Description
Book SynopsisA unique event-the handing over of an entire country by another that did not own it, to a people who simply laid claim to it by virtue of their myths and traditions-happened in 1917 when the British 'gave' Palestine to the Jews via the Balfour Declaration. The Palestinian Arabs never accepted the theft of their land but have been powerless to resist the weight of support for the Jews given by the most powerful nations. Despite the foundation of Israel in 1948, the region has been plagued by wars, injustice, and a vast refugee 'problem' which has dominated the lives of millions. Today, the future of the Palestinians is dire and seemingly inevitable. In this thorough new examination, J. E. Thomas delves deep into the foundations of the issue, analysing the Zionist claim to the Holy Land in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and their ruthless campaign to dispossess Palestinian Arabs-a campaign that continues to this day.
Table of ContentsAcknowledgements; A Note on Spelling and Quotations; Introduction; Myths and the Makers of Myths; The Political Art of Lies and Ambiguity: The McMahon Letters and the Sykes-Picot Agreement; After Balfour: 'The document is undoubtedly the starting point of the whole trouble'; Escalation: 'The Mandate ... itself had lighted the fire'; The British Government Disregards the Law: 'No one can give what they don't have: nemo dat quod non habet'; The Israeli Prime Minister Sets the Goal: 'And if dozens of Arabs get killed-that's exactly what we want'; Terrorism, Violence, and the Expansion of the State; New Lamps For Old? The Treatment of Palestinians and the 'New Antisemitism'; Glossary; Endnotes; Bibliography; Index.
