The outbreak of the First Arab Israeli War was due to the
declaration of independence by Israel. Discuss.
The 1948 Arab Israeli War was the first in a series of wars fought between the State of Israel and its Arab neighbors in the continuing Arab-Israeli conflict- a conflict about land and territory, complicated by religion and competing ideologies. Certainly, the declaration of independence by Israel contributed by triggering the entire war in the first place, setting things in motion for the outbreak of the 1948 war. More importantly, however, were the underlying and immediate factors that gave rise to the conditions to develop into the trigger of the outbreak of the war such as the fundamental difference in religious and cultural views between both parities, the policies implemented by the British, as well as the Arab war aims of territorial interests. The declaration of independence by Israel led to the outbreak of the First Arab Israeli War by triggering the conflict, setting the conditions for aggression of the Arab states which started the war. The independence of Israel was met with a great and deep sense of anger and animosity from the Arab nations, especially after the implementation of the UN partition plan in 1947. From the perspective of the Arabs, the independence of Israel was seen as a violation of the previous Hussein-McMahon agreement that would favor the Arabs by ceding Palestine to them. As such, the declaration of independence by Israel triggered the conflict as they were perceived to be illegitimate intruders into the territory which rightfully belonged to the Arabs. Therefore, in order to protect and prevent Palestine from being taken away by Israel, the Arabs initiated the aggressive war by preparing to attack Israel who was deemed as a threat, leading to Israel retaliating with further aggressive actions, thus triggering the outbreak of the First Arab Israeli War. However, by default, the declaration of independence by Israel was not important enough to be considered to have led to the outbreak of the war entirely. Certainly, it is crucial to consider the underlying and immediate reasons that gave rise to the trigger in the first place. The fundamental difference in religious and cultural views between Israel and the Arab states was a key underlying reason that led to tensions and conflict that would eventually culminate into the trigger for the outbreak of the war. In other words, it served to sow the seeds of discord and rivalry that became apparent with the declaration of independence by Israel. Classical Zionism was one of the two clashing ideologies, which was based on the traditional Jewish ties to the Land of Israel, and the belief that Jewish independence would be restored with the coming of the Messiah. It deemed Jerusalem as a significant and important religious site dating back to accounts of King David. However, these sites were
also of utmost importance to the Arabs, where Arab nationalism was
in direct conflict with Zionism. They view these sites as important holy ground, as it was supposedly where Prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven. This direct competition and overlapping of Zionism versus Arab nationalism was therefore crucial in leading to the outbreak of the Cold War by creating a situation of a zero competition, becoming the underlying cause of tension which was the impetus for the aggression seen when Israel declared its independence. Beyond the fundamental differences in ideologies, the British policies also served in contributing to the underlying tensions and misunderstandings, which ultimately manifested itself after the declaration of independence by Israel, causing the outbreak of the First Arab Israeli War. The Arabs were supported by the British initially due to their desire to control the oil in Arab states, thus promising Arab independence. However, later on, the British began to consider the Zionists as a potential ally, thus supporting Israel. Furthermore, British officials in Palestine tended to favor the Arabs due to influence from Muslim opinion in neighboring Arab states. However, at the same time, the British also sided with the Jews in the international arena. The apparent contradictions and ambiguity in their policies thus contributed to the tensions and suspicions as the Zionists believed that Britain was pro-Arab and the Arabs believed otherwise. This misunderstanding led to increased tensions, forming the underlying factor that led to the outbreak of the war. Arguably, the Arab nations war aims and territorial ambitions/interests also contributed to the outbreak of the First Arab Israeli War by necessitating the use of force and aggression, which was a clear mark of the start of the war. This immediate reason for the outbreak of the war also served in building up towards the trigger of the conflict-the declaration of independence by Israel. The aim of the intervention of the Arab states was officially to liberate Palestine. However, upon closer inspection by removing this faade, it was actually the Arabs own expansionistic desires that led to the outbreak of the war. For example, it was because of the desire for territorial gains in the area of Palestine that necessitated the preparation of military arms to invade Israel upon their declaration of independence in 1948. Clearly, this was an important reason for the outbreak of the war as the Arabs turned to using violence and aggressive means to achieve their ambitions, prompting retaliatory actions from Israel, marking the start of the First Arab Israeli War. Ultimately, the declaration of independence by Israel certainly triggered the outbreak of the First Arab Israeli War as it led to the Arab nations feeling threatened. This, coupled with pre existing fundamental differences in ideologies as well as misunderstandings over British policies, sparked the war. Therefore it can be seen that
while the declaration of independence by Israel did trigger the
outbreak, the underlying and immediate reasons were more crucial to the outbreak of the war in developing the conditions for the trigger.