Starting on October 7th, Hamas’ “Aqsa Flood” After the operation, Israel launched an intense and unremitting counter-attack, perhaps beyond Hamas’ expectations. Beyond the images, as confirmed by UN officials and NGO workers in Gaza, Israel has also bombed many hospitals, schools, churches and mosques, claiming that they were Hamas tunnels, in violation of international law. The operations, which are about to enter their third month, have raised many issues. Two of the most important ones were the question of Palestinian “land sales” and whether Israel is a “terrorist state”. In order to answer these questions and claims today, it is useful to look back to the British Mandate Period in Palestine (1920-1948). For this, there are 3 basic questions that need to be answered with documents from archives.

Love Or Hate: What Is The Relation Between The West And Israel?

The Zionist Congresses and how Israel was established in Palestine with the support of the British Mandate regime after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire are written and talked about everywhere, but the real question is why the support of European and American governments for Israel is so intense today. Contrary to popular belief, there is no Israeli sympathy behind it. Yes, after 1948, and especially after the oil crisis after the 1973 war, it was vital for the US both to protect oil in the region and, in the Cold War atmosphere, to partner with Israel, which single-handedly defeated 5 Arab countries in the 1948 war despite being a new state. But how did the process come to this point?

The main point here is the West’s hatred and prejudice against Jews. The main reason is, first of all, that according to Christian belief, the Jews killed Jesus Christ (in Islam he did not die, he ascended to heaven). Christians see Jews as “the murderers of their prophet”. Stanford Shaw, a Jewish historian, himself testifies to the great cruelties that Europeans have inflicted on Jews over the centuries; he says that Jews lived their best years under the rule of Muslim states, notably the Ottoman Empire. The Alhambra Decree, one of the most well-known examples of hatred against Jews, led to the safe arrival of Jews to Ottoman lands in 1492 on the initiative of Sultan Bayezid. As a matter of fact, this deportation decree is the most innocent of all the acts against Jews across Europe. After the blood libel massacres in Western and Central Europe, the pogroms in Russia and the holocaust, the Ottoman Empire became a refuge for Jews.

Persecution, which had existed since Roman times, intensified between the 14th and 20th centuries, culminating in the holocaust in Nazi Germany. The massacres of Greek-speaking Jews in late Roman and Byzantine times, the events after the Catholic reconquest of Spain, the murder of Sephardic Jews by the Inquisition courts under a thousand and one pretexts, the expulsions from Iberia… Many fantastic, horrible stories have been told by Christians in Europe about the Jews. Accusations of ritual murders and blood libels are among them. According to the legends, Jews kidnapped and murdered Christian children and used their blood in religious ceremonies, along with wine and unleavened bread “matzoh” prepared for Passover. Such allegations further brutalized European Christians. Jews were attacked, old, infirm and children were attacked, their businesses and homes were destroyed. These events took place especially in Norwich, England and spread throughout Europe. Jews were also blamed for many disasters, especially the Black Death that ravaged Europe between 1348-1350. 

The custom we know from Nazi Germany of Jews tying a white cloth and a star of David on their arms was not something that emerged in Europe with Hitler. Such markings had been practiced in the past. In France, Jews were required to wear two circular badges on their chest and back. In Christian Spain, Jews were also ordered to wear the “Mark of Shame”. In addition, they were required to grow their hair and beards. In England, they were ordered to wear sari taftas in the shape of Tablets of the Law, six fingers long and three fingers above their hearts. In Italy, men were required to wear circular yellow patches on their clothes and women on their veils.  In the Papal States, men were required to wear sari hats and women yellow headscarves. In Germany, the church council made it compulsory for Jews to wear hats with points, and in 1418 women were even required to wear bells on their clothes. The Jews of Prague were also forced to wear a yellow band over their coats. In France, from 1290 to 1650, Jews were expelled piece by piece.

In 1078, the Pope ruled that Jews could not occupy important positions in Christian countries. Due to economic and religious prejudices, Jews, especially those who settled in France and Germany, turned to banking and money exchange. This problem lies at the root of the “Jewish wealth” that led to the image of the “Jewish banker”, which is a stereotype today but also a partial reality. Exile and forced migration, which is also a similar reason, prevented Jews from doing sedentary work such as agriculture and animal husbandry, and gave a strong reason for the image of the “rich Jew” as it directed them to movable work such as logistics and trade.

In sum, Jews were subjected to ghettos, pogroms and deportations, marriage bans, slander and stigmatization in many parts of Europe, from Rome to Nazi Germany. Understanding this process is crucial to understanding Israel and its security. It is this centuries-long hatred that is behind the efforts of the US and Europe to establish Israel while rejecting ships with Jews fleeing Hitler’s Germany. The desire of the Jews for a homeland, their desire to live in security, is based on the same reason. This is precisely why the events of October 7 shocked Israel, which has been trying to create a “safe” image since its establishment, and destroyed its safe image. As a matter of fact, the fact that thousands of Israeli Jews flooded the airports to leave the country in the first hours of the events was the clearest picture of this.

Have The Palestinians Sold Their Land?

Even historians talk about it – contrary to the nature of historiography – without documents, that is, without evidence. There is very clear evidence on this issue that everyone talks about but no one investigates.

First of all, yes, some of the Palestinians sold their houses, but there were more cases of extortion and embezzlement by fraud than sales. Also, some Lebanese and Jordanians who owned land in Palestine were involved in these sales because Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine were under the same administration during the Ottoman period and later on until the separation of Jordan and Palestine in 1946. The north of today’s Palestine was formerly under the mutasarrifate of Beirut, the south under the mutasarrifate of Jerusalem and the east under the province of Damascus.

After World War I, when the region was divided between France and Britain and the Ottoman Empire withdrew from the region, the British mandate in Palestine began and Jewish immigration to the region, which had already begun during the Ottoman period and was called “Aliyah”, continued to increase. During the reign of Abdulhamid II, important attempts were made to prevent Jewish settlement in this region and land reforms were made to prevent the sale. As an example, a look at the files in the Ottoman Archives shows that this issue of immigration and land sales is much older and deeper rooted than one might think and claim:

“Y..PRK.HR…” boxed, 7. Folder, 7. Row titled “Informing the British government that the British chargé d’affaires cannot be admitted to the presence, Egyptian indemnity, the black prisoner issue, prevention of Jewish immigration to Syria” dated 1883; “HR.SFR.3 …” boxed, 480th folder, 72nd folder titled “Jewish immigration to Palestine” dated 1899; “HR.HMŞ.İŞO.” boxed, 219th folder, 74th folder dated 1885 titled “Despite the decree issued by the Ottoman Government on the prevention of Jewish immigration to Palestine, hundreds of Jewish immigrants from Romania managed to settle in Haifa and acquire land and property“.

It is also observed that the Jews sometimes used front foundations, bribery and threats to overcome obstacles and opposition to the sales. There are many files in the archives regarding the activities of the Rothschild family in the region, which is particularly associated with conspiracy theories. The following documents can be given as examples:

Dated 1881, boxed “Y..PRK.BŞK.”, 4th file shirt, 52nd row “Increasing the military force in Havran due to the Druze attacking the Arab tribes around them and causing sedition and mischief. The British attempts to disperse the inhabitants of Havran and Tabariya (Tabariya) and settle the Jews and that inciting the Druze against the Arabs is part of their treacherous plans.” dated 1899, boxed “DH.MKT.”, 2205th file shirt, row 25, titled “Investigation of the report from the inhabitants of the Anlit town of Haifa that the towns were sold to Baron Rothchild and forced to migrate in order to settle Russian Jewish Muhajirs with the influence of Major Abdüllatif Agha sent by the former Governor of Syria Naşid Pasha.” dated 1899, boxed “DH.MKT.”, file shirt 2207, row 5, titled “Request for the return of the towns that were forced to migrate to their inhabitants by Major Abdüllatif Agha, who was sent by former Syrian Governor Naşid Pasha, to his harem in exchange for money and then sold to Baron Rothchild and settled with Russian Jewish immigrants.” dated 1891, boxed “BEO”, file shirt 22, row 1592. titled “Examination of the decision of the Shura-yı Devlet on the requirement of a license for those carrying weapons among the Reji guards and their not to use weapons. (Finance; 678) The treatment to be taken regarding the houses and shops built by the Jews on the land they captured in the Palestine and providing information about the lands purchased in the name of Baron Rothchild. (1430)”; dated 1899, boxed “DH.MKT.”, boxed “DH.MKT.”, file shirt 2226, 60. titled “Preventing the settlement of Jews on the land given to İsmet Hanım, the wife of the deceased Naşid Pasha, by the inhabitants of the land of Anlit village and sold to the Jew Elishayd, preventing the intervention of Baron Rothchild on the old castle land and doing what is necessary about the foundation lands in that area.”; dated 1891, boxed “Y..EE…”, 129th file shirt, 5th row “Ahmed Muhtar Pasha’s tahrirat about the occupation of these places by the state against the attempt of Freydman from Germany, who brought some European Jews with him, to establish a Jewish home in the town of Medyen near Muwaylih.” Titled; dated 1894, boxed “Y..PRK.AZJ.”, 30th shirt, 37th row “The attempts of Jews to settle in Palestine and Baron Rothchıld’s meeting with Grand Vizier Cevad Pasha.” Titled; boxed “Y..A…HUS.”, boxed 376. Rudy, an American residing in Jerusalem, in his attempt to establish a Jewish government in Palestine.”; dated 1902, boxed “İ..HUS.”, 97th Folder, 38th Row “Prevention of the sale of lands in the Sanjak of Acre by the governor of Aydın and his brother to Jews under a pseudonym (1320S-088).”; dated 1902, boxed “BEO”, 1859. file shirt, 139361, titled “Since the governor of Aydın and his brother attempted to sell their land in the Akka sanjak to Jews under another name, execution of the necessary action to prevent this. (Defter-i Hakani, Dahiliye; 139361)”; dated 1905, boxed “DH. MKT.” boxed, 1090th file shirt, 11th row, titled “Presentation of the tahrirat of Ahmed Arifi Efendi, the Mutasarrıf of Akka, which contains some statements about the threat of the Jews that they would make attempts against him despite his current efforts and some statements in this regard.”; dated 1906, boxed “BEO”, 2866. file shirt, 214947. Sequentially titled “Since it is understood that a society called Santral-i Cemiyet-i Israeliye (Center of Committee of Israelism) has been organized in Palestine against the decision taken by the state to prevent Jews from acquiring land in Palestine and that it is communicating with other Jewish companies, the decision is to protect the decision (Jerusalem; 214947).”

