The superficial claim in the Wikipedia article on Zionism, particularly regarding the Balfour Declaration, reflects a classic antisemitic viewpoint, which suggests that Jews control the world. The only reference to the Balfour Declaration in the article involves:
"The lobbying by Chaim Weizmann, Russian Jewish immigrants, along with the fear that the Jewish community in the United States would encourage America to support Germany in its war against Russia, led to the Balfour Declaration of the British government in 1917."[1]
While it is true that Chaim Weizmann was asked what he could request in return for his contribution, as Weizmann, a chemist by training, helped resolve a wartime shortage of acetone, which was crucial for artillery operations. He developed a corn-based alternative, producing some 30,000 tons. In his 'War Time Memories,' Prime Minister Lloyd George recalls telling Weizmann that he would recommend the King grant him an honorary title, to which Weizmann replied that he sought only to help his people. "This," Lloyd George later explained, "was the foundation of the famous declaration for a Jewish Homeland in Palestine. When I became Prime Minister, I discussed the entire issue with Mr. Balfour, then the Foreign Minister. We wanted Jewish support in neutral countries. Dr. Weizmann was sent directly to the foreign minister – that was the beginning of a partnership, the results of which, after a long process, was the famous Balfour Declaration… So Dr. Weizmann, through his discovery, not only helped us win the war, but also left his mark on the world's map."[2]
Furthermore, it is essential to understand that the primary reason for the Balfour Declaration was British strategic interests. The Sykes-Picot treaty was originally designed to partition Palestine among the powers that had defeated the Ottomans. According to James Bear, Britain's support of Zionism was essentially a way to limit the influence of France, which also had ambitions in the Middle East. Bear argues that the Balfour Declaration was given "to counteract the inevitable French claim for international governance after the conquest of Palestine."[3] Once Britain issued the Balfour Declaration, it effectively nullified its commitment to the Sykes-Picot treaty and the McMahon-Hussein correspondence.
From late 1916, under the leadership of British Prime Minister Lloyd George, Britain ceased abiding by the Sykes-Picot treaty, which had proposed an undefined international regime for most of the Land of Israel. Dissatisfied with the treaty, Britain elevated the importance of the Zionists, allowing them to present the British conquest in a positive light. The idea was that British control of the area would support the Zionist cause of establishing a Jewish National Home, rather than pursuing imperialistic motives. The Zionist movement thus provided a legitimate framework for British conquest and influence in the Middle East, and the Balfour Declaration gave Britain a respectable means to extricate itself from prior legal and diplomatic commitments.[4
Moreover, many scholars attribute the religious beliefs of Prime Minister Lloyd George and Foreign Minister Lord Balfour, both of whom had a deep affinity for the Jewish people and the Zionist cause, to their Christian faith. They held a romantic notion of righting historical wrongs by reinstating the Jewish people in their ancestral homeland.[5]
Failing to present the full geopolitical and personal context, and instead simplifying the issue to claims of global Jewish domination, creates a partial picture that prevents the reader from grasping the complexity of the events. Instead, it promotes the myth of Jewish control over world affairs.
[1] Wikipedia contributors, "Zionism," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, last modified September 30, 2023, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zionism.
[2] Yehuda Reinhertz & Miri Karsin, Chaim Weizmann: Science in the Service of Politics, ZMANIM, a history quarterly, 20, 1986
[3] James Beer A Line in the Sand – Britain, France and the Struggle that Shaped the Middle East, Opus, pp. 72
[4] Kobby barda. "The First Zionist Lobbyists in the U.S: Louis Brandeis’ and Stephen Waise’s Roles in the Balfour Declaration." Cambridge Open Engage, 2022. https://doi.org/10.33774/coe-2022-3zfhx .
[5] Abigail Green, The Origins of Christian Zionism: Lord Shaftesbury and Evangelical Support for a Jewish Homeland, by Donald M. Lewis, The English Historical Review, Volume CXXVI, Issue 520, June 2011, Pages 724–725, https://doi.org/10.1093/ehr/cer131
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