The 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine

The 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine was a nationalist uprising by Arabs in Mandatory Palestine against British colonial rule, as a demand for independence and opposition to mass Jewish immigration.

The main causes of the uprising were:

• Jewish immigration and settlement in the Holy Land.

• The undermining of the relations between Arabs and the British following the British withdrawal from the Passfield White Paper, published a year earlier.

• Radicalization process among the Arab leadership which was demonstrated during the 1929 massacre of the Jewish residents of Hebron and had increased gradually thereafter with expressed intensification of anti-Zionist positions, opposition to British rule and the willingness to adopt terrorism to fight against the Jews and against the British.

• Impacts of political developments in the Middle East - Cancellation of the British Mandate in Iraq and the French Mandate in Syria, and providing indications of independence in these two countries filled the Arab residents of Palestine with aspirations of independence.

• The rise and influence of fascism in the face of what was perceived as a weakness of the British towards Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, led the Arabs to try and get closer to the Axis powers.

Violence erupted in April 1936, after the six prominent Arab leaders overcame their rivalries and joined forces. The Arab High Command was led by the Mufti Haj Amin al-Husseini, began its protest by calling for a general strike of Arab workers and a boycott of Jewish products. These actions swiftly escalated into terrorist attacks against the Jews and the British. This first stage of the "Arab Revolt" lasted until November, 1936. The second stage began in September 1937, shortly after the Peel Commission recommended the partition of Palestine. In this second phase, clashes with the British forces became much more severe, as did the attacks on Jewish settlements. 

When the riots initially broke out, British authorities did not respond vigorously to end the bloody frenzy. It seems that the authorities had underestimated the full impact of the events. 

The outcome of the three-year uprising was more than 5,000 Arabs dead, as well as 400 Jews and 200 British.

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