Why Palestine was partitioned
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07 Dec 2025, 12:30 pm
I am not competent to fact check, but please feel free (look for answer by user Back Track on 7 October, I am having trouble linking to Quora).
https://www.quora.com/In-1947-the-Arabs-proposed-a-unitary-democracy-in-Palestine-similar-to-what-existed-in-Lebanon-so-called-Arab-Case-before-UNSCOP-Did-the-Zionist-Jewish-immigrants-doom-the-prospects-of-democracy-in-the-region-by
https://ci3.googleusercontent.com/meips/ADKq_NYWJJ4Bb-Hah--4pw_VefNxZ7KM3DjxhwXcFz-Y-N2lrLaFexYK-oj3zE7B0yQ10L5ANafCClwUQ6u6A10ViQa9KjGrbhuHxtCrZoA9uoYMLYMLjSwauQ6CPOFspv5khV0=s0-d-e1-ft#https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-e0c2b3aedbf21267fbfa44706d87af5b-pjlq
Quote:
In 1948, the Arabs proposed the creation of a unitary, multi-religious democracy in Palestine, modeled on the Lebanese Republic. Why did the Jewish Zionist immigrants reject that idea and instead demand a Jewish-majority state in their new home?
YES! The Arabs did propose the Arab Unitary State Plan. And on paper it looked pretty good. (this occurred in 1947, not 1948).
And it was not the Jews that had any say in the rejection of the Arab Unitary State Plan, but BOTH the UN Investigative committee UNSCOP, and the entire UN General Assembly that rejected it.
And as a side note, more than half of the 650,000 Jews in Palestine were born there. Not immigrants anymore. Jews began arriving in greater numbers beginning 1880. Modern migration, no different than migration today.
The investigative committee, UN Special COmmittee on Palestine, UNSCOP had 11 members (not UN members). Two Muslims members (Iran and India), one from a country with a large minority of Muslims (Yugoslavia), two British Commonwealths (Canada, Australia) and two close allies of Britain (Netherlands, Sweden). Iran, India, and Yugoslavia were against a Partition of Palestine from day one. And as the British were against Partition (they abstained on the final UN GA 181 Partition Plan), one would expect their close allies to also be against Partition. That committee was weighted against the Jews.
The UNSCOP worked for 5 months and considered all the possible forms of governance of that region. And yes, the Arab Unitary State was deeply discussed. The entire committee even went to Sofar, Lebanon mid-June, 1947 to meet with the Arab League to discuss the Arab Unitary State Plan.
The UNSCOP delivered their final report to the General Assembly in August of 1947 and discussions were held in meetings at the UN. Two plans were proposed to the GA.
*** It did not include the Arab Unitary State Plan. ***** WHY? ******
(Jewish Zionists had zero say in that committee)
The General Assembly was not happy that the Arab Unitary State Plan was not included as one of the UNSCOP recommended plans.
They subsequently set up two Subcommittees to detail (1) the UNSCOP Partition Plan, and (2) detail the Arab Unitary State Plan: Subcommittee 1 and Subcommittee 2, respectively.
Many meetings were held with the entire General Assembly in attendance. Arab leadership gave speeches in support of the Arab Unitary State Plan, and Jewish leadership gave speeches in support of the Partition Plan.
The entire General Assembly then voted on each final plan (after alterations during those GA meetings) independently as if the other did not exist. Results:
All 57 GA members would vote:
>> Sub-Committee 1 - Partition Plan
FOR: 25 (one vote shy of GA 2/3rds majority)
AGAINST: 13
ABSTAIN: 17
All 57 GA members would vote:
>> Sub-Committee 2- Arab Unitary State Plan:
FOR: 12
AGAINST: 29
ABSTAIN: 14
There were plenty of countries that were against the Partition Plan.
BUT, it would only be Muslim Majority states who voted FOR that apparently wonderful Arab Unitary State Plan (plus Cuba). ****WHY? ****
I’ll admit, the UN Partition Plan, UN GA 181, may feel a bit unfair to the Arabs.
But that plan is a RED HERRING. It is an intentional diversion from another fantastic plan that the Arabs ALSO rejected: THE FEDERATED STATE PLAN.
That plan set up a United States-like government of states with limited authority to an overall FEDERAL GOVERNMENT dominated by the 2/3’s majority Arabs. Essentially, the Arabs would control the Judiciary, the Legislative (law) body and the Executive body. That would mean that Arabs would no longer allow any immigration of Jews for certain.
