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A century since the Balfour Declaration

One hundred years ago, Britain issued a controversial declaration that forever changed the Palestinian homeland.

British soldiers patrol the streets of Jerusalem at the time of a visit by Lord Balfour, 2nd April 1925. The city''s Arab residents were on strike as a protest against the Balfour Declaration supportin
British soldiers patrol the streets of Jerusalem during a visit by Arthur James Balfour, a British Conservative politician, on April 2, 1925. The city's Arab residents were on strike as a protest against the Balfour Declaration, which supported plans for a Jewish homeland in Palestine. [Topical Press Agency/Hulton Archive/Getty Images]
Published On 30 Oct 2017

This week, Palestinians around the world are marking the 100th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, a controversial letter issued by Britain’s former foreign secretary, Arthur Balfour, on November 2, 1917.

“His Majesty’s Government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly

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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,” the letter stated.

The declaration, which turned the Zionist aim of establishing a Jewish state in Palestine into a reality, is broadly viewed as one of the main catalysts behind the 1948 Nakba and decades of Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Here, Al Jazeera explores some key images from the era of the Balfour Declaration.

 

Lord Balfour speaking at the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Palestine, 1927. Arthur James Balfour (1848-1930) was a British Conservative politician. In 1917, when serving as Foreign Secretary, he autho
Balfour, while serving as foreign secretary, authored the Balfour Declaration in 1917. Here, he speaks at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem in 1925. [Artist Topical Press Agency/Historica Graphica Collection/Heritage Images/Getty Images]
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Arab protestors travelling to Amman for a demonstration against the Balfour Declaration of 1917, promising the creation of a Jewish state in Palestine, Jordan, 1936. The banners read: ''Palestine for t
Arab protesters travel to the Jordanian capital Amman for a demonstration against the Balfour Declaration in 1936. The banners read: ''Palestine for the Arabs'' and ''Our homeland is our faith and complete freedom is our life''. [Roger Viollet/Getty Images]
British politician Lord Arthur Balfour (1848 - 1930) points out a feature of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre to Governor Sir Ronald Storrs during a visit to Jerusalem, 9th April 1925. The city''s Arab
Balfour points out a feature of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre to Governor Sir Ronald Storrs during a visit to Jerusalem on April 9, 1925. [Topical Press Agency/Hulton Archive/Getty Images]
Photograph of A J Balfour and Lloyd George in London before World War I. (Photo by: Photo12/UIG via Getty Images)
Balfour and former Prime Minister David Lloyd George are pictured in London before World War I. [Photo12/UIG/ Getty Images]
World Zionist Organization President Chaim Weizmann and his wife Vera outside St. James''s Palace in London where a conference is being held to discuss the creation of an Israeli state out of British-c
Chaim Weizmann, the former president of the World Zionist Organization, and his wife, Vera, are pictured outside of St James's Palace in London, where a conference was being held to discuss the creation of an Israeli state out of British-controlled Palestine. [Getty Images]
PALESTINE - JULY 01: In July 1920, Sir Herbert SAMUEL, ex-British Minister of the Interior (wearing the hat) arrives in Jerusalem to take over as High-Commissioner of the British mandate in Palestine.
Former British Interior Minister Sir Herbert Samuel arrives in Jerusalem in July 1920 to take over as high commissioner of the British Mandate in Palestine. [Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone/ Getty Images]
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July 1927: Lionel Walter Rothschild (1868 - 1937), 2nd Lord Rothschild, in riding gear. (Photo by Fox Photos/Getty Images)
Lionel Walter Rothschild, a figurehead of the British Jewish community to whom the Balfour Declaration was addressed, is pictured in July 1927. [Fox Photos/Getty Images]
Letter from the Foreign Office to Lord Rothschild known as the ''The Balfour Declaration''. Dated 20th Century. (Photo by: Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images)
The Balfour Declaration was just a few paragraphs in length, but it has had a profound impact on the Middle East for the last century. [Universal History Archive/UIG/ Getty Images]