Development of Zionism

As described in the previous section "Zionism" was built in the nineteenth century. In fact, until the nineteenth century such thing as a Jewish political nationalism (Zionism) did not exist. The creators of Zionism were Europeans that each struggled to maintain their interests and to create a base in the region. Thus Zionism was and is a Western movement. The Zionist movement arose in Europe and the Palestine was chosen by British as a Jewish settlement.
Political Zionism, which arose in 1882, was made by Theodor Herzl in Vienna, and he created theory and school for it. He set his theory in 1894 in a book entitled "State of Israel" and began implementation of the project during the first World Zionist gathering in the Basel in 1897. The result of this meeting was the establishment of the World Zionist Organization, and shortly afterwards the organization "Jewish Colonial Trust" was created as a global corporation.
According to Ivanov, Zionism began its activities with deception from the beginning. Zionist circles and groups who were fans of them that did not know the "date of birth" appropriate, began to spread the myth hardly that Zionism is a very old process aimed at forming a "Jewish state" because since thousands of years ago, "Jews were always hoping to return to Palestine in their memory. " After the formation of Zionist organization in the Basel Congress, the mission of establishing "Zionist state" to make all Jews of the world free was given to the organization and Herzl was elected as its president. But the very first dispute over the location of the Jewish state happened, since some people due to the facts disapproved the formation of the state of Israel in Palestine. The second point is that, according to Ivanov, the idea of creation of the Jewish state was contemplated only as an auxiliary instrument, so the location of the center of influence of the Zionists was not so important; Pinsker wrote in this regard:
We do not necessarily want to stay in the same place where our rule was destroyed once ... we just need a piece of land to be owned by us ... we have protected our holiness since our old home was destroyed, and we will take it there: I mean believing in God and the Bible, since they were the ones (not Jordan and Jerusalem) that have transformed our country to the holy Land.
Leon Pinsker was opposed the choice of Palestine as a Jewish state because they believed that for this purpose a ground must be selected that is empty of people and there is no conflict over it and we can be safe in there, and achieving it should be easy and simple and without resorting to force and violence. He called for formation a general congress for discussion of the principle. Pinsker 's book entitled "Freedom" was widely spread, but it did not lead to practical steps.
Due to this difference, some suggested Uganda and Herzl announced the choice in the sixth Zionist Congress:
I have no doubt that Congress as a representative of the Jewish masses will accept the offer with gratitude. It is proposed to establish a Jewish colonial autonomous settlement with Jewish administration and local government that will be headed by a Jewish commissioner in East Africa. It is needless to say that these things are all under the supervision of Great Britain.
Argentina in Latin America was one of locations that the Zionists had considered as a Jewish settlement. Some concluded that Argentina is the best country to implement the plan to build Jewish settlements.
Following this conclusion, vast lands within the boundaries of Buenos Aires, Santa Fe and Antrryu were purchased.
At the same time an executive organization was established in Argentina, headed by Colonel Goldsmith for a short period who had taken off day from the British War Department for the purpose.
Argentina plan was never seriously discussed by the Zionists. Herzl got familiar with the "Great Palestine" plan after a trip to London in 1895 and meeting with Samuel Montagu, Jewish capitalist and a member of the British House of Commons, and on the recommendation of Montagu, he abandoned plan to migrate to Argentina because in addition to Montagu, most of England Zionists looked for colonization of Palestine.
Besides Uganda and Argentina, other areas were suggested too that included: Iraq and Mesopotamia - Cyprus that after the disappointment of the Sultan, Herzl sought to get Cyprus from England as accommodation of Jews - El Arish from was also of areas that Herzl with approval of the World Zionist Organization and Zionist Congress decided to raise the colonial project of the area of El Arish in Sinai. After the rejection of al-Arish, other areas as Congo, Mozambique, Libya and Angola were proposed. But none of these projects were implemented.
Chaim Weizmann wrote on this issue:
Areas that have been proposed are whether extremely cold or extremely hot, and the development of those places takes years of work and the cost is exorbitant.
