The term “West Bank” is used so widely that one might get the impression that it has some real historical significance. Those who rally together, calling for Israel to pull out of this area and allow the establishment of a Palestinian State here, would like you to believe that one previously existed and that Israel took it over and closed it down. The narrative presumes that people will believe it without question and will not ask for any proof. Amazingly, that strategy has worked pretty well so far.
But, in fact, the West Bank narrative really has little foundation. It only appeared on the stage of history in 1948, when the Hashemite army of Trans-Jordan crossed over its own western border, the Jordan River, which it is named for. The army of Trans-Jordan did so as part of the joint Arab effort to destroy the newly founded Jewish State and push the Jews into the sea.
So actually, we see that the term “West Bank,” which only came about as result of Jordan's imperialist effort to expand its borders at the cost of the Jewish State, is only as old as the State of Israel. Before the Jordanian invasion, this region was always called Judea and Samaria. That can clearly be seen on maps published throughout history. More
