San Remo Conference: Catalyst for Jewish and Arab independence

 

The San Remo Conference held on April 24-25, 1920 marked the beginning of self-determination for both the Jewish People after 3000 years of dispersion and the Arabs after 400 years of Ottoman rule. 

Among those participating in the Conference - indicating its historic importance and the significant decisions it would be tasked with making: 

• United States of America: Mr. Robert Underwood Johnson, American Ambassador in Rome; 
• British Empire: The Right Hon. D. Lloyd George, Prime Minister; The Right Hon; the Earl Curzon of Kedleston, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs;
• France: M. Millerand, President
• Italy: Signor Nitti, Prime Minister (in the Chair);
• Japan: Mr. Matsui

The Minutes of the Meeting were headed: MINUTES OF PALESTINE MEETING OF THE SUPREME COUNCIL OF THE ALLIED POWERS HELD IN SAN REMO AT THE VILLA DEVACHAN  APRIL 24. 1920.

However the agenda covered far more than Palestine – dealing with: -

“the question of mandates for those territories which had been Mandates formerly under Turkish domination and which it was proposed should, in the future be administered by the various Principal Allied Powers”

Those territories were identified as Mesopotamia and Syria as well as Palestine. 

San Remo granted the Arabs independence in:

• Syria (estimated population 2.22 million) and 
• Mesopotamia (estimated population 3 million)

Comprising an area of 624000 km2 - 85% of the total area of these three territories: The Conference resolved:

“that Syria and Mesopotamia shall in accordance with the fourth paragraph of article 22, Part I (Covenant of the League of Nations), be provisionally recognised as independent States subject to the rendering of administrative advice and assistance by a mandatory until such time as they are able to stand alone. The boundaries of the said States will be determined, and the selection of the mandatories made, by the Principal Allied Powers”

Mesopotamia gained independence in 1932 and Syria in 1946. 

The Jews were initially allotted all of Palestine at San Remo –117000km2 - the remaining 15% of these three liberated Turkish territories – within which the Jewish National Home was to be “reconstituted” after 3000 years.  

However 78% of Palestine east of the Jordan River (Transjordan) was whittled away for Arab independence by the time the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine was promulgated in July 1922 - leaving Jewish self-determination to happen in just 3% of the territories dealt with at San Remo. 

Transjordan (today called Jordan) became independent in 1946. 

The British Government’s 1921 Interim Report on the Civil Administration of Palestine recorded that hardly 700,000 people were living in Palestine west of the Jordan River– 560000 of whom were Moslems, 77000 Christians and 76000 Jews:

“a population much less than that of the province of Gallilee alone in the time of Christ * (*See Sir George Adam Smith "Historical Geography of the Holy Land", Chap. 20.)”.

About 350000 non-Jews lived in Palestine east of the Jordan River:

The San Remo Conference unanimously agreed that the civil and religious rights of these existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine were not to be prejudiced by San Remo’s decisions and that the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country were also not to be affected – guarantees that were expressly included in the terms of the Mandate for Palestine.

The Arabs have never accepted that the decisions simultaneously made in relation to Mesopotamia Syria and Palestine at San Remo in 1920 were part of a plan that by 1922 offered:

• The Arabs: independence in 97% of the liberated Ottoman territories.
• The Jews: independence in the remaining 3%

The Jewish-Arab conflict will remain unresolved whilst the Arabs remain in their 102 years-old state of denial.

Author’s note: The cartoon — commissioned exclusively for this article — is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades.

Jordan and Israel need to act to end Jew-hatred in Jerusalem

 

Jordan’s failure to promote interfaith relations between Muslims and Jews has once again witnessed rioting on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.  More than 400 Arabs were arrested and more than 150 wounded by Israeli police – with rocks and other objects being stockpiled inside the Mosque and stones being thrown at Jews worshipping below at Judaism’s holiest site – the Western Wall.

Jordan and Israel committed to undertake the following obligations under the terms of article 9 of their 1994 Peace Treaty: 

• Each Party will provide freedom of access to places of religious and historical significance
• In this regard, in accordance with the Washington Declaration, Israel respects the present special role of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in Muslim Holy shrines in Jerusalem. When negotiations on the permanent status will take place, Israel will give high priority to the Jordanian historic role in these shrines.
• The Parties will act together to promote interfaith relations among the three monotheistic religions, with the aim of working towards religious understanding, moral commitment, freedom of religious worship, and tolerance and peace.

Jordan has done little to promote interfaith relations with Jews – whilst actively promoting interfaith relations with Christians. 

