عنوان

Conflict in Palestine, 1917-1948 :

TLets808444

Conflict in Palestine, 1917-1948 :

[Thesis]

Al-Soudi, Abdel Mahdi Abdalla

Palestinian responses to Zionist settlement in Palestine, with particular reference to the attempts to solve the conflict

Christian, Harry

Keele University

1986

Thesis (Ph.D.)

1986

There are two themes contained in this thesis: firstly, the examination of the Palestinian attitude, concept and views towards Zionist settlement in Palestine during the period 1917-1948, secondly, the analysis of their arguments and responses to the different attempts to solve the Palestine conflict during this period. The Palestinians viewed Zionism as a European political movement which was connected with Western colonialism, and sought to transform Palestine into an exclusively Jewish state. Therefore, they resisted this alien settlement in their country by all possible means, political as well as military. The Palestinians, however, failed to persuade the British Government to grant them independence or to stop Zionist settlement because they, as a traditional society, did not possess the material or military power to match the combined forces of the British Empire and the Zionist movement. However, during this period the British Government suggested certain proposals to solve the conflict, but these proposals were rejected by the Palestinians, the Zionists or by both. Therefore, in 1947 the British Government transferred the problem to the United Nations. On 29th November 1947 the U.N., under the influence of the Western powers and the approval of the Soviet Union, endorsed a partition scheme, similar to a partition plan suggested by the Royal Commission in 1937, which proposed the establishment of two independent states, Arab and Jewish. The Palestinians rejected the proposal on the grounds that it was not based on the principles of justice, equality and the right to self-determination. This study suggests that the Palestine conflict was created as result of alien settlement in a country which was already inhabited by a people who were unwilling to compromise on what they saw as their right to independence under a national government which would represent the wishes of the majority.

HM Sociology

Keele University

Christian, Harry

Keele University

p

[Thesis]

276903

a

Y