Balfour Declaration was a British government document that dealt with the establishment of a Jewish homeland in Palestine. British Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour issued it in 1917. The meaning of the Balfour Declaration was interpreted differently by Arabs and Jews, who both claimed Palestine. The document led to a bitter controversy that set the stage for continuing conflicts between Arabs and Israelis in the Middle East.
The Balfour Declaration read as follows: “His Majesty’s Government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavors 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.”
When the Balfour Declaration was issued, during World War I, British forces were fighting to win Palestine from the Ottoman Empire. The United Kingdom wanted to control Palestine because of its location near the Suez Canal, which links the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. The British believed the Balfour Declaration would help gain support of this goal from Jewish leaders in the United Kingdom, the United States, and other countries. In 1920, the League of Nations granted the United Kingdom a provisional mandate (order to rule) over Palestine. In 1922, the League endorsed the Balfour Declaration and officially approved the terms of the mandate. See Mandated territory.
Jews who supported the establishment of a Jewish national homeland in Palestine believed the Balfour Declaration pledged the United Kingdom’s support for their goal. But leaders of a growing Arab nationalism movement in Palestine claimed the declaration allowed for such a homeland only if Arabs agreed to it. The British withdrew from Palestine in 1948. At the same time, Jews in the formerly mandated area established the independent nation of Israel, despite strong Arab opposition. The Arab-Israeli dispute over Palestine made the area a world trouble spot. See Palestine.
