London Conference of 1946–1947

[1] The Conference's failure to reach agreements between Arabs and Jews regarding the future of Palestine led Britain to renounce the Mandate and "submit the problem to the judgment of the United Nations.

On 4 October 1945, it is mentioned in the British Cabinet's minutes that the foreign secretary would propose a solution before passing it along to the United Nations.

The Arab governments invited the British government to meet in order to reach an agreement ahead of the upcoming second meeting of the First session of the United Nations General Assembly:[4] ... the conclusion of an agreement which will put an end to the present situation in Palestine and transform it into one in conformity with the provisions of the Charter and agreeable with its aims ... before the next Session of the General Assembly to be held in September, 1946Additionally, one of the precursors to the eventual outcome of the conferences was the Biltmore Conference in 1942.

The Biltmore Resolution was a declaration of a need for Jewish mass migration to Palestine and a creation of a commonwealth, with the belief that the rest of the Zionist movement would eventually agree.

[7] Shortly before the beginning of the conference Eliyahu Sasson attempted to convince Arab figures such as Abdul Rahman Hassan Azzam to publicly endorse the Zionists' proposal for the dispute.

They criticized many of its features; but was clear that, fundamentally, their rejection of this solution was based on their conviction that any scheme of provincial autonomy would inevitably lead to partition.

(b) The right of any resident in Palestine to apply for and acquire Palestinian citizenship on the same terms and conditions without discrimination on grounds of race, religion or language.

(c) The right of religious bodies or other societies and individuals to maintain, in addition to educational establishments administered by public authority, private schools and universities, subject to the compulsory teaching of Arabic in the schools and to Government control for the purpose of maintaining educational standards and preventing subversive teaching with the object of creating common allegiance.

(vii) Unless and until legislation provides otherwise, Jewish immigration into Palestine should be entirely prohibited, and the existing land transfer restrictions should remain unchanged.

(x) Machinery should be provided, through the establishment of a Supreme Court, for determining whether any legislation is inconsistent with the provisions of the constitution, and it should be open to any citizen of Palestine to have recourse to that tribunal.The proposals describe the transitional arrangements that should be completed by 31 December 1948 and indicate the end of the Mandate and the independence of Palestine: establishment of a provisional government (7 Arabs, 3 Jews); preparation of an electoral registry (male suffrage); election of a 60-member constituent assembly (representation of "important sections of citizenry" according to their respective numbers).

The congress described the Morrison-Grady plan as "a travesty of Britain’s obligations under the Mandate", unacceptable as a basis for discussion, and confirmed that the Zionist Organization could not "in the existing circumstances" participate in the London conference.

The Arab representative's counter proposals during the conference offered minority protection and citizenship for the Jewish population that choose to live in Palestine.

In the statement, it iterates that unacceptable proposals, as deemed by the Arab delegates include "any form of partition or Jewish immigration.

"[16] On 18 February 1947, immediately following the conference, foreign secretary Ernest Bevin announced that Britain was unable to solve the problem and would pass it to the United Nations to propose a solution: His Majesty's Government have of themselves no power, under the terms of the Mandate, to award the country either to the Arabs or to the Jews, or even to partition it between them.

It is in these circumstances that we have decided that we are unable to accept the scheme put forward either by the Arabs or by the Jews, or to impose ourselves a solution of our own.

A press statement made by President Truman on October 4, 1946, advocating for the Jewish Agency proposal effectively "torpedoed" British plans for the conference.