Ze'ev JABOTINSKY and REVISIONIST ZIONISM
Staunch anti-assimilationist Ze’ev Jabotinsky may have inherited the national pride and self-actualization tenets of the Zionist ethos from the likes of Herzl and Pinkser, but he quickly made it his own.
Amidst the outbreak of bloody anti-Semitic pogroms that struck Russia in the turn of the century, Jabotinsky founded the Jewish Self-Defense Organization; where he began to preach his message of Jewish strength and honor in the face of our enemies as well as the personal struggle that the establishment of a Jewish state demanded from each individual Hebrew. His prolific writing and oratory skills propelled his election to the Sixth World Zionist Congress in 1903.
In 1923, Jabotinsky left the mainstream Zionist movement to found the Alliance of Revisionist Zionists. Jabotinsky revisioned the Zionist movement as one that was not only focused on re-settling the land of Israel, but was unequivocally advocating for the establishment of a Jewish state on both sides of the Jordan river and was preparing its people to defend themselves and fight for their right to their ancestral homeland. Jabotinsky’s proudest achievement was the establishment of the Jewish Legion that fought alongside the British against the Ottomans in WWI.
This and Jabotinsky’s own military training of Jews in the land of Israel, infused the Jewish people with a warrior spirit that inspired the Jewish Revolt against the British in the 1940s, which ultimately led to the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.
Upon the reestablishment of the independent State of Israel, former Irgun leader Menachem Begin and his compatriots founded the political party Herut. Herut quickly became one of the nation’s largest parties, winning 14 seats, 11.5% of the votes, in the Israeli government’s first election in 1949. In 1965, to gain strength in the Knesset, Herut merged with several other liberal parties which shaped Gahal (Gush Herut Liberali), that developed into the Likud. In 1977 national elections, Gahal won and formed the government, making Menachem Begin Prime Minister.
In 1988, the Likud dissolved its internal factions, including Herut, to become a unitary party. In 1992, the Labor party led by Yitzchak Rabin won elections and signed the Olso Accords ceding large swaths of Judea, Samaria, and Gaza to the newly formed Palestinian Authority. In the aftermath of the Second Intifada and 1,000 murdered Israelis (organized by this same Palestinian Authority), the Likud returned to power in 1996.
Instead of reversing the Oslo Accords, the government continued to cede land, including most Hebron and 2% of Samaria in 1999. Those true to the principles of Jabotinsky understood this as a violation of fundamental Jewish rights advocated by Zionism, and a dangerous chink in the “Iron Wall” strategy of deterrence and Israeli survival.
As a result, Benny Begin, Michael Kleiner, and David Re’em broke away from Likud during the 14th Knesset and formed the new Herut party in 1999.
The breakaway was explicitly caused by disagreements with the Likud leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, over these aforementioned compromises produced by the Wye River Memorandum and the Hebron Agreement.
The New Herut – the National Movement, as political party participated in 1999, 2003, and 2006 elections.
However, by 2009 the founders of the New Herut party reintegrated with the Likud.
Nevertheless, those true to the Herut ideology continued to advocate for the integrity of the land of Israel and the unity of the people of Israel. Herut continues to be registered in the Israeli government’s Party Registry. The Herut party remains intact and reserves the right to compete in future elections, should suitable circumstances arise.