Reel Nostalgia, Clip #26 Reel Nostalgia, Clip #26

WATCH: The new Jewish state is formed

In 1948, British audiences caught this glimpse of the birth of Israel

By Ramona Tausz 20 October 2015, 4:34 pm 1

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In 1948, people gathered outside the Jewish Agency building in Washington, D.C., to celebrate the birth of the Jewish State (Screenshot of newsreel footage from YouTube)

Haganah troops march through the streets of Haifa, United Nations delegates recognize the new state of Israel, and crowds dance outside Washington’s Jewish Agency in this footage of both the United States and Israel from May 1948.

On screen, a UN delegate from the United States acknowledges the provisional government of Israel as the de facto authority in the area. “In a tense atmosphere, the assembly hears a statement of momentous importance,” the announcer declares. “With United States recognition, the new Jewish state is launched.”

In another shot, a young boy hoists the new flag of Israel out the window of the Jewish Agency for Palestine in Washington.

“After 2,000 years the Jewish nation once again exists,” the narrator concludes. “And while there is a rattle of gunfire in the Holy Land, there is cheering in Washington and Hebrew dances of joy for the Jewish homeland that has been reborn.”

(The Associated Press and Movietone News recently released their vast video archives on YouTube, allowing the public to freely access a million minutes worth of historical news clips dating back to 1895 — including many iconic scenes from Israel’s history featured in this Times of Israel series.)