ISRAEL & PALESTINEMiddle Eastern Studies

PROMISED LAND

Land of Canaan Given to Abraham Taken again after the

exodus from Egypt Land is named Israel after

Jacob, son of Isaac, grandson of Abraham

Name was changed to Israel after wrestling with an angel.

After King Solomon died, the nation of Israel was divided into

Northern Kingdom of Judea Southern Kingdom of Israel

Babylonians conquered the divided country Exiled the Jews Some eventually returned Rome conquered them

Romans dispersed the Jews – Jewish Diaspora – renamed Judea PALESTINE – everyone became known as Palestinians Most were actually Arabic Arabic translation of Palestine is Philistine So, Arabs were then called Palestinians even though

they weren’t Philistines

CRUSADES

Lots of fighting Little progress

BRITISH CONTROL

1800s, Palestine becomes a British Colony

End of WWI the Balfour Declaration Made Palestine a bit more free Established a Jewish homeland in Palestine

Jews begin to immigrate to Palestine

WWII

Holocaust Afterward, Jews flock to Palestine By 1948 there are 650,000 Jews in Palestine

Due to horror of holocaust, the west began to call for a Jewish homeland Uganda was offered – Jews refused – wanted

Palestine – the Promised Land Britain slips out in 1947 and guerilla warfare

begins May 14, 1948 David Ben Guerion declares

Palestine to be the nation of Israel

TROUBLE BEGINS

May 15, 1948 – Arab countries attack Israel Jordan Iraq Egypt Lebanon

Main fighting was in Jerusalem 1 month into fighting and United Nations tries to

mediate 1 more month into fighting and the UN mediator was

killed Surprise!!!

Czechoslovakia supports Israel

By July 1949 the war was over Israel got 78% of Palestine Jordan got 22% - the West Bank Egypt got the Gaza Strip Jerusalem was divided between Israel and Jordan

During the fighting, most Palestinians fled to the West Bank and Gaza. Some went to Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan When they tried to return, they found their homes and

land occupied by Jewish families 750,000 Palestinian refugees in other areas Only 150,000 stayed in Israel

UN established “temporary” refugee camps

Palestinians established the Fedayeen – guerilla terrorist groups. The wanted to scare the Jews into leaving Didn’t work, Jews only became more

determined to stay.

FIX OF ‘56 (1956)

Britain, France, & Israel bomb the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza Strip due to the nationalization of the Suez Canal

U.S. makes them give back both, but the Fedayeen suffered a big blow to its power

Israeli economy was good for the late 1950s and early 1960s

1964

Arab nations are sick of Israel. Decide to back Fedayeen and train and supply Palestinian guerillas King Hussayn of Jordan calls a meeting in

East Jerusalem The Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO)

and the Palestinian Liberation Army (PLA) form at this meeting

Yassir Arafat and his al-Fatah’s prove more detrimental to Israel and begin leading attacks

SIX DAYS WAR, 1967

Fighting begins between Israeli and Syrian forces USSR backs Syria Israel attacks Jordan US tries to keep peace

Egyptian forces roll through the Sinai Desert

Syria, Jordan and Iraq move troops to the Israeli border

June 5, 1967 Israel destroys most of Egypt’s air force – Egypt was devastated Lost Gaza and Sinai Peninsula

Jordan was repelled Israel got East Jerusalem

Syria was beaten Israel got the Golan Heights

War was over

United Nations was upset with Israel Drafted Resolution 242

UN refuses to recognize new Israeli territories Israel should withdraw from these areas All states should recognize and respect the borders

of other states Refugee problem needs to be dealt with in a just

manner (Palestinian refugees from 1948 and 1967) All states must cooperate with the UN and abide by

this resolution Israel, Egypt and Jordan agree but Syria doesn’t,

so…

Israel kept the territories and the Palestinians kept fighting.

