Halfway between Jaffa and Tel Aviv, by the side of a busy road, stands a boarded-up, semi-derelict building. Appearances are deceptive. This was once one of the most important addresses in Palestine during the British Mandate: the headquarters of the Palestine Police Force’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

It was from here that Britain att-empted to impose law and order on its ever more rebellious territory. Britain captured Palestine from the Turks at the end of the First World War and ruled it until 1948, when the State of Israel was declared. Modern Israel still displays scattered signs of its imperial heritage. A red postbox stands at the top of Clock Square in Jaffa. One of