A HISTORY OF ISRAEL IN
PALESTINE
Historically the land of Palestine located around the
Mediterranean Sea has always been the homeland of Jews. We know through
history, Palestine had always been an attraction to invaders.
Around 13thBc , a small Hebrew tribe migrated to
the area in and around Palestine. The old Testament (Torah) recorded this
migration, the record showed a tribe coming from the land of Egypt and settling
down in Canaan (Palestine) and around today’s West bank.
The settling Jews were immediately subjected to many wars,
some they won and some they lost. Again we can use the ancient temple of
Solomon to discern the truth, Israel once had position over lands around
Palestine and in Palestine during ancient time.
Remember Israel was subjected to war, two of this wars
proved evil for them. One was the taking of the ten tribes by the Assyrians. It
was not recorded whether this ten returned back to their land. The remaining two
tribes were taking into captive by the Babylonians, they returned back to
Palestine after the fall of the Babylonian empire.
These two tribes, the kingdom of Judea continued to have
their share of both peace and war yet they retained their sovereignty.
Thus was
the kingdom of Judea until it fell into the hands of the Roman Empire. History
tells us a lot about the Roman influence on the Jewish state. During this time
the Jewish nation was greatly mixed, it had both Jews and non Jews. The land of
Bethsaida had a good number of non Jews because of its rich fishing culture.
Around the year 70AD, the Romans under Titus attacked and subdued a rebellious Jewish state,
many Jews died. Again the Jewish state arose in Rebellion against the Roman
Empire, this time in 135AD They were expelled from the land of Judah (Palestine),
not all Jews left Palestine.
As the years wore on, centuries later, Jews from around the
globe began to think of ways to return to the land of Palestine. In 1890s a Jew
Theodor Herzl who was an Austrian journalist became prominent among these Jews
calling for a return to their homeland. Herzl gave his fellow Jews the idea of
uniting the Jews in other countries with those in Palestine (Zionism)
However Palestine was now inhabited by Arabs who were mostly
Muslims and a few Jews living in its main cities. Among the few Jews living in
Palestine were Jews from Europe who came on Pilgrimage to Palestine but decided
to remain in their country. The land of Palestine was ruled by the Othman
Empire, the Empire took less interest in Palestine because its grounds lacked
profitable values. Due to the largely presence of the Arabs in Palestine by
this time, the name Palestine came to be.
We know the Land of Palestine continued in obscurity drawing
mainly pilgrims to its grounds. This changed when the Suez canal was opened in
1869 and the occupation of Egypt by Britain in 1882. Palestine linked the canal
with the Mediterranean Sea.
In the late 19th century and early 20th
century, large numbers of Jews migrated from Europe to Palestine (their
original homeland) as the Zionist movement grew in strength. This became sign
Herzel’s vision of a people with land uniting with People without a land was
soon to take place fully. The returned Jews bought lands from the Arabs who
were now in Palestine and established an Agricultural based homes. Little was
done in other to stop the returning Jews from setting up homes in Palestine.
BRITISH MANDATE AND THE DECLERATION OF INDEPENDENCE
With the defeat of the Othman Empire in World war11 the
control of the land of Palestine fell to the western powers. Prior to the end
of World war11, Britain promised to give autonomy to the Arabs and Zionists
living in Palestine if they fight in their favor. With the war ended time for
Britain to fulfill their promise came. Series of letters known as Husein-Mcmahon
correspondence were sent between Husien Ibn Ali of Mecca, ruler of the Arabian
Peninsula and sir Henry Mcmahon who was the British high commissioner in Egypt.
In 1917 there was a declaration known as the Balfour declaration
which somehow gave Palestine into Jewish hands. But this was not to be so for
in 1930s the British sided with the Arabs. They prevented much of the Jewish
migration to take place.
It was the Holocaust of the war on Jews which prompted the
UN to act. Their resolution181 in November 29 1947 which divided the land of
Palestine into two, a part for the Jew and the other for the Arabs was accepted
by the Zionists but rejected by the Arabs.
On May 14th 1948, with more Jews arriving from
Europe, a Jewish state of Israel was declared. A year later the Jews were
called to war by their Arab neighbors.