Palestinian Arabs in the West Bank and Gaza resisted the Zionist State of Israel Joined with the PLO

Hijacked planes Killed Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics Olympics

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Instead of drawing attention to their plight, they made the world see them as crazy Muslims

OCTOBER 6, 1973

Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack on Israel. Launched on the Jewish Day of Atonement

– Yom Kippur Israeli soldiers were caught off guard Egypt and Syria got what they wanted and

pushed into Israel. Israel looks doomed US to the rescue

Egypt had new USSR military toys US gave Israel new military toys Israel pushed Syria back to within miles

of Damascus and Egypt to within 60 miles of Cairo! Good US military toys!!!

Everyone stops, realizes it’s really the US v. USSR – big Cold War nuclear OOPS!

Cease-fire called after 18 days

UN wrote another resolution, #338, which said everyone had to obey number 242.

Israel kept territories, Palestinians kept blowing things up

1977 Menachem Begin is the Israeli

Prime Minister Don’t just hold seized territories –

populate them with Jewish settlers Begin called the areas Judea and

Samaria and said they were “liberated” not “occupied” territories

Begin is a big mouth! Anwar Sadat, Egyptian President, visited Israel.

Addressed Israeli parliament Asked for return of territories

US President Jimmy Carter was impressed

Invited Sadat and Begin to Camp David in 1979

Negotiated the Camp David Accords – September 1979

Israel gave back the Sinai Desert & removed Jewish settlers

Egypt promised peace

PLO mad at Sadat – thinks he sold them out Teamed with Muslim Brotherhood to

assassinate him in 1981 PLO moved out of Sinai and into

Lebanon Got involved in Lebanese Civil War

Phalange Party v. Muslims Israel backs Phalange Party invades

Lebanon in 1982

General Ariel Sharon led Israeli forces into Beirut. Lebanese Muslims ask Arafat and PLO to leave

Lebanon PLO goes to Tunisia PLO assassinated Phalange leader, Gemayel

Sharon and Phalange work together for revenge Massacre 800 women, children, and elderly in two

Palestinian refugee camps Massacre is uncalled for human rights violations Sharon had to step down from position as Israeli

defense minister due to massacres

US, French, and Italian peacekeepers go to Lebanon 1983, 200+ US Marines killed in barracks

explosion caused by suicide bombers in trucks

Peacekeepers left but Israel stayed to fight. Israel left around 1985.

Syrian troops moved into Lebanon and began to control everything

In 1982, Israel annexed the Golan heights, West Bank, and Gaza where ghettos existed where Palestinian refugees were living – life was bad here for the refugees.

Israel was getting richer. Palestinian refugees began to see how

well the Israelis were living and got mad at the stark comparison. They declared an…

Intifada “shaking off” or “slaves” revolt Israel cracked down Palestinians kept fighting

Hamas formed during this Intifada 1987 formed Desired an Islamic state in occupied

territories and historic Palestine

Intifada and violence it brought woke up the Israelis to how bad they were treating the Palestinians

Palestinians realized that Israel wasn’t going to just “go away”

Doves and Hawks form on both sides

Doves for both sides sought Withdrawal from West Bank and Gaza Recognition of Israel with pre-1967 borders

Hawks were stubborn Never give up the territories Claimed Arafat was a coward for

submitting to Zionism

Negotiations went on forever in Madrid and Washington, D.C.

Clinton led backdoor negotiations in Oslo that produced the Oslo Accords in 1993

Both sides recognized each other Israel agreed to withdraw from occupied territories PLO agreed to help Israel keep security Signed by Israeli Prime Minister Yitzak Rabin and

PLO leader Yassir Arafat

1994 Hebron, Israel Israeli settler killed

29 Palestinians as they prayed at the Patriarch’s Tomb

Hamas bombed Israeli areas

Rabin and Arafat vow not to back down from their agreement

Arafat returned from exile to establish the Palestinian Authority for the base government of Palestine. West Bank and Gaza would fall under

Palestinian Authority Jericho would be the main city

Rabin signed a treaty with Jordon in 1994, then signed the Oslo II/Taba Accords Israeli troops would pull out in phases

By 1995 only Syria and it’s puppet Lebanon were true Israeli advisaries

Rabin planned on making a deal with Syria Return Golan Heights in exchange for peace He was assassinated in November of 1995 by an Israeli

extremist before he could negotiate the peace May 1996 – Final talks had been scheduled

What to do with Jewish settlers Control of Jerusalem?

