Summary
The part of Mandate Palestine west of the Jordan River that was allocated to the Palestinian Arab state under the UN Partition Resolution and was annexed by Abdullah’s Transjordan in the 1948 war, with Israel’s agreement, in Peace, Peace, When There Is No Peace’s account (Peace, Peace, When There Is No Peace, PDF p.57-58, p.61-62).
Details
- The ceasefire line between Israel and Jordan crosses deep into the territory of Mandate Palestine, in certain places only about 15 km from the Mediterranean Sea, although the border between Palestine and Transjordan was the Jordan River (PDF p.45).
- Israel’s use of the name “Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan” in the armistice signed on 3/4/49, a full year before the annexation was officially declared, constituted de facto recognition of Abdullah’s rule over the West Bank and abandonment of the UN Partition Plan even as a formality (PDF p.50).
- Sharett stated in the Knesset on 20/6/49 that a separate Palestinian political unit in the Arab part was the desirable outcome, but the government made it no condition of the ceasefire or of peace (PDF p.56-57).
- Of the territory of the projected Palestinian state, Israel spread out over about 75% of Palestine overall and the remaining territory, apart from the Gaza Strip, was annexed by Abdullah with Ben-Gurion’s agreement (PDF p.57-58); the map “How the Palestinian state was divided” labels the diagonally lined large area annexed by Transjordan (later Jordan) as the West Bank (PDF p.58).
- Abdullah proclaimed the annexation of the West Bank on 24/4/50; four days later Britain recognized the annexation and extended its military alliance with Abdullah’s kingdom to the annexed territory (PDF p.61-62).
Related pages
Peace, Peace, When There Is No Peace, Transjordan, Amir Abdullah, UN General Assembly Resolution 181, Gaza