The Zionist decolonisation of rural malaria control in Palestine from 1922 onwards – what it teaches

TL;DR

The paper explores how Zionist efforts in Palestine from 1922 pioneered a sustainable and inclusive approach to malaria control, marking an early form of decolonization in public health.

Contribution

The paper highlights the novel and sustainable malaria control methods pioneered by Zionists as an early example of decolonized public health.

Findings

Zionist malaria control efforts in Palestine were the first sustainable and inclusive program in the region.

The approach marked a shift from colonial methods to community-driven public health.

This initiative is now recognized as a foundational step in the decolonization of malaria control.

Abstract

In 1918, the British Army, having just defeated the Turkish Army in Palestine, intimated that the future of Palestine was considered hopeless due to the severity of malaria in the country. The British Army’s victory was partially attributable to its employment for six months of thousands of mainly Egyptian labourers to control the disease in the country through destruction of mosquito breeding sites. When the control ceased on 19th September 1918, the disease returned shortly thereafter. Due to the disease, the country was desolate and was either almost empty or uninhabitable in many rural areas. With the dream of a Jewish Homeland somewhere in Palestine, the Zionists were obliged to view malaria control as a priority. But the Zionists were unable to conduct malaria control in the same manner as that carried out by the British Army due to lack of finances and manpower that were available to the British Army. The Zionists were obliged, therefore, to think creatively and set about launching the first start of a sustainable malaria control programme for the whole country, of which it is only now realised that it was also the first step anywhere in the decolonisation of malaria control, an approach that was conducted by all the inhabitants for all the inhabitants.