On 13 October 2007 a document titled "A Common Word " - was launched – authored by Jordan’s H.R.H. Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad and signed by 138 leading Muslims. 

The opening paragraphs state:

" Muslims and Christians together make up well over half of the world’s population. Without peace and justice between these two religious communities, there can be no meaningful peace in the world. The future of the world depends on peace between Muslims and Christians. The basis for this peace and understanding already exists. It is part of the very foundational principles of both faiths: love of the One God, and love of the neighbour. These principles are found over and over again in the sacred texts of Islam and Christianity. The Unity of God, the necessity of love for Him, and the necessity of love of the neighbour is thus the common ground between Islam and Christianity. "

Jordan’s ruling Hashemite family have used their symbolic status as Muhammad’s descendants to give weight to this Muslim-Christian interfaith message.

Jordan’s King Abdullah has reportedly carried this interfaith message to the UN General Assembly, the Vatican, and capitals across the West. Jordan’s Prince Hassan and Prince Ghazi crisscross the globe as ambassadors for this message.  Abdullah was awarded the prestigious 2018 Templeton Prize for doing:

"more to seek religious harmony within Islam and between Islam and other religions than any other living political leader".

Abdullah apparently overlooked promoting Muslim-Jewish interfaith relations as promised in the Peace Treaty during these important overseas trips. 

A Common Word explains why Jews have been excluded from Jordan’s interfaith program:

"Jewish scriptures are invoked repeatedly and respectfully in the document. It is quite normal for documents to be bilateral without implying the exclusion of others. Moreover, this is a Theological document and the problems between Jews and Muslims are essentially political and thus religious de facto and not Theological de jure, with both religions having essentially the same understanding of the Unity of the One God — as we see it at least. Also, Jewish Scholars and Rabbis have participated in the Common Word Conferences in Yale and Cambridge."

Abdullah has been remiss in not promoting this message out of respect for his blessed father King Hussein’s memory. 

28 years later – with relations between Jews and Muslims improving following the Abraham Accords - Jordan and Israel need to promote interfaith relations between Jews and Muslims in Jerusalem – sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims - more than ever before.

Author’s note: The cartoon — commissioned exclusively for this article — is by Yaakov Kirschen aka "Dry Bones"- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades.

UN General Assembly Majority Greenlight Russia’s Rape of Ukraine

 

The UN General Assembly completely lost its moral compass when it voted on April 7th for Russia’s suspension from the Human Rights Council - with only 93 of its 193 member Nations voting to do so. The voting records (see images below) show that within the space of just 14 days:

• 47 Nations - voting on March 24th (the first resolution) to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine - failed to vote to boot Russia from the Human Rights Council on 7 April (the second resolution) 

Those 47 Nations had embraced the first resolution’s principled position:

“Recognizing that the military offensive of the Russian Federation inside the sovereign territory of Ukraine and its humanitarian consequences are on a scale that the international community has not seen in Europe in decades, Reiterating the call of the Secretary-General to the Russian Federation to stop its military offensive, as well as his call to establish a ceasefire and to return to the path of dialogue and negotiations, Recalling its demand that the Russian Federation immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders”

14 days later these 47 Nations were unable to follow through and administer even the mildest of rebukes on Russia for blatantly ignoring this clarion call.

• 5 Nations supporting Russia in opposing the first resolution had increased to 24 after voting on the second resolution.
• 38 fence-sitting Nations abstaining on the first resolution had seen their numbers jump to 58 after voting on the second resolution.
• 10 Nations who refused to vote at all on the first resolution saw their numbers increase to 18 after voting on the second resolution

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and his bloated massive bureaucracy attempted to cover up this shameful day of infamy in the UN’s history. The UN Meetings Coverage and Press Releases deceptively reported:

“The Assembly adopted the draft resolution by a recorded vote of 93 in favour to 24 against, with 58 abstentions, signaling [sic] the international community’s strong censure of Moscow’s aggressive actions towards a neighbouring State.”

“Strong censure of Moscow’s aggressive actions?” : When only 93 of the 193 member states voted to do so? 

UN News published an even more misleading report:

“The resolution received a two-thirds majority of those voting, minus abstentions, in the 193-member Assembly, with 93 nations voting in favour and 24 against.   Fifty-eight abstained from the process.  Russia, China, Cuba, North Korea, Iran, Syria, Vietnam, were among those who voted against.  Those abstaining, included India, Brazil, South Africa, Mexico, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, Iraq, Pakistan, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Cambodia.” 

