Statecraft by Stealth

B. Wagner Steven

Description

Britain relied upon secret intelligence operations to rule Mandatory Palestine. Statecraft by Stealth sheds light on a time in history when the murky triad of intelligence, policy, and security supported colonial governance. It emphasizes the role of the Anglo-Zionist partnership, which began during World War I and ended in 1939, when Britain imposed severe limits on Jewish immigration and settlement in Palestine. Steven Wagner argues that although the British devoted considerable attention to intelligence gathering and analysis, they never managed to solve the basic contradiction of their rule: a dual commitment to democratic self-government and to the Jewish national home through immigration and settlement. As he deftly shows, Britain's experiment in Palestine shed all pretense of civic order during the Palestinian revolt of 1936-41, when the police authority collapsed and was replaced by a security state, created by army staff intelligence. That shift, Wagner concludes, was rooted in Britain's desire to foster closer ties with Saudi Arabia just before the start of World War II, and thus ended its support of Zionist policy. Statecraft by Stealth takes us behind the scenes of British rule, illuminating the success of the Zionist movement and the failure of the Palestinians to achieve independence. Wagner focuses on four key issues to stake his claim: an examination of the "intelligence state" (per Martin Thomas's classic, Empires of Intelligence), the Arab revolt, the role of the Mufti of Jerusalem, and the origins and consequences of Britain's decision to end its support of Zionism.Wagner crafts a superb story of espionage and clandestine policy-making, showing how the British pitted individual communities against each other at particular times, and why.

Sujets

• Reino Unido
• Israel
• History of the Middle East
• Military intelligence
• 20th century
• United Kingdom
• History of Europe
• Palestine
• Great Britain
• Royaume-Uni

Informations

• Publié par: Cornell University Press
• Date de parution: 15 juillet 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781501736483
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 4 Mo

Extrait

STATECRAFT BY STEALTH

STATECRAFT BY STEALTH

Se cr e t I nt e ll i ge nce a nd Br i t is h Rul e i n Pa l est i ne

Ste ve n B . W a g n e r

CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRESS Ithaca and London

Copyright © 2019 by Cornell University

All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review, this book, or parts thereof, must not be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher. For information, address Cornell University Press, Sage House, 512 East State Street, Ithaca, New York 14850. Visit our website at cornellpress.cornell.edu.

First published 2019 by Cornell University Press

Printed in the United States of America

Library of Congress CataloginginPublication Data Names: Wagner, Steven, 1985– author. Title: Statecraft by stealth : secret intelligence and British rule in Palestine / Steven B. Wagner. Description: Ithaca : Cornell University Press, 2019. | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2019002330 (print) | LCCN 2019003969 (ebook) | ISBN 9781501736483 (pdf ) | ISBN 9781501736490 (epub/mobi) | ISBN 9781501736476 | ISBN 9781501736476 (cloth ; alk. paper) Subjects: LCSH: Palestine—History—1917–1948. | Palestine—Politics and government—1917–1948. | Intelligence service—Great Britain—History— 20th century. | Great Britain—Foreign relations— Palestine. | Palestine—Foreign relations—Great Britain. Classification: LCC DS126 (ebook) | LCC DS126 .W26 2019 (print) | DDC 956.94/04—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019002330

Cover photograph: Troops using heliograph on the Tower of David. From the G. Eric and Edith Matson Photo graph Collection, Library of Congress.

Co nte nts

Preface vii List of Abbreviations ix

Introduction: The Life and Death of Joseph Davidescu

1 Britain’s Wartime Policies: Perceptions of Jewish Power and Arab Conspiracy

2 Intelligence, Policy, and the Emerging Modern Middle East

3 Cause for Peace: The Establishment of a Civil Government

4 Security, Air Control, and the 1929 (Attempted) Revolt

5 British Intelligence, the Mufti, and Nationalist Youth

6 Intelligence, Security, and the Road to Rebellion

7 The Arab Revolt: Intelligence and Politics

8 Military Intelligence and the Arab Revolt 9 Intelligence, Ibn Sʿaud, and the White Paper Policy 10 The Consequences of the White Paper

1

18

38

58

81

108

136

163

187

220 246

vi CONTENTS

Conclusion: Britain’s “Intelligence State” and the Failure of the Palestinian Independence Movement

