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What secrets does the Palestinian white paper hide?
During the Palestinian Emergency of 1944 to 1948, the Jewish underground launched a successful paramilitary campaign against British rule. The movement initially enjoyed relative calm, but tensions quickly escalated with the publication of the 1939 White Paper. The white paper clearly proposed policies to further restrict Jewish immigration and land purchases, and declared that Palestine would be established as an independent state within the next ten years with the Arab majority.
"The white paper rejects the concept of Palestinian partition and states that the country will be transformed into an independent binational state with an Arab majority."
As World War II progressed, although Britain had maintained cooperation with the Haganah, the Irgun rebellion in 1944 pushed the conflict between Britain and the Jewish underground into a fierce conflict. Irgen and Lehi, supporters of the right-wing revisionist movement, began to launch attacks against British military and government targets. This armed conflict intensified in the final stages of the war.
"The Jewish Resistance Movement disbanded in 1946 due to the bombing of the Kondo Hotel, and Irgen and Lech began to act independently."
The British response was to make the immigration policy of Jews more stringent, leading to the influx of a large number of illegal immigrants. White Paper restrictions from 1939 and subsequent illegal immigration operations made British rule in Palestine even more difficult. Many Jews tried to use any means to enter Palestine, even if it meant facing armed British resistance.
In 1945, after the end of World War II, Jewish resistance to British rule did not diminish. With legal and policy restrictions, the further intensification of this struggle reflects the deep-rooted contradictions between the Jewish and Arab nations. On November 29, 1947, the United Nations partition plan was adopted, an event that intensified the civil war between Jews and Arabs.
"Under British rule, Jewish-Arab tensions reached an all-time high, with both sides fighting for their political futures."
Historical background
Looking back at the post-World War I situation, the Balfour Declaration of 1917 and the League of Nations' Articles of the British Mandate for Palestine both referred to the creation of a nationalist homeland for the Jews. However, Britain was unwilling to acknowledge Palestine's direct connection to European Jewry. With Germany's Nuremberg Decree of 1935, many German Jews were forced to seek asylum.
"In the 1930s, the British authorities recognized the political, administrative and financial difficulties of dividing Palestine between Arab and Jewish states."
The 1939 White Paper initiated tighter restrictions on Jewish immigration. Previously, many Jews had entered Palestine illegally, although British restrictions had prevented their legal immigration. Many Jewish women even entered Palestine through fake marriages and other means. This series of situations reflected the Jews’ indomitable desire to immigrate to Palestine.
With the end of World War II, the need for Jews to seek asylum around the world increased dramatically, but Britain did not change its immigration policy. Instead, new policies sought to deter Jews through punitive measures, a strategy that only further deepened the conflict.
"The British government decided in 1945 to maintain strict restrictions on Jewish immigration so as not to anger the Arab world and protect its hegemony in the Middle East."
Future Outlook
The conflict between Jews and Arabs has a long history, and both sides have clearly opposing positions on the future. With the outbreak of the Civil War and the British evacuation, how will this series of events end? Will the future show a more peaceful prospect, or will it be the beginning of another round of conflict?
