world history help?

Question

why was palestine the focus of disagreement after world war 2?

Answer 1

It all started with the founding of Zionism(a movement to return the Jews to Judea) and with the Balfour decleration of 1917. The Jews had been without a national homeland of their own ever since they were driven out by the Romans in the reign of Hadrian(118-142 A.D.) By the end of the 19th century the movement to get the Jews back to Judea was getting organised. In 1917 the British, to gain Jewish support for their side in World War I, promised by the decleration of Lord Balfour, a homeland in Palestine for the Jewish people. But Britain in it's typical two face, pragmatic politics had also made promises to the Arab people.

So by the end of World War II you had a people who had been persecuted and decimated in one of the greatest masacres in history by the Third Reich and had the sympathy of most of the world, you had these people determined to get back to the place they called home, you had the Arab peoples against this(especially the Palestinians who actually lived there and you had a background of power politics. There had been steady immigration of Jews since the end of the 19th century and there had been a small Jewish population in the area. The Jews bought up land and developed it. It was this land that formed the basis of the state of Israel. The Jews had fully intended to buy the land and then pull it out from under the soveriegnty of the people who lived there or any other power who was there(eg: The Ottoman Empire-the Turks.)

So you had a people determined to get back to what they regarded as their original homeland. And determined to have a country of their own so as not to have a repeat of the numerous persecutions throughout history-especially the very last one they had. You had a people who live there and were determined to be independent or at least live under a government of their own faith and culture. You had powers of that same faith and culture surrounding this land who had their own agendas and took advantage of war to grab for themselves what they could-regardless of the wellbeing of those who lived there both of their own faith and culture and those who were not. And you had a pragmatistic and connieving power who looked to it's own interest alone. Regardless of the present or future suffering it might and would cause. All this made for much trouble.

You see the main crux of the whole problem is the belief that the state of Israel should not be WHERE it is. That is should be somewhere else. Off Muslim land. And the belief that this land being their ancient land, that there should be a Jewish (not secular) but Jewish state- the secularism came later, regardless of the suffering to others it caused. Also having gotten the short end of the stick for 1800 years, the Jews were sick to bloody death of it all and were determined that this time THEY would have a country. Maybe if each side had have had enough sense and compassion they could have come to some kind of agreement from the very beginning. But both sides made their moral choices to be uncompromising. Compromise began to come later. What a pity-all that needless suffering. But after all- moral choices have physical consequence. Hope this helps.

Answer 2

The British owned it, wanted to make it a homeland for the Jews, but there were already a large number of Arabs living there, who had been there for almost two thousand years. Were they going to kick the Arabs out so the Jews could have a home? (yes)