7 Things you need to know about the Balfour declaration

It’s been 100 years since the declaration was signed.

November 2nd marks the 100-year anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, a political memorandum that would impact the Middle East like no other.

In 1917 and during the World War I, the British government announced its support for the establishment of a “national home for the Jewish people” in Palestine – which was then under the control of the Ottoman empire.

The declaration was met with strong opposition from the local Christian and Muslim communities of Palestine, who constituted about 90% of the population.

Here are seven things you need to know about this declaration and how it changed the Middle East.

1. Britain wasn’t controlling the land it was promising in the declaration

When Britain issued the Balfour Declaration in 1917, it was fighting in World War I.

The land of Palestine then had been under the control of the Ottoman Empire for more than four centuries, 1516-1918.

In layman’s terms, Britain promised the Jewish people a land they did not have control over. The pledge was made without so much as consulting the indigenous Christian and Muslim inhabitants of Palestine, the Palestinian people. And it was made “before British troops had even conquered the land,” according to The Telegraph.

2. The declaration expressed official British approval of Zionism

A photo of Arthur Balfour by George Grantham Bain Source: Wikipedia

The declaration – named after its writer’s last name – was part of a letter British Foreign Secretary, Arthur James Balfour, sent to the leader of the British Jewish community, Lord Walter Rothschild.

Its main purpose was to transfer the Zionist Federation of Great Britain and Ireland to a new land they could call their own.

3. The text of the declaration was published in the press a week later on 9 November 1917

The letter read:

“His Majesty’s government view 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.”

The newcomers disregarded the note concerning non-Jewish communities in Palestine and the request to respect their religious rights and political status.

4. After the creation of the State of Israel, violence ensued

Palestinian refugees in 1948 Source: The centre star

It was only a matter of time before sectarian violence and rise of anti-Jewish sentiments grew in the region. Especially after the new Zionist state savagely violated all that was stated in the declaration.

This also affected the political status enjoyed by Jews in neighboring Arab countries.

5. The infamous declaration led to decades of conflict in the Middle East

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas once told the Guardian that “Britain must atone for the Balfour declaration and for 100 years of suffering.”

6. British activists walked across 11 countries to protest Israel and apologize for the Balfour Declaration

This year, over 100 British activists embarked on a “journey of redemption.”

Spanning 170 days and 11 countries, the group walked from the UK to Palestine in hopes of offering their apologies on behalf of their government’s actions a century ago.

They were warmly welcomed by Palestinians upon their arrival.

7. Theresa May hosted the Israeli PM for a centenary dinner

“Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and a host of dignitaries attended a dinner in London on Thursday evening to celebrate the Balfour declaration of 1917, a statement that offered Britain’s support for ‘the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people,'” The Guardian reported.

The UK has rejected calls to apologize and has said it is proud of its role in the creation of the State of Israel.

The leader of The Labor Party, Jeremy Corbyn, rejected May’s invitation, refusing to attend an event where such a controversial pledge was being celebrated.

Protesters took to the streets of Palestine for the centennial anniversary of the Balfour Declaration

Thousands of Palestinians in the Gaza strip and the West Bank took to the streets to mark the day by protesting and holding black flags as a sign of mourning.

They called for the Palestinian right of return.

According to The Daily Mail, Senior Palestinian official Mahmoud Al-Alul, told AFP in Ramallah that the British government should apologize.

“It is unprecedented for criminals to celebrate their crime. That the British prime minister insists on celebrating this means they persist in the oppression of the Palestinian people.”