Who in the UN Secretariat decided to:

• Name and shame just 7 nations that voted against Russia’s removal - but failed to name the other 17?
• Out 17 nations that abstained - but not the other 41 nations that joined them?
• Not name any of the 18 nations that failed to vote or abstain: Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Benin, Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea, Lebanon, Mauritania, Morocco, Rwanda, San-Tomé-Principe, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Turkmenistan, Venezuela and Zambia?
• Not point out that 6 of the 15-member UN Human Rights Council -Bolivia, China, Cuba, Malawi, Russia, and Uzbekistan - voted against Russia’s suspension -whilst another 4 - Mexico, Nepal, Pakistan and Senegal- - abstained?

No amount of window dressing by Guterres and his Secretariat can alter the fact that 100 of the 193 members of the UN General Assembly have depressingly voted to greenlight Russia’s continuing invasion and rape of Ukraine. 

The General Assembly is disunited, fractured and irrelevant - having totally capitulated on trying to end the murder, suffering and dispersion of Ukraine’s civilian population. 

Author’s note: The cartoon — commissioned exclusively for this article — is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades.

Jordan & Israel can end the 100 years old Jewish-Arab conflict

 

It took Jordan's King Abdullah II just a 10 minutes helicopter flight from Jordan to Ramallah on 26 March to meet Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) leader Mahmud Abbas in Ramallah - itself only 15 minutes' drive from Jerusalem - Abdullah's first trip to Judea and Samaria (West Bank) since 2017.  The Arab Weekly reported on Abdullah's visit:

"Well-informed Jordanian sources have linked the previously unannounced visit of the Jordanian king to Ramallah, the seat of the Palestinian Authority, to the Negev Summit. They said that Jordan was uncomfortable with the new "Abrahamic" peace process between Israel and Arab countries. It particularly resents being marginalised and losing control over its most important card, the Palestinian issue."

Abdullah has only himself to blame for Jordan's growing marginalisation--abandoning the policy pursued by his great-grandfather King Abdullah I and his father King Hussein  of unifying the two Arab populations living on both sides of the Jordan River into one State between 1950 and 1967. 

Abdullah instead has been supporting the PLO demand for the creation of an independent Arab state west of the Jordan River - in addition to Jordan east of the Jordan River: two Arab states and one Jewish state within the territory comprised in the 1922 League of Nations Mandate for Palestine (Mandate). 

Abdullah needs to rethink supporting the PLO's demand if he wishes to regain control of decisions to be made west of the Jordan River affecting Arabs and Jews in the last 5% of former Palestine where sovereignty still remains unallocated between Jordan and Israel after 100 years of conflict. 

Abdullah's marginalisation also risks Jordan losing its role as the custodian of the Muslim Holy Shrines in Jerusalem conferred on Jordan in 1994 by the Washington Declaration and Israel-Jordan Peace Treaty.  

Between 1950 and 1967: 

• Judea and Samaria (West Bank) - which included Ramallah - was part of Jordan - and its residents were Jordanian citizens
• The PLO did not claim regional sovereignty "over the West Bank in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan" or the "Gaza Strip" on its founding in 1964 - claiming only that "Palestine with its boundaries at the time of the British Mandate is a regional indivisible unit"
• Abdullah's father King Hussein - at page 118 of his published memoirs Uneasy Lies the Head (1962) - justified  continuing Jordanian rule on both sides of the Jordan River against international condemnation:

"Palestine and Jordan were both under British Mandate, but as my grandfather pointed out in his memoirs, they were hardly separate countries. Transjordan being to the east of the River Jordan, it formed in a sense, the interior of Palestine" 

Jordan comprises 78% of the territory of former Palestine whilst Judea and Samaria (West Bank) comprises just 4%.

Abdullah's visit to Ramallah took place at the same time as the Negev Summit was putting life into the Abraham Accords - Israel's Foreign Minister working with his counterparts from Bahrain, Egypt, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates on shared challenges and interests--along with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's encouragement and support. 

Ending the 100 years-old conflict between Arabs and Jews has become increasingly urgent with no movement in sight to create an additional Arab State west of the Jordan River after almost 30 years of failed political and diplomatic attempts and pressure from the United Nations. 

The reunification of the Arab populations living on both sides of the Jordan River - as existed between 1950 and 1967 - by re-drawing the current international border between Israel and Jordan in direct negotiations - is the kiss of life that can end the Arab-Jewish conflict.

Author's note: The cartoon--commissioned exclusively for this article--is by Yaakov Kirschen aka "Dry Bones"- one of Israel's foremost political and social commentators--whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades.