1918 - 1948: The British Mandate over Palestine

The British administration brought a new element to Palestine, the rule of law, or at least attempts to enforce the rule of law. As virtually all Arab-Jewish crime and violence was initiated by the Arabs they saw the British as unfairly supporting the Jews.

Mohmsen Mohammed Saleh: 483,000 Jews migrated to Palesitne during the British Mandate period and by 1948 they were 646,000 (31.7% of the population) and controlled 6% of the land holding 291 settlements. All the land the Jews purchased was sold by Arabs or Ottomans. Every large landowner knew he was making his tenants, the long-term clients of his family, landless. The fellaheen had already been steadily losing "their" land due to debt, drought and poor farming practices. The patron-tenant relationship was a one-way power relationship.

At the end of the British Mandate period only 25% of the land was registered for private ownership

• 12% of the land was owned by Palestinian Arabs
• 7.5% of the land was owned by Jews

• Zionism and the Palestinians - Flapan Simha