It is disrespectful or just ignorant for some to deny Balfour and Lord Rothschild and Chaim Weizman the credit they are damn sure due for getting the ball rolling.
Israel or Judea or whatever folks want to call it was dead and stinking as a political entity for 2000 years and many wanted to leave Sykes-Picot as it was. This is not to say the Brits were perfect bu they were the first to ackowledge a Jewish homeland....no doubt...though they got nervous a bit later....which is when US pressure came to bear.
Some didn't know Cool Hand Luke was Jewish.....lol....damn I feel old when youngbloods admit that....I've known Paul was half Jewish since Winning....
btw....originally Balfour tried to give them Uganda ...incredible isn't it?....might not have been so bad having Israel in Central Africa except they would have ended up where the South Africans did....which they may do anyhow....if they don't get to breeding more Hebrew kinsmen.
The British reneged on Balfour almost before the ink was dry. They immediately removed two thirds of the area to create Transjordan (now Jordan).
they slammed the gates shut to Jews fleeing Hitler.
The Jews forced the British to leave. By force was necessary. The British are deserving of no credit.
In their spite and hatred of Israel, active British officers led Arab armies attacking Israel in 1948.
I thank Lord Shaftesbury was among the first of the Zionists. Maybe he was one before any Jew was! That is because most religious Jews thought of the return as happening only when the Messiah came.