Abstract
The State of Israel owes its origin to the Zionist movement, which was the outcome of several waves of immigration called the Aliyah . Reflecting different ideological shades during the pre-independence state – the Yishuv, political parties through Zionist movement paved the way for the emergence of an independent state of Israel in May 1948. State and politics in Israel were broadly influenced by divergent social composition of Aliyah as well as different ideological orientation of political parties that started guiding its destiny in the post-independence era.
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Notes
- 1.
The land of Canaan extends from Lebanon southward to Egypt and eastward to the Jordon river valley.
- 2.
According to the Hebrew Bible, Moses was born in 1400 BCE and died 1201 BCE, thus surviving for 199 years.
- 3.
It is stated that the Babylonian Jews were greatly inspired by the rabbinic learning and hence started settling in Israel as the rabbis and religious leaders, whereas the Karaite Jews remained under the Persian rule and asked their followers to move and settle in Jerusalem.
- 4.
The Third Aliyah (1919–1923), Fourth Aliyah (1924–1929) and the Fifth Aliyah (1929–1939) witnessed massive immigration of Jews to the UN-mandated territory.
- 5.
Aliyot refers to immigrants. The formation of Israel in 1949 is constituted by five different waves of immigrations.
- 6.
Two other left front minor organizations besides Ahdut Ha’avodah were Hashomer Hatzair and Hapoel Hatzair . While Hapoel Hatzair later merged with Ahdut Ha’avodah and formed Mapai , Hashomer Hatzair merged with Ha’Tnuah La’Ahdut Ha’avoda (The Movement of the Unity of Labour), and subsequently formed Mapam (Mifleget Poalim Meuchedet), United Workers Party, in 1948.
- 7.
The first Kibbutz established under Yishuv was in Degania in 1909. It is stated that by the first decade of the twenty-first century, Israel has 270 Kibbutz.
- 8.
Histadrut (General Federation of Labour) was created to handle the economic absorption of the new immigrants in 1920. It consisted of all workers—socialists and non-socialists, Zionists and non-Zionists. It set up various organizations under its panoply—financial and industrial enterprises, welfare agencies, trade unions. It had economic enterprises (agricultural communes and cooperatives), Bureau of Public Works (engaged in construction projects, later became a shareholding company—Solel Boneh), Worker’s Bank.
- 9.
Viewed as an ideology, Zionism refers to the creation of an independent Jewish state.
- 10.
The phrase ‘ Triple Ds ’—design, define and drive—was used by students of political science, University of Delhi, in their presentation of the course, ‘Society, State and Politics: Comparing Israel and India’ on 7 March 2017.
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Choudhary, S.K. (2018). Yishuv : The Pre-state Period in Israel. In: The Changing Face of Parties and Party Systems . Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-5175-3_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-5175-3_3
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