The UNSCOP Committee presented two plans to the General Assembly as I mentioned earlier. Iran, India, and Yugoslavia were very much against the Partition Plan. They produced the Minority Report plan for a FEDERATED STATE.
The Arabs rejected the Federated State Plan. *** WHY? ***
So we have three WHYS?:
Why did the UNSCOP Committee refuse the Arab Unitary State Plan?
Why did the entire non-Muslim Nations in the World in 1947 reject the Arab Unitary State Plan?
Why did the Arabs reject a Plan (Minority Report UNSCOP: Federated State) that would have made a single country where they would have absolute rule over the Jews?
AND THE ANSWER IS THAT THE ARABS HARDENED POSITION, SAME AS IN 1937, SAME AS HAMAS TODAY…..
…….WAS THAT ALL JEWS THAT ARRIVED IN PALESTINE AFTER 1917 WERE CONSIDERED ILLEGAL CITIZENS SUBJECT TO EXPULSION.
(So of the current 650,000 Jews in Palestine, some 400,000 would need to be expelled, and somewhere on earth would have to join with the current 400,000 Holocaust Survivors STILL sitting in camps throughout Europe several years after end of war with nowhere to go.)
(p.s King Abdullah of Jordan was the only Arab leader that rejected expulsion of Jews in mass. He was assassinated by a Palestinian a few years later).
THIS IS WHAT THE UNSCOP COMMITTEE LEARNED IN THEIR JULY MEETING IN SOFAR LEBANON WITH THE ARAB LEAGUE (with Palestinian Jamal al-Husseini in next room). Although a Private Meeting, there is a transcript on the UN Archives, and some memoirs/books from UNSCOP members.
Two days after the General Assembly effort with Subcommittee voting , the UN would have a final vote for the plan that came closest to passing a GA majority. Everyone at the UN, and the General Assembly understood that no matter what they voted on, the Arabs would go on the offensive to expel Jews in mass. The vote really did not matter for the end result. What did matter is the perception of the newly formed United Nations. How embarrassing to end five months of intensive effort, and have the outcome deadlocked with no decision out the GA.
So they voted on th only plan that had a hope of getting a 2/3′rds majority.: The Majority Report, Sub-Committee 1 Partition Plan 181.
Final Vote
FOR: 33 (crushed it….only needed 26)
AGAINST: 13
ABSTAIN: 10
All reference at the UN website. Ask me in comments.
Here is a good account in a book written by the Guatemalan UNSCOP member, Jorge Granados. Below that I link the the UN Document on that meeting.
And what I did not discuss is the fact that the entire Arab leadership in the Mandate were card-carrying Nazi’s. Here is Granados take on what an Arab Unitary State would look like:
Here is the UN doc promised:
Testimony from representatives of the Arab States (cont.) - UN Special Committee on Palestine (UNSCOP) 39th Meeting - Verbatim Record - Question of Palestine
https://www.un.org/unispal/document/aut ... hatgpt.com
YES! The Arabs did propose the Arab Unitary State Plan. And on paper it looked pretty good. (this occurred in 1947, not 1948).
And it was not the Jews that had any say in the rejection of the Arab Unitary State Plan, but BOTH the UN Investigative committee UNSCOP, and the entire UN General Assembly that rejected it.
And as a side note, more than half of the 650,000 Jews in Palestine were born there. Not immigrants anymore. Jews began arriving in greater numbers beginning 1880. Modern migration, no different than migration today.
The investigative committee, UN Special COmmittee on Palestine, UNSCOP had 11 members (not UN members). Two Muslims members (Iran and India), one from a country with a large minority of Muslims (Yugoslavia), two British Commonwealths (Canada, Australia) and two close allies of Britain (Netherlands, Sweden). Iran, India, and Yugoslavia were against a Partition of Palestine from day one. And as the British were against Partition (they abstained on the final UN GA 181 Partition Plan), one would expect their close allies to also be against Partition. That committee was weighted against the Jews.
The UNSCOP worked for 5 months and considered all the possible forms of governance of that region. And yes, the Arab Unitary State was deeply discussed. The entire committee even went to Sofar, Lebanon mid-June, 1947 to meet with the Arab League to discuss the Arab Unitary State Plan.
The UNSCOP delivered their final report to the General Assembly in August of 1947 and discussions were held in meetings at the UN. Two plans were proposed to the GA.
*** It did not include the Arab Unitary State Plan. ***** WHY? ******
(Jewish Zionists had zero say in that committee)
The General Assembly was not happy that the Arab Unitary State Plan was not included as one of the UNSCOP recommended plans.