In other words, these projects were not economically viable proposition. The conflict between the Zionist leaders ended with the victory of pro-British group led by Wiseman. This followed a time when in British ruling circles the group, who has long wished for Palestine, became dominant position. Thus, in 1905, in the Zionist Congress the majority of delegates voted to establish a Jewish state in Palestine. Since then, the movement was largely led by Wiseman who both spent his time for political actions and received advantages of the Ottoman sultan who ruled over Palestine.
From this date on, the Zionists with direct support from the UK are actively working to achieve the state of Israel in Palestine. England support helped the Zionist Jewish community in Palestine to increase their number via migration of Jews. Thus, in this period, according to Palestine being under supervision of British, the Zionists were actively trying to form Israeli government.
England and then America and in general West had aim of the creation of Israel in Palestine to carry out three tasks by the Zionism government:
1. Converting the Zionist regime to such a wild animal that has vital importance for imperialism in control of situation or determining the course of the Middle East, and is able to apply force.
2. Contributing to the centrality of Israel as an intellectual and political influence center and if possible, a control center for Jews who live in different countries.
3. Strengthening the position of Israel as a means for political and economic influence of imperialism in the developing countries of Asia and Africa (or some other countries). Events happened during this period in the Middle East and Israel show how Israel's ruling circles are trying by passion to accomplish these tasks.
Since then, organizations following the British government treated the Zionists as an ally and provided all kinds of facilities for them, including they were allowed to use Foreign Office of England telecommunications equipment. Britain also pledged to establish a national homeland for Jews in Palestine. Two factors led England to declare its policy on Palestine earlier: First, America's official entry into the war in April 1917. The second factor was that in the wake of the February 1917 revolution in Russia, Jewish youth of the country showed a great desire to join the Communist Party (or Bolshevik), headed by Lenin who opposed the continuation of war by Russia. This factor led the General Mcdonf, the head of the CIA of England, ask his government to declare Palestine as a national homeland of the Jews as quickly as possible, so that young Jews instead of joining the revolutionary parties against England can join reactionary and colonial ideology of Zionism. This time Union of Zionist and England became subject of a letter that Arthur Balfour, the British Foreign Secretary and a passionate fan of Zionism, sent to Lord Rothschild, the rich Jewish man.
Aside from Balfour, Herbert Samuel, English Jewish political figure, and Lloyd George, representative of English, who was Zionists' legal adviser for a while and later became Prime Minister of England, approved the idea of establishing a Jewish state in Palestine.
Later, Cyril Scott, the editor of the Manchester Guardian and the famous Edward Gray and Minister, also joined them. Samuel asked that Palestine should be added to the British Empire and it should support the Zionist movement and its goal to establish a national homeland for Jews in Palestine.
What is quoted in continue is a letter that Arthur James Balfour, British Foreign Secretary wrote to Lord Rothschild in where he has declared support of the British Government for the ideals of Zionism and the approval of the government towards the establishment of a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine:
Dear Lord Rothschild
All pleased, from the British government I inform you the following points that in the cabinet (of England) are adopted in favor of the Zionist movement.
Government of His Majesty the King of England considers foundation of the National Association of Jews in Palestine favorable and to facilitate and do it he will not hesitate to try and endeavor. But it is clear that no action against the secular and religious rights of non-Jewish people of Palestine and other Jews who live in other countries, should not be done.
I will thank it if you give this notice to the Zionist Union.
Yours sincerely
November 2nd, 1917
Arthur James Balfour, British Foreign Secretary
All of these measures were to protect colonial interests in the region, as the Irish Times reported that:
In opinion of Great Britain, the best defense way of the Suez Canal is the establishment of people in Palestinian who are interested in us.
However, after twenty years of struggle, the ruling circles of Britain and the Zionists were able to increase Jewish population of Palestine, from 1897 to 1919 from 5 to 10 percent of the population. This was very brutal, because not only the Jews did not settle in the area of the canal, but Arabs, who 90% of the population of Palestine, looked at them as those who were sent by the state of Great Britain and the Zionists to loot them.