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The Balfour Declaration of 1917 was one of the most controversial and important decisions in the early twentieth century. The modern Middle East and geopolitics have been influenced by this declaration. This short document which was issued during the darkest days of World War One attracted little notice at the time but it undoubtedly changed the modern world and the merits of this policy can still generate some heated debate some 100 years after its publication.

====The Balfour Declaration====

The Balfour Declaration was a British government document that was drawn up by the Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour in 1917. It was first sent to Lord Rothschild of the banking family and the Zionist Association of Great Britain and was published the following day in the press. The document committed the British Empire to a ‘’Jewish national home.’’ <ref> Gelvin. James. <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/019021886X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=019021886X&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=77d49366f857a0897f3fbd76f0809035 The Modern Middle East: A History]</i> (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008), p. 114</ref>. The declaration stated that ‘’His Majesty's government view with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of this object.’’ <ref> Balfour, Sir Arthur, Balfour Declaration (1917), p. 1</ref>