On November 29, 1947, the United Nations General Assembly voted to partition Palestine into two states: one for the Jews and one for the Arabs. Sounds simple, right? Like, two states for two peoples. What could possibly go wrong? Well, if history is any guide, absolutely everything. And it all started with a story that’s so full of myth and manipulation it might as well have been written by Hollywood—and not the good kind of Hollywood. We’re talking about the straight-to-DVD, “Based on a True Story,” but only if you squint really hard kind of storytelling.
Here’s the version most people know: Israelis and Palestinians have been fighting since the time of Abraham because their religions are incompatible. They’ve just been at each other’s throats for thousands of years. Eternal enemies! Except… that’s not true. Not even a little bit.
For centuries, Jews and Palestinians lived together in relative harmony. I know, shocking, right? Jews and Arabs coexisting peacefully? What’s next, cats and dogs sharing an Airbnb? Sure, there were occasional scuffles—because people, am I right? But these weren’t rooted in religious hatred. Under Ottoman rule, Jewish communities thrived alongside their Arab neighbors in Palestine. By the late 19th century, Jews made up less than 5% of the population. Five percent! That’s less than the margin of error in most polls. The rest of the population was overwhelmingly Arab, and everyone was mostly fine with that.
So how did we get from peaceful coexistence to, well, this? The answer is a delightful mix of Western guilt, political opportunism, and the kind of rebranding job that would make Madison Avenue jealous.
Let’s talk about Zionism for a second—the political movement advocating for a Jewish homeland. Back in the early 20th century, it was not exactly the hottest ticket in town. Plenty of Jews thought it was a fringe idea, like kale smoothies or NFTs. But as antisemitism in Europe got worse—and then way, way worse—Zionist leaders saw an opening. They didn’t just pitch their plan as a political necessity. Oh no. They framed it as a moral imperative. And what better way to sell a moral imperative to the guilt-ridden Christian West than by busting out the Bible?
“Israel,” they said, invoking the ancient homeland of the Jewish people. Never mind that this was a modern political movement. Never mind that the people living in Palestine had been there for generations. By slapping an Old Testament label on a 20th-century land grab, they made it impossible for Western powers to say no. “It’s in the Bible,” they argued, which was apparently enough for world leaders to nod solemnly and say, “Well, if God’s okay with it, I guess we are too.”
And then the Holocaust happened. The greatest horror in modern history, and Western nations were desperate to atone for their complicity. Enter the United Nations with a plan: Let’s carve up Palestine! What could go wrong? In 1947, the UN voted to partition the land, giving 55% of it to the Jews, even though they made up only about 30% of the population and owned just 7% of the land. That’s not just a bad deal. That’s like showing up to a potluck with a bag of chips and leaving with half the buffet.
Imagine if I went down to the county registrar, legally changed my name to William Randolph Hearst, and then rolled up to Hearst Castle with an armed militia and a copy of the original title deed. “This is my house,” I’d say. “It’s right here in the paperwork. You need to leave—or else.” That’s essentially what happened in Palestine, except instead of me, it was the Zionists, and instead of Hearst Castle, it was an entire country.
Naturally, the Palestinians weren’t thrilled. Their homes, their land, their lives were being uprooted to make room for an influx of Jewish immigrants. But when they resisted, they were cast as the villains. Suddenly, the narrative flipped: the Palestinians were the aggressors, the obstacles to peace. The Western world ate it up, because hey, nobody likes a complicated story.
The partition didn’t bring peace. It brought war. By 1949, the newly declared state of Israel had expanded beyond its allotted borders, taking over 78% of the land. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were expelled or fled from their homes, creating a refugee crisis that still exists today. Those who stayed found themselves under military occupation, their rights stripped away.
Fast-forward to today, and Gaza and the West Bank are basically open-air prisons. Gaza, in particular, is a nightmare. Two million people crammed into a tiny strip of land, with no control over their borders, no economy to speak of, and no way out. Meanwhile, Israel controls everything: the land, the air, the sea, and the narrative. The Palestinians are left to resist with slingshots and homemade rockets while the world shrugs and says, “Both sides need to de-escalate.” Yeah, that’ll work. Let me know how that goes.
Here’s the irony: The same Western nations that swore “Never again” after the Holocaust are now turning a blind eye to the slow-motion ethnic cleansing of Palestinians. And they’re justifying it with a bastardized version of religious history that’s about as accurate as a Netflix adaptation.
The truth is, this conflict isn’t ancient. It isn’t inevitable. It’s the result of 20th-century decisions driven by guilt, politics, and a really impressive PR campaign. And by backing Israel’s policies in Gaza, the U.S. isn’t just complicit in the suffering. We’re doubling down on the same missteps that started this mess in the first place. Until we confront that truth—until we stop treating this as a clash of civilizations and start seeing it for what it is—the suffering will continue. But hey, at least the title deed looks nice.