As the documents show, land grabbing was not only done by sale, but also to a large extent by fraud and force. Another proof of this is a document currently in the National Library of Israel. It is titled “Village statistics, April, 1945.” The document, prepared in 1943 and revised in 1945, shows village by village how much land each nation owned in Palestine in 1945. The book is so detailed that even the fruits and vegetables grown on the land in question are included in the statistics.

Some villages of Haifa and religious distribution of the population

(Village statistics, April, 1945)

According to this document, 47.79% of the total land area belongs to the Arabs, compared to 5.67% for Jewish land. Assuming that not all of this land was sold, and that some Jews have already lived here for centuries, this 5.67% is not all sold land. Even so, with a land ratio of 5.67% in 1945, it is ludicrous to argue the merit of the claim to establish a state here three years later in 1948.

Distribution of Palestinian land by acre 

(Village statistics, April, 1945)

What Are The Terrorist Organizations That Founded Israel?

There is a debate about whether Hamas is a terrorist organization. It is important to remember that Hamas is a government elected by the Palestinian people and that Palestine has no armed force other than Hamas to defend Gaza. Why should the fact that it was elected and that it is a defense force prevent Hamas from being called an army?

Today, the IDF, Israel’s defense force, has its roots in Zionist terrorist organizations such as the Haganah, Irgun and Stern-Lehi. With the beginning of the mandate administration in Palestine, the Arab-Jewish struggle flared up and showed a tendency to take up arms. In particular, the Jews resorted to acts of violence both to obtain independence from the British mandate administration and to force the Palestinians to emigrate. They carried out these acts of violence especially through the paramilitary organizations mentioned above. Founded in 1920 by the Israeli Labor Party and operating until the establishment of Israel in 1948, the Haganah aimed to protect Jewish settlers in Palestine with the flow of weapons provided by Jewish groups in Europe. They also took an active role in the Arab Revolt of 1936-1939 and formed a coup force against the mandate administration, which wanted to prevent Jewish immigration due to the reactions. In the following period, even though Britain did not officially recognize the organization, it cooperated with it by forming a “civilian security militia”. 

Especially by 1945, with World War II and the Taksim Plan, Britain increased its aggression against “unlimited Jewish immigration” to Palestine. It blew up bridges, railroads and ships used to evacuate illegal settlers, massacred civilians and evacuated villages. According to Major General Wilson, many Arab villages such as al-Hisas and Beled al-Sheikh were burned to the ground. The Haganah, the largest of the Jewish terrorist organizations, formed the basis of the army when Israel was established in 1948. Many of those who would later become important statesmen in the Israeli bureaucracy, such as Izak Rabin, Moshe Dayan and Ariel Sharon, were part of this organization.

The Irgun was another paramilitary group with a revisionist Zionist ideology that operated between 1931 and 1948. This group carried out nearly 100 attacks against British and Arabs, the most well-known of which were the King David Hotel explosion and the Deir Yasin Massacre on April 9, 1948, which they carried out together with the Lehi group. Menachem Begin, the last commander of the group who joined the army after the establishment of Israel, later became the prime minister of Israel. Lehi (also known as Stern) was also founded in 1940 after splitting from the Irgun organization. The organization’s goal was to expel Britain from Palestine and “establish the Hebrew kingdom from the Euphrates to the Nile”. They were in small and disorganized groups and tended to carry out assassinations in line with their goals. Among the government officials they assassinated were Lord Moyne, the British Middle East chief (1944) and Count Bernadotte, the UN mediator for Palestine (1948). With the establishment of Israel in 1948, this organization ceased to exist.

Consequently, the reason for providing this historical background is to provide a solution to today’s terminological and moral dilemma. As we have seen, it is neither academic, nor real, nor ethical to comment on the land sale or the issue of whether Hamas is a terrorist or not without presenting or investigating real information and documents. The word “terrorist”, which has not yet been clearly defined, is easily applied by the Europeans to the popularly elected Hamas, but not to the Israeli army, which is formed by organizations that have massacred civilians in the past. On the issue of land sales, the polemic of “sold” is insisted upon, but this “sold” is not expanded and explained in detail.