Talk:Balfour Declaration/Lead alternatives

Current version (29 August)
The Balfour Declaration was a British government public statement made during World War I, to announce their support for the establishment of a "national home" for the Jewish people in Palestine, then part of the Ottoman Empire. The declaration was contained in a letter dated 2November 1917 from the United Kingdom's Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour to Lord Walter Rothschild, a leader of the British Jewish community, for transmission to the Zionist Federation of Great Britain and Ireland. The text of the declaration was published in the press on 9November 1917.

During the period of the British War Cabinet discussions leading up to the declaration, the wider war had reached a period of stalemate; the US was yet to fully deploy, and the Russians were distracted by internal upheaval. Historians agree that the first high level contacts between the British and the Zionists can be dated to a conference that took place on 7 February that included Sir Mark Sykes and the Zionist leadership that ultimately resulted in Balfour requesting, on 19 June, that Rothschild and Chaim Weizmann submit a draft of a public declaration. Further drafts were discussed by the British Cabinet during September and October, with input from Zionist and anti-Zionist Jews but with no representation from the local population in Palestine, and the release of the final declaration was authorised by 31 October. The Cabinet discussion on approval described perceived propaganda benefits amongst the worldwide Jewish community for the Allied war effort. It read: "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 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 first part of the declaration was the first public support for Zionism by a major political power. The term "national home" had no precedent in international law, and was intentionally unclear as to whether a Jewish state was contemplated. The intended boundaries of Palestine were not specified, and the British Government later confirmed that the words "in Palestine" meant that the whole of Palestine was not intended as the Jewish national home.

The second part of the declaration was added to satisfy opponents of the policy, who had claimed that it would otherwise prejudice the position of the local population of Palestine and encourage antisemitism against Jews worldwide. Whilst the declaration provided political rights in Palestine for Jews, rights for the Palestinian Arabs who comprised the vast majority of the local population were limited to civil and religious. In 2017, the British Government acknowledged that the Declaration should have called for the protection of political rights.

The issue of the declaration had many long-lasting consequences. It galvanized popular support for Zionism, led to the creation of Mandatory Palestine, which later became Israel and the Palestinian territories, and was the origin of the ongoing Israeli Palestinian conflict, considered the world's most intractable conflict. There remains ongoing scholarly controversy over a number of areas, including whether the declaration contradicts earlier promises the British may have made to Hussein ibn Ali al-Hashimi, the Sharif of Mecca, in the McMahon–Hussein correspondence.

Alternative #1
The Balfour Declaration was a British government public statement made during World War I, to announce their support for the establishment of a "national home" for the Jewish people in Palestine, then part of the Ottoman Empire. The declaration was contained in a letter dated 2November 1917 from the United Kingdom's Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour to Lord Walter Rothschild, a leader of the British Jewish community, for transmission to the Zionist Federation of Great Britain and Ireland. The text of the declaration was published in the press on 9November 1917.

During the period of the British War Cabinet discussions leading up to the declaration, the wider war had reached a period of stalemate; the US was yet to fully deploy, and the Russians were distracted by internal upheaval. Historians agree that the first high level contacts between the British and the Zionists can be dated to a conference that took place on 7 February that included Sir Mark Sykes and the Zionist leadership that ultimately resulted in Balfour requesting, on 19 June, that Rothschild and Chaim Weizmann submit a draft of a public declaration. Further drafts were discussed by the British Cabinet during September and October, with input from Zionist and anti-Zionist Jews but with no representation from the local population in Palestine, and the release of the final declaration was authorised by 31 October. The Cabinet discussion on approval described perceived propaganda benefits amongst the worldwide Jewish community for the Allied war effort.

The first part of the declaration was the first public support for Zionism by a major political power. The term "national home" had no precedent in international law, and was intentionally unclear as to whether a Jewish state was contemplated. The intended boundaries of Palestine were not specified, and the British Government later confirmed that the words "in Palestine" meant that the whole of Palestine was not intended as the Jewish national home.

The second part of the declaration was added to satisfy opponents of the policy, who had claimed that it would otherwise prejudice the position of the local population of Palestine and encourage antisemitism against Jews worldwide. Whilst the declaration provided political rights in Palestine for Jews, rights for the Palestinian Arabs who comprised the vast majority of the local population were limited to civil and religious. In 2017, the British Government acknowledged that the Declaration should have called for the protection of political rights.

The issue of the declaration had many long-lasting consequences. It galvanized popular support for Zionism, led to the creation of Mandatory Palestine, which later became Israel and the Palestinian territories, and was the origin of the ongoing Israeli Palestinian conflict, considered the world's most intractable conflict. There remains ongoing scholarly controversy over a number of areas, including whether the declaration contradicts earlier promises the British may have made to Hussein ibn Ali al-Hashimi, the Sharif of Mecca, in the McMahon–Hussein correspondence.

