In practice, Zionists did not accept the UN Partition Plan. Zionists seized areas beyond the proposed Jewish State and did not recognize the International Zone. Using force and terrorism months before May 1948, Jews seized land beyond the UN proposed borders. The UN Plan was used as a pretense for taking over most of Palestine.
NOTE: This is a critical fact often omitted when the history is presented and this leads to a very distorted view of what happened in 1948. The misleading story often told is that "Jews declared Israel and then they were attacked." The fact is from November 1947 to May 1948 the Zionists were already on the offensive and had already attacked Arabs. In the months before Israel was declared, the Zionists had driven 300,000 non-Jews off their land. In the months before Israel was declared, the Zionists had seized land beyond the proposed Jewish State. SEE Sources or this blog entry: Sources for the Israeli/Palestinian situation 1947-1948
It is the Zionists that pushed for the radical idea that the land be divided up so that a "pure" racially established state of Jews could be established. They didn't want to live as equal citizens as is expected of all religions in America. But the division was only considered temporary by them since their goal was and is to take over all of Palestine.
The key Zionists had no intention of accepting that UN partition, a recommendation to chop up Palestine into 7 parts. 67% of the population didn't what that done. In 1938 Ben-Gurion said to other Zionists, “after we become a strong force, as the result of the creation of a state, we shall abolish partition and expand to the whole of Palestine.” Sure enough, after the creation of the state in 1948, Menachem Begin made clear how serious the “Jews accepting the UN partition” was in reality, “The partition of the Homeland is illegal . It will never be recognized. The signature of institutions and individuals of the partition agreement is invalid. It will not bind the Jewish people. Jerusalem was and will forever be our capital. Eretz Israel (the land of Israel) will be restored to the people of Israel, All of it. And forever”.
"A partial Jewish state is not the end, but only the beginning ... I am certain that we will not be prevented from settling in the other parts of the country, either by mutual agreement with our Arab neighbors or by some other means ...[If the Arabs refuse] we shall have to speak to them in a different language. But we shall only have another language if we have a state." p162 Fateful Triangle The United States, Israel, and the Palestinians
Zionists immediately started seizing land, even land beyond what the UN partition set for the proposed Jewish State. Attacks were from both sides but were instigated by the Zionists seizing land and a reaction to the aggressive ethnic cleansing under way. After the massive ethnic cleansing and expansion beyond the UN suggested boarders, Arab states responded INTO THE AREAS THAT WERE TO BE FOR THE UN PROPOSED PALESTINIAN STATE. Also, Jordan had an agreement with Israel to prevent a Palestinian State so Jordan invaded the West Bank.
"The Zionists were by far the more powerful and better organized force, and by May 1948, when the state of Israel was formally established, about 300,000 Palestinians already had been expelled from their homes or had fled the fighting, and the Zionists controlled a region well beyond the area of the original Jewish state that had been proposed by the UN. Now it's then that Israel was attacked by its neighbors - in May 1948; it's then, after the Zionists had taken control of this much larger part of the region and hundreds of thousands of civilians had been forced out, not before." p132 Understanding Power: The Indispensable Chomsky
The fact that the rights of the majority, 67% of the population, were violated is suppressed in the media. Why in the world would you think it is legitimate for 33% of a population to seize land and carve up the land into 7 parts? Why in the world should 67% of a population ever accept that? These population stats, which highlight just how undemocratic the UN proposal really was, are almost never mentioned in US media.
