Ephraim Ben Raphael
Banned
(Note: this map touches on some sensitive subjects. I just want to be clear that I’m aware that there is a diversity of opinions among Israeli Arabs, and I don’t want to generalize. There is however, a significant group with no love of Israel and in a scenario like this I think it’s plausible they would try to persuade other countries to take a less than friendly stance towards the State of Israel. This map is inspired by the premise put forward by The Night Bringer in his recent WI thread, there’ve been a lot of threads in ASB speculating on an Israel ISOT, but not too many attempts to actually portray one.)
On January 1, 2014, the State of Israel including East Jerusalem and Area C of the West Bank, but not including the Gaza strip, is ISOTed to July 28, 1914- the day of the beginning of World War I. Confusion lasted long enough that by the time Israel had worked out what had happened and established lanes of communication with the rest of the world (August 5), it was too late avert the war. The Ottomans refused to recognize Israeli sovereignty, drawing Israel in and things just diverged from there.
Russia dropped out of the war in 1915 after they started to take the warnings of revolution seriously (also they weren’t terribly keen on fighting alongside a Jewish state). Unfortunately for the Tsar his efforts to hunt down revolutionary leaders just sparked the civil war early as the government cracked down on moderates as well as radicals. Meanwhile militant elements among Israeli Arabs did their best to lobby other nations to oppose Israel, they also spread technology. Although by no means state-of-the-art, the tech disseminated by Palestinians to the Central Powers was akin to World War II level, by late 1915 nations on both sides were fielding tanks and monoplanes. Germany convinced Italy to join the war alongside the CPs in 1916, America never got involved. Paris fell early that same year, the French government relocated to Bordeaux and kept fighting. In the end it was airpower that ended the war, the IDFAF began operating in France in late 1916 and Israeli tech exchange bore fruits for the Entente. The Great War ended in 1918 with the collapse of Austria-Hungary, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire, but with a much stronger Republican Germany.
A unity government under Netanyahu held until 1918, when the war ended, the subsequent election returned Likud-Beiteynu and their allies with an increased majority. Bibi pursued a hawkish foreign policy for the next three years until the government fell again, then for two years after that. As of 1924 an unstable coalition of centrists has finally retaken the Knesset. Tel Aviv is a world-class center of finance and trade, and Israel is currently running a truly massive trade surplus (thanks to exports of electronics among other things). Of course there is plenty of immigration.
Relations with the British are cordial (they’re disappointed they didn’t get more when the Ottomans came down), polite with France (they’re unhappy the Israelis were so hesitant about sharing military technology during the war) and America, and quite friendly with Japan (a country with no tradition of anti-Semitism). From the start Netanyahu decided to back Arab rebels in the OE in the hopes of creating friendly neighbors once things were over. Although a very good idea in theory, it was inexpertly executed and the results were mixed. The Hashemite family rules in Arabia, Syria, and Iraq and while the governments, upper class, and middle classes of those countries are generally pro-Israel (Israel sends them guns and money, and educates their children), the average downtime Arab is not so sure. Palestinian activists have spread plenty of stories about OTL, and there is a growing anti-Israel radical movement across the region. The fact that Israeli oil companies get special treatment and IDF bases operate on Arab soil tends not to endear Jerusalem to the inhabitants a great deal. The only significant terrorist organization (or resistance organization of freedom fighters, depending on who you ask) in the region is the Islamic Resistance Movement (acronym HAMAS, distant relative of the OTL organization). Kurdistan is much more friendly, the inhabitants of White Russian Crimea are not. Russia is a disunited patchwork of states with different ideologies, but anti-Semitism is one universal constant there. It goes without saying that Turkey hates Israel’s guts.
