Va-PoReg Country Report Palestine 1900–1947

Under Ottoman rule since 12/29/1516, when Yavuz Sultan Selim entered Jerusalem,¹ the territory was situated in the Damascus Eyalet of Ottoman Syria.² From 1882 to 1903 there was a large wave of Jewish immigration to Palestine which brought with it the birth of Zionism. During this time, which was known as the first Aliyah, approximately 35.000 Jews moved to Palestine, most of them originating from the Russian Empire.³ By 1896, Jews constituted the absolute majority in Jerusalem, however, 88% of the overall population of Palestine was Muslim.² The „Russian” Jews established the Bilu and Hovevei Zion movements with the aim of Jewish settlement in Palestine. In 1897, the World Zionist Organization was founded declaring as its aim the establishment of a home for Jewish people in Palestine secured under public law. During the second Aliyah between 1904 and 1914, another 40 000 Jews settled in Palestine.³ Two great evacuations of Palestinian territory took place during the First World War. By January 1917, the British had taken Sinai and were marching towards Palestine. Ottoman rulers began to hold suspicions against the local population, alleging that they were in favor of the aggressors. At the start of March 1917, the Ottoman Empire expelled all inhabitants from Gaza. On 03/27/1917, Jaffa including Tel Aviv was evacuated. Many died and the pre-war population of Gaza was not recovered until the 1940s. In 1906, the Ottomans and the British Empire established the international border of the region with Egypt.⁴ Following the Central Powers’ defeat in World War I and the subsequent division of the Ottoman Empire, the British delegated control of the Gaza Strip to Egypt, which declined the responsibility.

On this date, the British army ended the so-called Sinai- and Palestine Campaign. They had defeated the Ottoman Empire and started a British occupation of Palestine. The 1918 Anglo-French Modus Vivendi came into action. Accordingly, the British ceded control over certain areas to the French.⁵ For 1918 and 1919, V-Dem’s JCE indicates that judicial constraints on the executive are robust. At the same time, V-Dem’s LCE shows no value, which, with appropriate caution, can be interpreted as an absence of legislative constraints on the executive. No data was provided by LIED during this specified period.

On this date, the Sanremo Conference took place. During the conference, the Sanremo Resolution was passed which awarded a League of Nations international mandate for the administration of Palestine to the United Kingdom.⁶ In July 1920, the military administration was replaced by a British civilian administration headed by a high commissioner. During the first years there were persistent violent clashes between Muslim and Christian Arabs and Palestinian Jews. Samuel [the high commissioner] endeavored to institute self-governing entities in Palestine in accordance with the mandate. However, the Arab leadership declined to collaborate with any institution that involved Jewish participation.⁷ In 1922, a legislative council was established which was to consist of twelve elected and ten appointed members as well as the high commissioner. Elections took place in February and March 1923, but the results were annulled due to an Arab boycott of the elections. Between 1936 and 1939 there was an anti-Zionist and anti-British Arab revolt in Palestine.⁷ In this timeframe, 1920-1946, V-Dem’s JCE indicates that judicial constraints on the executive are robust. At the same time, V-Dem’s LCE shows no value, which, with appropriate caution, can be interpreted as an absence of legislative constraints on the executive. LIED does not provide data for Palestine for its colonial time. V-Dem’s PCLI indicates that political liberties were not really present.

On this date, the civil war in mandatory Palestine broke out after a resolution had been signed one day prior, recommending a partition plan for Palestine. Jewish communities clashed with Arab communities which were supported by the Arab Liberation Army. The British organized their departure and intervened only occasionally.⁸

On 05/14/1948 the British International Mandate over Palestine expired and David Ben Gurion, the executive head of the World Zionist Organization, issued the Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel. Egypt, Transjordan, Iraq and Syria invaded former mandatory Palestine and attacked the new Israeli forces. This marked the beginning of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.⁹ For 1947 and 1948 again, V-Dem’s JCE indicates that judicial constraints on the executive are robust. At the same time, V-Dem’s LCE shows no value, which, with appropriate caution, can be interpreted as an absence of legislative constraints on the executive. According to FH’s classification for the assessed regime period, a score between 11 and 14 makes the Israeli-Occupied Territories not free, which we also place in the not free category. Per FH, for 1996-2004, the Palestinian Authority-Administered Territories score between 11 and 14 as not free, which we also interpret as not free. Per FH’s evaluation for 2005 and 2006, the country scores from 9 to 10 as not free, which we categorize as rather not free. Since 2010 FH uses a geographic division between ‘West Bank’ and ‘Gaza Strip’.

End Palestine [No Central Authority]

For the time after 05/14/1948, see Palistine, Gaza Strip and Palistine, West Bank