1918 Arabs Participation in World War I

1918 Arabs Participation in World War I

In 1918 we conquered Palestine and set up a military administration to govern the country, which took it over as we conquered it.  In that conquest of Palestine we were assisted by Arab forces under Arab leaders, who had rebelled against their ruler, our enemy, the Turk.  The assistance of these Arabs helped us a great deal, but we would have succeeded in the end without it.  The Arabs of Palestine did not help us.  They were voluntarily or forcibly serving the Turk.  However, in November 1918, in agreement with the French, we published a declaration to the Arabs that we were concerned to ensure, “by their support and by adequate assistance, the regular working of governments and administrations freely chosen by the populations themselves.”  We suffer from too many declarations.  They tend to hamper rather than to help rule.

Source:  Simpson, H.J. British Rule and Rebellion. Edinburgh and London:  William Blackwood & sons ltd., 1937, p. 152-157