Zion friends of Israel

Timeline of the Palestinian
 question at the UN in 1947

18 February   Foreign Secretary Ernest Bevin informs the House of Commons that the United Kingdom wishes to refer the Palestine Mandate to the United Nations.

 2 April UK requests a special session of the UN General Assembly to consider the future government of Palestine.

 28 April UN General Assembly session addresses the Palestine issue.

 15 May UN General Assembly establishes a Special Committee on Palestine (UNSCOP).
UNSCOP had representatives from eleven nations:  Australia, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Guatemala, India, Iran, Netherlands, Peru, Sweden, Uruguay, and Yugoslavia.

 26 May UNSCOP convenes at Lake Success in New York.

 15 June UNSCOP arrives in Palestine and begins series of hearings and meetings; travels within Palestine.

 20 July UNSCOP travels to Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan.

 8 August UNSCOP sub-committee travels to Germany and Austria.

 3 September UNSCOP issues a report (A/364): Unanimously decides to end the UK mandate, and calls for preservation of the Holy Places; constitutional democracy with rights guarantees; settling disputes peacefully; preserving the economic unity of Palestine. Additionally, a majority report (seven) recommends the partition of Palestine with an internationalized Jerusalem, and a minority report (three) recommends local self-government of Jerusalem and Arab sections.

 13-16 September UN General Assembly begins the annual session.

 23 September UN General Assembly establishes an Ad Hoc Committee on the Palestinian Question and refers the UNSCOP report to it. The Ad Hoc Committee has representatives from all the 57 member states.

 25 September The Ad Hoc Committee elects the following officers: Dr. Herbert V. Evatt of Australia was elected Chairman. Prince Subhasvasti Svastivat of Siam was elected Vice-Chairman and Mr. Thor Thors of Iceland was elected Rapporteur.

 29 September Arab Higher Committee formally rejects the UNSCOP partition plan.

 2 October Jewish Agency formally accepts the UNSCOP partition plan.

 22 October The Ad Hoc Committee on the Palestinian Question sets up two subcommittees to examine the two UNSCOP proposals:

Subcommittee (1) for partition:  Canada, Czechoslovakia, Guatemala, Poland, South Africa, United States, U.S.S.R., Uruguay and Venezuela.

Subcommittee (2) for a unitary state: Afghanistan, Colombia, Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Yemen.

The Ad Hoc Committee established also a third committee, a conciliation commission, to examine all possibilities of reconciliation between the two parties. The conciliation commission had only three members; the Chairman, the Vice-Chairman and Rapporteur of the Ad Hoc committee.

10 November Subcommittees (1) and (2) conclude and recommend:
     (1) Measures for partition (A/AC.14/34)
     (2) Measures for a unitary state (A/AC.14/32).

24-25 November The Ad Hoc Committee defeats the proposal for a unitary state by 16-16-23. The Committee accepts the partition plan by vote 25-18-17 and sends it to the General Assembly for final action (A/516).

26 November The report of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Palestinian Question is presented to the UN General Assembly by Rapporteur Thor Thors (A/PV.124)

 29 November The UN General Assembly adopts Resolution 181 to partition Palestine and establish, by 1 October 1948, both Jewish and Arab states, and have Jerusalem internationalized, by 33-13-10 vote (one is absent). The Arab states reject Resolution 181 and the Syrian representative declares the UN Charter “dead.”

Map of voting on Resolution 181