The 1947 proposal was not the first land division scheme, the Peel Commission suggested a partition plan in 1937. Also if you look into it, the Zionists had no intention of accepting any fair partition. As Ben-Gurion himself said in 1937, "No Zionist can forgo the smallest portion of Eretz Israel." (see p162 Fateful Triangle The United States, Israel, and the Palestinians)
The May 1948 unilateral declaration was by less than 33% of the population who were imposing their will on 67% of the non-Jews. In Nov 1947 the UN made a recommendation for a three-way partition of Palestine into a Jewish State, an Arab State and a small internationally administered zone that would have included Jerusalem. This was a recommendation by the UN General Assembly and General Assembly recommendations have no force, they are only recommendations. In fact Israel is the greatest rejecter of General Assembly resolutions by the way. When the recommendation was made, war broke out between the Palestinians and the Zionists who had been planning on taking over and before the end of the war they had amassed much more arms. By May 1948, when the Jews (33%) unilaterally declared "the state of Israel", 300,000 Palestinians had already been ethnically cleansed (forced from their homes or had fled the fighting) by the Zionists and the Zionists had stolen a region well beyond the area of the original Jewish State that was proposed by the UN. Then, after the Zionists had taken control of this much larger part of the region and hundreds of thousands of civilians had been forced out, "Israel" was attacked by its neighbors.
In 1967 Israel attacked and took over the remaining part of Palestine with the intention of keeping it. All through the supposed "peace process" they have been illegally building on the occupied territories.
Reader input in << brackets>>
<< I think they should go back to the original UN proposed boarders >>
That proposal would be viciously fought against by the Zionists. (although I think it would be more just.) No one suggests what you propose, they propose less than what you propose since they all accept the original land grab in 1948. (remember that the Zionists seized land beyond what the UN proposal suggested and the land grabs started before May 1948) What has been proposed is to go back to pre-1967 boarders. The fact is that nearly the entire world and most Americans agree with a plan like that but it has been rejected by the Zionists. email me if you would like more details.
<< Terrorism by Jews can't be discounted. >>
The problem is much of the terrorism goes unreported here in America. I am talking about terrorism that is clearly seen as the "classic" terrorism. The kind that is claimed against the Palestinians in general. Just recently, Jews bombed a school targeting children. (not the military by the way) and it isn't the first time Jews have targeted children with their terrorism (not that children happened to be there, these attacks have been targeted at children at the schools).
There is a pattern of violence by Jewish terrorists of targeting children specifically (and a pattern of it going unreported in America) For years, like the murder of Palestinian girl, Intissar al-Atar, in a school yard. When the Jewish terrorist got a seven-month suspended sentence the illegal "settlers" in the courtroom broke out in song and dance. p473 Fateful Triangle.
These Jewish terrorists are subsidized (living on land illegally and in violation of the Geneva Convention and are not pursued by "the law" the same way other terrorists are) and they are ON TOP of the violence, the maiming and killing of thousands, against the Palestinians. The Israeli military have been targeting children and maiming them for life. Dramatic examples of other crimes go UNREPORTED or UNDERREPORTED here in America.
She watched helplessly as her Mother bled to death for over an hour as Israeli Soldiers ignored her father's cries to let the ambulance through to save his dying wife. See the Israeli describe his mission as "purification"! See the video that nearly all American TV News Editors decided you shouldn't see.*It was severely underreported, a search on Nexis reveals that only CBS ran the video. (See it at a Canadian web site)
The fact this video was even show in Israel was itself a news story in Israel. It made headlines. Here in America, nearly all news editors pretended it didn't exist.
A Jewish State covering 56.47% of Mandatory Palestine (excluding Jerusalem) with a population of 498,000 Jews and 325,000 Arabs;
* An Arab State covering 43.53% of Mandatory Palestine (excluding Jerusalem), with 807,000 Arab inhabitants and 10,000 Jewish inhabitants;
* An international trusteeship regime in Jerusalem, where the population was 100,000 Jews and 105,000 Arabs.
The partition plan also laid down:
* A guarantee of the rights of minorities and religious rights, including free access to and the preservation of Holy Places;
* A constitution of an Economic Union between the two states: custom union, joint monetary system, joint administration of main services, equal access to water and energy resources.
Source for stats, see link: BBC NEWS | In Depth | Israel and the Palestinians | key documents | UN Partition Plan
SEE: Sources or this blog entry: Sources for the Israeli/Palestinian situation 1947-1948