I Introduction. 1.What Role Did Zionism Play In Influencing

I: INTRODUCTION 1. What role did Zionism play in influencing Inter-Arab state politics? 2. In what ways did Western Imperialism mobilize Zionism and Arab Nationalism? 3. What were the key differences between Zionism and Arab Nationalism? 4. Was the 1948 Palestinian/Israeli war inevitable, or could it have been avoided? II: Theoretical Framework This essay will seek to examine the role Identity Politics played in the conflict between Zionism and its Arab neighbors in the Middle East. At the core of Identity Politics, Nationalism is one of the driving forces. The theoretical framework of the concept ‘Nationalism’ is multifaceted and has been ardently debated by scholars. For the sake of brevity and context for this essay, we’ll examine†¦show more content†¦Because of historical religious ties the Jews had with Jerusalem, Zionists began migrating to Palestine in waves known as the aliyot. The first aliyot occurred in 1882 and lasted until 1903. It’s important to note, that the vast majority of Jewish immigrants were moving to the United States instead of Palestine. Approximately 1.5-2 million Jews went to the US, while only 115,000 went to Palestine during this time period. This demonstrates the small amount of support the movement of Zionism initially received from the Jewish community. It wasn’t until the early 1920s when the US tightened immigration policies that mass amounts of Jews started immigrating into Palestine. The significant rise of Zionism in Palestine between WWI and WWII was seen as a threat to the Arab community. In 1922 the annual immigration was a few thousand annually, by 1935 Jewish immigration had risen to 62,000. A surge of Palestinian Nationalism developed as a result, and tensions between the ethnocentric rivalry steadily escalated. Egypt and its brand of Arab Nationalism was also taking root during this time period, and played a notable role in supporting Palestine in its struggle against Zionism. In 1936 the Palestinian Arabs made a list of demands in an effort to squelch Zionism; prohibition of Jewish immigrants, outlawing Jews from purchasing property, and formal independence. Attempts at negotiations were made, in 1937 the Peel Commission proposed a mandate that would partition