YY> his is in stark contrast to the real Jews who had cordial relationships with the locals long before the Zionists invaded the holy land around the turn-of-the-century.
I am not sure about WZO, but I think Mizrachi early position on cooperating with – mostly anti-religious at the time Zionists – paid off by having Israeli law incorporate some respect for tradition. If early non-religious leaders were on their own, Israel would have sunday for a day off. Eventually, R Schach and others accepted the reality and gradually joined Israeli politics.