Zionist did endorse the report although those of Arab rejected the report. With President Truman support of the establishment of the Jewish state, he achieved to pass the report of the majority, and therefore two states were formed. Truman knew the importance of maintaining a cordial relationship with Arabic formed states, and thus he launched extensive efforts to lobby on behalf of the majority report. The Zionist members of the Congress did put pressure on the United Nations’ delegates threatening them to withdraw the US economic aid from the nations if they could not be able to vote for UNSCOP proposal (Cleveland and Unton, 43). A roll call made in 11947 on 29th of November did yield 33 votes with USSR included and this was against 13 and the 10 abstentions. Partition of the Palestine into two states was approved by the general assembly and Jerusalem became the international district. Therefore the triumphal flow of the strategic alternatives has significantly colored the relation that exists between the US and the Arab nations.

Works Cited

Yale Law School. British White Paper of 1939. Lilian Goldman Law Library. 29, January 2017.

Avi Shlaim. The debate about 1948. Cambridge University Press. 3, January, 2017

Cleveland and Unton. Chapter 13. The Palestine mandate and the birth of the state of Israel.

Khater. The Arab Case for Palestine and the case for a Binational State. March 1946. Contest Nationalism