Notes 269 Bibliography 299 Index 311

261

P r e f a c e

This title represents my own work. All errors and omissions are my responsibility alone. Translations, unless otherwise in dicated in endnotes, are my own work. I have not used any standard form for transliterations from Hebrew and Arabic, since the source material provides a varied range of methods. I have attempted to avoid confusion through the use of consistent spelling outside of quotations, and by usingʿforʿayinand ʾforhamza. In some instances, I have spelled the same name differently to distinguish between prominent figures, such as Feisal bin Husayn and Faysal binʿAbd alʿAziz. Finally, for consistency, British English spelling has been changed to US English, except in quotations. This research was supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Re search Council. I am grateful for the financial support of the Alberta Heri tage Fund and the Beit Fund at Oxford, Derek Penslar, chair of Israel studies, and Anne Knowland, senior tutor at University College, which ensured the procurement of key documents. Travel grants from the University College Old Members’ Trust and the History Faculty’s Arnold Fund provided im portant support for this research. I must thank the staff and services of the National Archives at Kew, the British Library, the Israel State Archives, the Middle East Centre Archive, Givat Haviva and the Yad Yaʿari Archive, the Zichron Yaʿakov Council Archive, and Beit Aaronoshn. I am particularly grateful to the Central Zionist Archive for graciously discounting copies, and for enabling me to retrieve some of the most important material in this book. I am especially indebted to Orly Levy for her interest in and assistance with this project. I am grateful to the Oxford Intelligence Group, especially Michael Her man and Gwilym Hughes, who have provided me with community and men torship at Oxford. I am also grateful for the advice and help of Margaret Mac Millan, Eugene Rogan, and John Darwin. Robert Johnson has been a zealous supporter of this project, for which I am thankful. I would also like to express my appreciation to Laila Parsons at McGill, whose guidance has been invalu able. I must also acknowledge my new home at Brunel’s Department of

vii

viii PREFACE

Social and Political Sciences, which supported the completion of this book. Thank you to my colleagues for your help and understanding. Thanks espe cially to Matthew Hughes for your feedback on certain parts of the book. I must offer my deep thanks to the Steinitz family of Herzliya for accom modating me on several research trips, as well as Ariella Kimmel for hosting me on my final visit to Jerusalem. I also thank the staff and teachers at Givat Haviva, whose support was crucial to my Arabic training. Dawn Berry’s friendship and advice helped me to get this book project on track. I especially thank Dawn for introducing me to my editor, Emily Andrew, to whom I am also grateful for taking me on. My parents have been my most important source of moral and financial support. Their encouragement, interest, and care helped to see me through to completing this book. My brother, Daniel, looked after me as I wrote. My wife, Kira Blumer, patiently supported my career aspirations and made this book possible. Her faith in me and in this project has sustained me throughout my work. For all this, and for Ari, from the bottom of my heart, thank you. My eternal gratitude belongs to John Ferris, my teacher and mentor, with out whom I never would have begun this journey in 2006, when I first went to London to investigate newly released MI5 files. John has been a priceless source of feedback, providing expert advice and tutelage. His care for my suc cess is that of a true friend. For these reasons, this book is dedicated to him.

AOC ASC ASI AWS CID CO CS CUP ECPAC EEF Exco FO GC&CS GCHQ GOC GSI HC HMG IB I/C IPC JA JAPD JB JIC MCS MNA MPS NILI NPL OETA

A b b r e v i at i o n s

Air Officer Commanding Arab Supreme Committee Air Staff Intelligence Arab Workers’ Society Criminal Investigation Department Colonial Office Chief Secretary Committee of Union and Progress Executive Committee, Palestine Arab Congress Egyptian Expeditionary Force Executive Council Foreign Office Government Code & Cypher School Government Communications Headquarters General Officer, Commanding General Staff Intelligence High Commissioner His Majesty’s Government Information Bureau Intercepted Iraq Petroleum Company Jewish Agency Jewish Agency Political Department Joint Bureau Joint Intelligence Committee MuslimChristian Society Muslim National Association Miflaget HaPoalim HaSocialistim—Socialist Workers’ Party Netzach Yisrael lo Yishaqer (“The eternity of Israel shall not lie”) National Political League Occupied Enemy Territory Administration

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