“A holy war is going to start in about ten minutes time”: violence in Palestine from UNSCOP to Resolution 181, August–December 1947

Abstract

This article examines Arab-Jewish violence in Palestine from August 1947 through December 1947. This period coincides with the November 29, 1947 United Nations vote in favor of the partition of Palestine, the conventional start date of the civil war phase of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. Archival records from the period reveal that British authorities noticed a rise in Arab-Jewish violence coinciding with the release of the UNSCOP report, recommending the partition of Palestine, in September 1947. British authorities, believing neither Arab nor Jewish leaders wished to start a war before the British withdrawal, viewed the disturbances in Palestine as a possible return to the conditions of the Arab Revolt of 1936–1939. Ultimately, this article seeks to understand the British perception of events in the months leading to the outbreak of the 1948 War.