They subsequently set up two Subcommittees to detail (1) the UNSCOP Partition Plan, and (2) detail the Arab Unitary State Plan: Subcommittee 1 and Subcommittee 2, respectively.
Many meetings were held with the entire General Assembly in attendance. Arab leadership gave speeches in support of the Arab Unitary State Plan, and Jewish leadership gave speeches in support of the Partition Plan.
The entire General Assembly then voted on each final plan (after alterations during those GA meetings) independently as if the other did not exist. Results:
All 57 GA members would vote:
>> Sub-Committee 1 - Partition Plan
FOR: 25 (one vote shy of GA 2/3rds majority)
AGAINST: 13
ABSTAIN: 17
All 57 GA members would vote:
>> Sub-Committee 2- Arab Unitary State Plan:
FOR: 12
AGAINST: 29
ABSTAIN: 14
There were plenty of countries that were against the Partition Plan.
BUT, it would only be Muslim Majority states who voted FOR that apparently wonderful Arab Unitary State Plan (plus Cuba). ****WHY? ****
I’ll admit, the UN Partition Plan, UN GA 181, may feel a bit unfair to the Arabs.
But that plan is a RED HERRING. It is an intentional diversion from another fantastic plan that the Arabs ALSO rejected: THE FEDERATED STATE PLAN.
That plan set up a United States-like government of states with limited authority to an overall FEDERAL GOVERNMENT dominated by the 2/3’s majority Arabs. Essentially, the Arabs would control the Judiciary, the Legislative (law) body and the Executive body. That would mean that Arabs would no longer allow any immigration of Jews for certain.
The UNSCOP Committee presented two plans to the General Assembly as I mentioned earlier. Iran, India, and Yugoslavia were very much against the Partition Plan. They produced the Minority Report plan for a FEDERATED STATE.
The Arabs rejected the Federated State Plan. *** WHY? ***
So we have three WHYS?:
Why did the UNSCOP Committee refuse the Arab Unitary State Plan?
Why did the entire non-Muslim Nations in the World in 1947 reject the Arab Unitary State Plan?
Why did the Arabs reject a Plan (Minority Report UNSCOP: Federated State) that would have made a single country where they would have absolute rule over the Jews?
AND THE ANSWER IS THAT THE ARABS HARDENED POSITION, SAME AS IN 1937, SAME AS HAMAS TODAY…..
…….WAS THAT ALL JEWS THAT ARRIVED IN PALESTINE AFTER 1917 WERE CONSIDERED ILLEGAL CITIZENS SUBJECT TO EXPULSION.
(So of the current 650,000 Jews in Palestine, some 400,000 would need to be expelled, and somewhere on earth would have to join with the current 400,000 Holocaust Survivors STILL sitting in camps throughout Europe several years after end of war with nowhere to go.)
(p.s King Abdullah of Jordan was the only Arab leader that rejected expulsion of Jews in mass. He was assassinated by a Palestinian a few years later).
THIS IS WHAT THE UNSCOP COMMITTEE LEARNED IN THEIR JULY MEETING IN SOFAR LEBANON WITH THE ARAB LEAGUE (with Palestinian Jamal al-Husseini in next room). Although a Private Meeting, there is a transcript on the UN Archives, and some memoirs/books from UNSCOP members.
Two days after the General Assembly effort with Subcommittee voting , the UN would have a final vote for the plan that came closest to passing a GA majority. Everyone at the UN, and the General Assembly understood that no matter what they voted on, the Arabs would go on the offensive to expel Jews in mass. The vote really did not matter for the end result. What did matter is the perception of the newly formed United Nations. How embarrassing to end five months of intensive effort, and have the outcome deadlocked with no decision out the GA.
So they voted on th only plan that had a hope of getting a 2/3′rds majority.: The Majority Report, Sub-Committee 1 Partition Plan 181.
Final Vote
FOR: 33 (crushed it….only needed 26)
AGAINST: 13
ABSTAIN: 10
All reference at the UN website. Ask me in comments.
Here is a good account in a book written by the Guatemalan UNSCOP member, Jorge Granados. Below that I link the the UN Document on that meeting.
And what I did not discuss is the fact that the entire Arab leadership in the Mandate were card-carrying Nazi’s. Here is Granados take on what an Arab Unitary State would look like:
Here is the UN doc promised:
Testimony from representatives of the Arab States (cont.) - UN Special Committee on Palestine (UNSCOP) 39th Meeting - Verbatim Record - Question of Palestine
https://www.un.org/unispal/document/aut ... hatgpt.com