In general there is more anti-Semitism in the world, the appearance of a determinedly Jewish state wielding considerable economic and military power has provided plenty of ammunition for anti-Semites the world-over. Most discount stories of the Holocaust as hyperbole intended to create sympathy for Jews, even less-prejudiced people are skeptical. There are not a lot of Jews in former Russia, Austria-Hungary, Germany or Italy, most of them have left for Israel, America, or Britain. Greece in particular has a bone to pick with Jerusalem, after their civil war broke out in 1916 the IDF occupied Salonika to protect the local Jewish community and in 1920 Netanyahu annexed it as an Overseas Territory of Israel (the city was Jewish majority then, and has since become more than two thirds Jewish). Greece remains divided (the League of Nations negotiated a ceasefire in 1919), and neither half recognizes the State of Israel. Car-bombings are an occasional phenomenon in Salonika and in Rhodes (capital of the Jerusalem-backed Rhodes Free State). Israel is also protector of a Christian-majority Lebanon, and an Alawite-majority Alexandretta, both of which are okay but not terribly thrilled with the situation. Netanyahu ensured the annexation of much of what IOTL became Transjordan, with a starting Arab population of 250,000~ the territory’s demographics are changing thanks to the settlement of some half-million (and counting) Jewish immigrants there.
Germany remains a great power, although political unhappiness after the end of the war forced the Monarchy out, they avoided the violence and unrest of OTL. When the Austrian government petitioned for annexation Berlin was strong enough to ensure that it happened and the country made out much better from the treaty of Versailles. There is a significant group of unofficial Palestinian lobbyists there, and they’re convincing more than a few people to listen to them. For that matter Palestinians have been showing up in the oddest of places (much to the frustration of Mossad) and generally causing trouble for Israeli interests, from Central Asia to New York City.
Mossad’s #2 priority right at the moment is atomic weapons, the downtime nations have worked out how important they are without fully grasping how dangerous they are, which is a bad combination. (Israel is maintaining its nuclear ambiguity, Jerusalem’s worried that if they reveal they have the bomb that it will just spur other countries to develop theirs faster). America isn’t even attempting to build an atom bomb, to the consternation of the uptimers, but Britain, France and Germany are all giving it the old college try. The British brute-force approach (take lots and lots of uranium, spin it in lots and lots of centrifuges, profit) had a setback recently when they somehow managed to unintentionally assembly a critical-mass of enriched uranium without meaning to, incinerating many of their top minds in a 16-kiloton explosion. The Germans on the other hand are believed to already have a self-sustaining nuclear pile and in Jerusalem minds are turning over the possibility of an air strike…
Post Script: Like OTLs late teens and early twenties borders are still fairly fluid at this point (map is 1924) and governments rather unstable. Borders in former Russia are particularly likely to have inaccuracies. The RCW is largely burned out however, and things do appear to be settling down (for a certain value of “settle down”).
On January 1, 2014, the State of Israel including East Jerusalem and Area C of the West Bank, but not including the Gaza strip, is ISOTed to July 28, 1914- the day of the beginning of World War I. Confusion lasted long enough that by the time Israel had worked out what had happened and established lanes of communication with the rest of the world (August 5), it was too late avert the war. The Ottomans refused to recognize Israeli sovereignty, drawing Israel in and things just diverged from there.
Russia dropped out of the war in 1915 after they started to take the warnings of revolution seriously (also they weren’t terribly keen on fighting alongside a Jewish state). Unfortunately for the Tsar his efforts to hunt down revolutionary leaders just sparked the civil war early as the government cracked down on moderates as well as radicals. Meanwhile militant elements among Israeli Arabs did their best to lobby other nations to oppose Israel, they also spread technology. Although by no means state-of-the-art, the tech disseminated by Palestinians to the Central Powers was akin to World War II level, by late 1915 nations on both sides were fielding tanks and monoplanes. Germany convinced Italy to join the war alongside the CPs in 1916, America never got involved. Paris fell early that same year, the French government relocated to Bordeaux and kept fighting. In the end it was airpower that ended the war, the IDFAF began operating in France in late 1916 and Israeli tech exchange bore fruits for the Entente. The Great War ended in 1918 with the collapse of Austria-Hungary, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire, but with a much stronger Republican Germany.
A unity government under Netanyahu held until 1918, when the war ended, the subsequent election returned Likud-Beiteynu and their allies with an increased majority. Bibi pursued a hawkish foreign policy for the next three years until the government fell again, then for two years after that. As of 1924 an unstable coalition of centrists has finally retaken the Knesset. Tel Aviv is a world-class center of finance and trade, and Israel is currently running a truly massive trade surplus (thanks to exports of electronics among other things). Of course there is plenty of immigration.
