Jerusalem:Today marks the 109th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, issued on November 2, 1917, when the British government expressed its support for the establishment of a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine.
According to Palestine news & Information Agency – WAFA – English, the declaration was a pivotal moment in Palestinian history and marked the first significant move by Western powers towards the establishment of a Jewish state. This was seen as advancing the ambitions of the international Zionist movement, often at the expense of the Palestinian people, whose historical ties to the land date back thousands of years.
The declaration was made by then British Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour in a letter to Lord Rothschild, a prominent figure in the Zionist movement, after negotiations between the British government and Jewish representatives. The Zionist movement had persuaded Britain that their goals aligned with British strategic interests in the region.
The British government sought approval from U.S. President Woodrow Wilson before announcing the declaration, and it received endorsements from France and Italy in 1918. In 1920, the Supreme Council of the Allied Powers at the San Remo Conference granted Britain the mandate over Palestine, which was approved by the League of Nations in 1922, demonstrating that the declaration was supported by broader Western powers.
The Balfour Declaration caused widespread anger in the Arab world. Britain attempted to mitigate the reaction by assuring Sharif Hussein that Jewish settlement in Palestine would be limited, but actions on the ground did not align with these assurances. The British administration in Palestine facilitated Jewish immigration and settlement, prompting Palestinian uprisings, including the 1929 Buraq Uprising and the 1936 Palestinian Revolt.
The international Zionist movement used the Balfour Declaration as a basis for demanding the establishment of a Jewish state, realized with the founding of Israel on May 15, 1948. This event was supported internationally but resulted in the displacement of the Palestinian population.
At the time of the declaration, the Jewish population in Palestine was approximately 50,000, while the Arab population was around 1.65 million. The declaration recognized limited civil and religious rights for Palestinians but largely excluded their political, economic, and administrative rights.
The Balfour Declaration became a defining moment in the history of Palestine, representing a promise by a foreign power to establish a national home for a people in a land already inhabited by another, whose rights and aspirations were largely overlooked.