Palestine  

"His Majesty's Government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country."--Balfour Declaration

"Palestine had been under the control of the Ottoman Empire for nearly 400 years, until its partitioning in the aftermath of the Great Arab Revolt during World War I. During the closing years of their empire, the Ottomans began to espouse their Turkish ethnic identity, asserting the primacy of Turks within the empire, leading to discrimination against the Arabs. The promise of liberation from the Ottomans led many Jews and Arabs to support the allied powers during World War I, leading to the emergence of widespread Arab nationalism. Both Arab nationalism and Zionism had their formulative beginning in Europe. The Zionist Congress was established in Basel in 1897, while the "Arab Club" was established in Paris in 1906."--Sholem Stein

"In answer to the question of which countries have returned territory won during a conflict, victorious nations often keep conquered land; so did the World War II allies. France took Alsace-Lorraine, which it historically claimed, while the United Kingdom and the U.S. took nothing since neither had a historical claim to parts of Germany. The Soviet Union took portions of Germany, Finland and Poland. In contrast, Israel had and has historical claim to its territory and then some that precedes by millenniums the Arab conquest of the Jewish homeland, the Middle East and North Africa. Israel owes the Arabs nothing but peaceful neighborly coexistence — if the Arabs were willing to accept it."--Michael Wiener, Manhattan Beach[1]

"Unless Palestinians and Israelis can find a way to detach the disputed land from their identities, there are no straightforward solutions. This is what happened in Alsace-Lorraine and Northern Ireland – but it’s not clear that such a transformation in thinking will take place anytime soon in the Middle East." --Monica Duffy Toft[2]