Britainupdated 1h ago2 min read
Gaza Government Media Office Demands Britain Apologize for Balfour Declaration on 109th Anniversary
“Zionism is, and has always been, racism, colonialism and imperialism.”
“Britain hoped that supporting the Zionist movement would help gain Jewish support for the Allies, according to History.”
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Gaza Government Media Office demanded official apology from Britain for Balfour Declaration and its consequences. Call included bearing legal and compensatory responsibilities arising from the declaration.
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Gaza calls for apology
The Government Media Office in the Gaza Strip called on Britain to issue an official and comprehensive apology to the Palestinian people for the Balfour Declaration and its consequences on the 109th anniversary of its issuance. The Government Media Office said Britain bears direct legal, historical, and moral responsibility for the outcomes that followed the Balfour Declaration, and for the subsequent practices during the Mandate. The Government Media Office linked the Balfour Declaration to what Palestinians are currently experiencing, including Israeli crimes, destruction and forced displacement in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem.
The Government Media Office urged Britain to bear the legal and compensatory consequences arising from decades of displacement and suffering endured by the Palestinian people, and it called for an immediate stop to providing political and military cover to the Israeli occupation. The Government Media Office emphasized that any decisions or political agreements attempting to circumvent the rights of the Palestinians are, in its view, legally invalid and socially void.
What the declaration said
The Jerusalem Post said that on November 2, 1917, Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour wrote a letter to Baron Lionel Walter Rothschild saying that the British government would support the Jewish people in returning to their homeland. The Jerusalem Post quoted Balfour writing, "His Majesty's Government views with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people" and said Britain would use its best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of that object. The Korea JoongAng Daily said the original letter contained just 67 English words and described the declaration as having three main points.
The Korea JoongAng Daily said the declaration promised that the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities would not be prejudiced, and it asked Rothschild to convey the declaration to the Zionist Federation. The Korea JoongAng Daily said the declaration explicitly identified Palestine as the location but never clearly defined what a "national home for the Jewish people" meant.
Mandate, recognition, and dispute
The PLO Department of Refugee Affairs said in a communiqué issued on the anniversary of the Balfour Declaration that its consequences are evident in land confiscation, demolition of homes, expansion of settlements, plans for annexation, and policies of Judaization and displacement. The PLO Department of Refugee Affairs cited Ahmed Abu Holi, head of the Department of Refugee Affairs, who described the Balfour Declaration as a "historic colonial crime against the Palestinian people." The PLO Department of Refugee Affairs said Britain’s recognition of the State of Palestine was insufficient unless it was accompanied by concrete measures to repair the injustices committed, including an official apology for the Balfour Declaration.
The Al-Jazirah net account said the Balfour Declaration was issued on 2 November 1917 and pledged to establish a 'national home for the Jewish people' in Palestine. The Al-Jazirah net account said the commemoration comes amid ongoing repercussions of the Israeli genocidal war in Gaza, which began in October 2023, and it cited more than 74,000 Palestinian deaths and more than 175,000 injuries.