Alternative #2
The Balfour Declaration was a British government public statement made during World War I, to announce their support for the establishment of a "national home" for the Jewish people in Palestine, then part of the Ottoman Empire. The declaration was contained in a letter dated 2November 1917 from the United Kingdom's Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour to Lord Walter Rothschild, a leader of the British Jewish community, for transmission to the Zionist Federation of Great Britain and Ireland. The text of the declaration was published in the press on 9November 1917.

During the period of the British War Cabinet discussions leading up to the declaration, the wider war had reached a period of stalemate; the US was yet to fully deploy, and the Russians were distracted by internal upheaval. Historians agree that the first high level contacts between the British and the Zionists can be dated to a conference that took place on 7 February that included Sir Mark Sykes and the Zionist leadership that ultimately resulted in Balfour requesting, on 19 June, that Rothschild and Chaim Weizmann submit a draft of a public declaration. Further drafts were discussed by the British Cabinet during September and October, with input from Zionist and anti-Zionist Jews but with no representation from the local population in Palestine, and the release of the final declaration was authorised by 31 October. The Cabinet discussion on approval described perceived propaganda benefits amongst the worldwide Jewish community for the Allied war effort.

The first part of the declaration was the first public support for Zionism by a major political power. The term "national home" had no precedent in international law, and was intentionally unclear as to whether a Jewish state was contemplated. The intended boundaries of Palestine were not specified, and the British Government later confirmed that the words "in Palestine" meant that the whole of Palestine was not intended as the Jewish national home.

The second part of the declaration was added to satisfy opponents of the policy, who had claimed that it would otherwise prejudice the position of the local population of Palestine and encourage antisemitism against Jews worldwide. Whilst the declaration provided political rights in Palestine for Jews, rights for the Palestinian Arabs who comprised the vast majority of the local population were limited to civil and religious. In 2017, the British Government acknowledged that the Declaration should have called for the protection of political rights.

The issue of the declaration had many long-lasting consequences. It galvanized popular support for Zionism, led to the creation of Mandatory Palestine, which later became Israel and the Palestinian territories, and was the origin of the ongoing Israeli Palestinian conflict, considered the world's most intractable conflict. There remains ongoing scholarly controversy over a number of areas, including whether the declaration contradicts earlier promises the British may have made to Hussein ibn Ali al-Hashimi, the Sharif of Mecca, in the McMahon–Hussein correspondence.

Alternative #3
The Balfour Declaration was a British government public statement made during World War I, which read: "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 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 declaration, which announced support for the establishment of a "national home" for the Jewish people in Palestine, then part of the Ottoman Empire, was contained in a letter dated 2November 1917 from the United Kingdom's Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour to Lord Walter Rothschild, a leader of the British Jewish community, for transmission to the Zionist Federation of Great Britain and Ireland. The text of the declaration was published in the press on 9November 1917.

During the period of the British War Cabinet discussions leading up to the declaration, the wider war had reached a period of stalemate; the US was yet to fully deploy, and the Russians were distracted by internal upheaval. Historians agree that the first high level contacts between the British and the Zionists can be dated to a conference that took place on 7 February that included Sir Mark Sykes and the Zionist leadership that ultimately resulted in Balfour requesting, on 19 June, that Rothschild and Chaim Weizmann submit a draft of a public declaration. Further drafts were discussed by the British Cabinet during September and October, with input from Zionist and anti-Zionist Jews but with no representation from the local population in Palestine, and the release of the final declaration was authorised by 31 October. The Cabinet discussion on approval described perceived propaganda benefits amongst the worldwide Jewish community for the Allied war effort.

The first part of the declaration was the first public support for Zionism by a major political power. The term "national home" had no precedent in international law, and was intentionally unclear as to whether a Jewish state was contemplated. The intended boundaries of Palestine were not specified, and the British Government later confirmed that the words "in Palestine" meant that the whole of Palestine was not intended as the Jewish national home.

The second part of the declaration was added to satisfy opponents of the policy, who had claimed that it would otherwise prejudice the position of the local population of Palestine and encourage antisemitism against Jews worldwide. Whilst the declaration provided political rights in Palestine for Jews, rights for the Palestinian Arabs who comprised the vast majority of the local population were limited to civil and religious. In 2017, the British Government acknowledged that the Declaration should have called for the protection of political rights.

The issue of the declaration had many long-lasting consequences. It galvanized popular support for Zionism, led to the creation of Mandatory Palestine, which later became Israel and the Palestinian territories, and was the origin of the ongoing Israeli Palestinian conflict, considered the world's most intractable conflict. There remains ongoing scholarly controversy over a number of areas, including whether the declaration contradicts earlier promises the British may have made to Hussein ibn Ali al-Hashimi, the Sharif of Mecca, in the McMahon–Hussein correspondence.