(First Prime Minister of the State of Israel, 1886-1973). Autograph Letter Signed to Menahem Ussishkin (Russian-born Zionist leader and head of the Jewish National Fund 1863-1941). Written in Hebrew in pencil on his customary unadorned note-paper.

BEN-GURION, DAVID

24th September

London

1938

Important letter marked “Confidential,” written in the period between the great upsurge of immigration to Palestine and the outbreak of World War II.

Ben-Gurion informs Ussishkin of present British positions following his meetings with Malcolm MacDonald of the Colonial Office. Ben-Gurion states that MacDonald's position is that neither the Balfour Declaration nor the League of Nations Mandate given to Britain ever envisioned or sanctioned Jewish immigration to Palestine. MacDonald's argument is that the Second Aliyah has undermined the stability of Palestine and the Middle East, agitating the Arabs at a time when the world is already on the brink of war. Moreover, he ties any hope of realizing a Jewish Homeland on the will of the Arabs. Ben-Gurion's opinion here is that the British cannot be trusted, nonetheless it is necessary to continue negotiating with them. He strongly believes that the Jewish position has to be steadfast and consistent, revolving around two unyielding principles, which are the refusal to let the Arab's dictate the future of Palestine, and immediate, unconditional, open immigration to Palestine leading to the establishment of a Jewish National Homeland. This letter is of considerable historical importance, since it provides valuable, first hand insight into the dynamics of the Arab-Jewish conflict in Palestine in the pre-war period as seen through the eyes of the eventual founder of the State of Israel.