The actualization of the concept of settler colonialism in the occupation of Palestinian territory during the British Mandate between 1922 and 1947

Abstract

This paper aims to describe the occupation of Palestinian territory during the British Mandate (1922-1947) based on an updated concept of settlement colonization. To this end, we reviewed the colonization modalities
presented by Leroy-Beaulieu, considering criteria such as type of production,
labor regime and land ownership regime. We have noted that the acquisition
of land by Zionist Jews serves the function of creating a rural wage-earning
labor force among Palestinian Arabs that must be excluded from the nascent labor market. Ghassan Kanafani’s original hypothesis is that the convergence of interests between the British and Zionist Jews allowed the transition from pre-capitalist agricultural production by Palestinian Arabs to industrial production to be driven by Jewish capital during the 1930s and 1940s.