London rejects Palestinian campaign targeting Israel and Balfour Declaration

London has banned a Palestinian campaign against Israel and the historic Balfour Declaration.

The city of London has rejected a Palestinian anti-Israel ad campaign claiming the 1917 Balfour Declaration was the “harbinger of the Palestinian disaster.”

The ad campaign, called Make It Right, was commissioned by the Palestinian diplomatic mission to the United Kingdom. The posters include photographs depicting the “the peaceful life of the Arab population in Palestine” before the establishment of Israel in 1948, next to photographs taken after 1948 that purport to show the “destruction and bereavement among the Palestinian people.”

The Transport for London agency said the banners were set to be displayed in London’s underground subway stations ahead of centennial Balfour Declaration ceremonies in November. But the posters did not meet the guidelines for “images or messages which relate to matters of public controversy or sensitivity,” The Guardian reported.

The Balfour Declaration was written by UK Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour to the 2nd Baron Rothschild, Lionel Walter Rothschild, who was the leader of the British Jewish community at the time.

It stated the British government would “view with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people.” The declaration is considered to be the first documented legitimization of the state of Israel.

The Balfour Declaration officially became part of international law when the League of Nations adopted it in 1922. It is widely considered to be a seminal document in the process creating the legal basis for the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.

British Prime Minister Theresa May also rejected a push by the Palestinians to apologize for the Balfour Declaration and will host Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at a special dinner in London to celebrate the document’s centennial.

A high-profile Balfour Apology Campaign had launched a petition on the British Parliament website calling on the UK to “openly apologize to the Palestinian people for issuing the Balfour Declaration” ahead of its centenary in November. In an address to the Arab League in March, Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas demanded the United Kingdom apologize for granting the Balfour Declaration.

A statement from the government read, “The Balfour Declaration is an historic statement for which HMG (Her Majesty’s Government) does not intend to apologize. We are proud of our role in creating the State of Israel. The task now is to encourage moves towards peace.”

By: JNS.org and World Israel News Staff

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