Relations with the British are cordial (they’re disappointed they didn’t get more when the Ottomans came down), polite with France (they’re unhappy the Israelis were so hesitant about sharing military technology during the war) and America, and quite friendly with Japan (a country with no tradition of anti-Semitism). From the start Netanyahu decided to back Arab rebels in the OE in the hopes of creating friendly neighbors once things were over. Although a very good idea in theory, it was inexpertly executed and the results were mixed. The Hashemite family rules in Arabia, Syria, and Iraq and while the governments, upper class, and middle classes of those countries are generally pro-Israel (Israel sends them guns and money, and educates their children), the average downtime Arab is not so sure. Palestinian activists have spread plenty of stories about OTL, and there is a growing anti-Israel radical movement across the region. The fact that Israeli oil companies get special treatment and IDF bases operate on Arab soil tends not to endear Jerusalem to the inhabitants a great deal. The only significant terrorist organization (or resistance organization of freedom fighters, depending on who you ask) in the region is the Islamic Resistance Movement (acronym HAMAS, distant relative of the OTL organization). Kurdistan is much more friendly, the inhabitants of White Russian Crimea are not. Russia is a disunited patchwork of states with different ideologies, but anti-Semitism is one universal constant there. It goes without saying that Turkey hates Israel’s guts.
In general there is more anti-Semitism in the world, the appearance of a determinedly Jewish state wielding considerable economic and military power has provided plenty of ammunition for anti-Semites the world-over. Most discount stories of the Holocaust as hyperbole intended to create sympathy for Jews, even less-prejudiced people are skeptical. There are not a lot of Jews in former Russia, Austria-Hungary, Germany or Italy, most of them have left for Israel, America, or Britain. Greece in particular has a bone to pick with Jerusalem, after their civil war broke out in 1916 the IDF occupied Salonika to protect the local Jewish community and in 1920 Netanyahu annexed it as an Overseas Territory of Israel (the city was Jewish majority then, and has since become more than two thirds Jewish). Greece remains divided (the League of Nations negotiated a ceasefire in 1919), and neither half recognizes the State of Israel. Car-bombings are an occasional phenomenon in Salonika and in Rhodes (capital of the Jerusalem-backed Rhodes Free State). Israel is also protector of a Christian-majority Lebanon, and an Alawite-majority Alexandretta, both of which are okay but not terribly thrilled with the situation. Netanyahu ensured the annexation of much of what IOTL became Transjordan, with a starting Arab population of 250,000~ the territory’s demographics are changing thanks to the settlement of some half-million (and counting) Jewish immigrants there.
Germany remains a great power, although political unhappiness after the end of the war forced the Monarchy out, they avoided the violence and unrest of OTL. When the Austrian government petitioned for annexation Berlin was strong enough to ensure that it happened and the country made out much better from the treaty of Versailles. There is a significant group of unofficial Palestinian lobbyists there, and they’re convincing more than a few people to listen to them. For that matter Palestinians have been showing up in the oddest of places (much to the frustration of Mossad) and generally causing trouble for Israeli interests, from Central Asia to New York City.
Mossad’s #2 priority right at the moment is atomic weapons, the downtime nations have worked out how important they are without fully grasping how dangerous they are, which is a bad combination. (Israel is maintaining its nuclear ambiguity, Jerusalem’s worried that if they reveal they have the bomb that it will just spur other countries to develop theirs faster). America isn’t even attempting to build an atom bomb, to the consternation of the uptimers, but Britain, France and Germany are all giving it the old college try. The British brute-force approach (take lots and lots of uranium, spin it in lots and lots of centrifuges, profit) had a setback recently when they somehow managed to unintentionally assembly a critical-mass of enriched uranium without meaning to, incinerating many of their top minds in a 16-kiloton explosion. The Germans on the other hand are believed to already have a self-sustaining nuclear pile and in Jerusalem minds are turning over the possibility of an air strike…
Post Script: Like OTLs late teens and early twenties borders are still fairly fluid at this point (map is 1924) and governments rather unstable. Borders in former Russia are particularly likely to have inaccuracies. The RCW is largely burned out however, and things do appear to be settling down (for a certain value of “settle down”).
One other question: I see Soviet-aligned nations, but aren't there any European Socialist Federation aligned states?
