Chapter 18, Section 4

Conflict in the Middle East

Palestinians, Jews, and Arabs

• ALL THREE GROUPS LAY CLAIM TO A PREVIOUS RESIDENCE IN THE REGION OF THE MIDDLE EAST:– Jews- claim to Israel goes back 3,000

years– Palestinians- claim the land is theirs

since A.D. 135 when the Jews were driven out by the Romans

– Arabs- claim the land is theirs because they conquered it in the 7th century A.D. (600s)

British Mandate & the Balfour Declaration

• British Mandate- the League of Nations gave territory in the Middle East to Britain after WWI

• Balfour Declaration 1917- British foreign secretary wrote letter to Zionists (Jews)– Promoted the creation of a Jewish homeland.

• Jewish nation not created at time -Palestinians & Jewish hostilities increased

May 14, 1948- Israel Becomes a Nation

• In reaction to the Holocaust, the United States & many European nations the country of Israel being created in the Middle East

• After WWII- UN vote for a Palestinian nation & an Israeli nation- Partition (dividing) of Palestine

• All Islamic countries voted against it & Palestinians rejected it

Rise of Islamic Fundamentalism

• In the 1990s, Ayatollah Khomeini, the religious leader of Iran, spoke out against the U.S. and other Western nations

• He said the U.S. was greedy, evil and an imperialist nation who sought control of the Middle Eastern nations because of their oil

• He thought that the only true, righteous nations were those that practiced Islam and the U.S. and European nations were enemies of Islam

• He acquires followers from many Arab speaking countries including Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan

The Countries that Hate the United States the Most –March 2013

#1 Pakistan** #2 Palestine**#3 Algeria (Africa)*#4 Lebanon**#5 Egypt** #6 Iran** #7 Iraq**#8 Yemen* #9 tie: Greece & Serbia* (Eastern Europe)

Major Cause of Hatred: ISRAEL

• MAJOR PROBLEM ISRAEL FACES IN THE MIDDLE EAST-– Israel has small population and differs

from nations surrounding them in religious & political beliefs

• Most nations do not recognize Israel as a nation because it is not Muslim- run country and was formed by Western countries (Europe & U.S.)

First Arab-Israeli War

• May 15, 1948- Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, & Saudi Arabia invaded Israel

• Israel wins first Arab-Israeli war within months with support from US

Suez Crisis• Suez Crisis- 1956 began when

Egyptian president Nasser seized control of Suez Canal

• Israeli army, with air support from Britain & France defeated Egypt quickly

• US & USSR forced Israel & allies to leave

• Egypt left in charge of canal

Six-Day War• Six-Day War- 1967 Egypt & Arab allies

supported by Soviet tanks & planes wanted war with Israel- because Israel existed

• Egypt moved too close to Israel in Gulf of Aqaba

• Israel attacked by air and ground & won in only 6 days

• Israel controlled- Jerusalem, Sinai Peninsula, Golan Heights & the West Bank

• Main Cause of Six-Day War? – Creation of Israel in 1948 creates ongoing

tension between Israel and Arab states

Yom Kippur War• 1973 War- Yom Kippur-holiest of

Jewish Holidays• Egyptian pres. Anwar Sadat & Arab

allies plan attack• Israel surprised, received heavy

casualties, lost some territory from 1967

• Israel prime minister Golda Meir counterattacked & regained some of the territory

Palestinian Struggle for Independence

• Palestinians struggled for recognition

• UN had set up Palestinian lands but Israel seized much of it in various wars (West Bank & Gaza Strip)

• Israel insisted it was vital to national security

The Rise of the PLO

• PLO- Palestinian Liberation Organization

• Yasir Arafat 1969- chairman of PLO• In the 70s & 80s PLO military

terrorized Israel• Israel answered back by bombing

Palestinian towns• Intifada- Arab for “uprising”• Protests, boycotts, and attacks on

Israeli soldiers

Camp David Accords

It was:• 1977 peace agreement between

Israel & Egypt• Attendees:

– US President Jimmy Carter assisted– Menachem Begin- Israeli Prime Minister – Anwar Sadat- Egyptian President

• Conditions of the Camp David Accords:– Israel will leave Sinai Peninsula– Egypt 1st Islamic nation to recognize

Israel as a nation

• Egyptian president, Anwar Sadat shocked the world by offering peace to Israel (if they meet certain conditions)

• Other Arab nations angered and shocked because Sadat made peace with Israel

• Sadat assassinated 1981

Hosni Mubarak• Egyptian president

after Sadat was assassinated in 1981

• Kept peace with Israel

Oslo Peace Accords

• a.k.a. Declaration of Principles• Secret peace talks between Israel &

Palestine in Oslo, Norway• Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin

& PLO leader Yasir Arafat sign peace agreement in Washington, DC (US President- Bill Clinton)