As nations are a story, they need people willing to listen for them to be 'true'. The Middle East is one of the most controversial areas, given different versions of the tale. Palestine is a de jure state recognised by 136 UN member states. Mandatory Palestine was a post World War I area carved out of the Ottoman Empire and put under the control of the British. An Arab uprising had helped the British drive the Turkish Empire out of the area. The British had supported the uprising under the promise of Arab independence (McMahon-Hussein), but had also separately and contradictorily agreed with France to divide the area up amongst the European powers (Sykes-Picot). A further complication came when under the Balfour Agreement, the British promised support for the creation of "a national home for the Jewish people" (who had made up 3-5% of the population of the area). Lots of promises made to lots of people. The promised land.
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