Rabin’s death caused peace negotiations to spiral out of control. PLO bombings Scared Israelis elect war

hawk Benjamin Netanyahu as new Prime Minister

Netanyahu didn’t like the Oslo Accords, but he followed them He refused to hold the

final meeting with Yassir Arafat

Next two years full of bombings and violence

PLO vs. IDF (Israeli Defense Forces)

1999 Peace is still gridlocked

Netanyahu is out and Ehud Barak is elected

Barak wants to reopen negotiations July 2000 Israel and PLO meet

at Camp David Nothing accomplished Both sides want Jerusalem as

the capital

By September 2000, Barak appears ready to concede Complications arise with Ariel

Sharon – STUPID!!!! He parades across the Temple

Mount violating Muslim and Jewish rules

Brings on 2nd Intifada – known as al-Aqsa Intifada

AL-AQSA INTIFADA Suicide bombers begin

reign of terror 700 Israelis and 1900

Palestinians die Barak resigned and

Sharon becomes the new Israeli Prime Minister His attitude is one of

strict security and decisive retaliation

Peace goes back and forth

Talk a little, kill a lot; talk a little, kill a lot, etc.

February 2004 Sharon announces plans to move all Jewish

settlers out of Gaza November 2004

Arafat died – tough times ahead Early 2005 Mahmoud Abbas took over PLO February 2005 Sharon and Abbas announce

peace aggreement Jewish settlers in Gaza and some in the West

Bank are relocated.

January 2006 Sharon suffers

debilitating stroke – never recovers

Elections struggle Guns ‘n bombs; bombs

‘n guns March 2006

Ehud Olmert wins and is new Israeli Prime Minister. Says…

Finish building fences and walls in West Bank to separate Jews and Palestinians

Get Jews out of PLO territories

Palestinians have control but aren’t governing effectively… Terrorism still exists Palestinian government is broke

GAZA STRIP

Economy is agriculture based Citrus Wheat Olives

9000 Jews and 1.3 million Palestinians with 21 Jewish settlements

Jews have been removed Israeli troops

stay outside the strip Maintain control of airspace

over the strip Still conduct military

operations in its sea space

WEST BANK

Area of about 2200 square miles

Biblically known as Judea and Samaria

Cities in this territory are Hebron Bethlehem Jericho

Fertile land Olives Fruit citrus

GOLAN HEIGHTS

500 square miles Plateau area –

strategic highland

Once belonged to Syria

GAZA STRIP TO THE PRESENT

Palestinian Authority took over Gaza. 2006 – Hamas won the majority in the

Palestinian Legislature, defeating Fatah This triggered Israeli sanctions against the

Palestinian Authority The Quartet Countries joined in the sanctions

United Nations United States European Union Russia

2007

Hamas and Fatah formed a Palestinian Authority Unity Government and seized control of Gaza in the Battle of Gaza Between Hamas and Fatah June 7 - 15, 2007 In June 2007 Hamas took control of the Gaza

Strip and removed Fatah officials. The ICRC estimated that at least 118 people were killed and more than 550 wounded during the fighting in the week up to June 15.

Hamas won seizing government institutions and

replacing Fatah and other government officials with its own.

Egypt and Israel sealed their border crossings with Gaza, on the grounds that Fatah had fled and was no longer providing security on the Palestinian side.

Israel allows only limited humanitarian supplies from aid organizations into the Strip.

In 2009 the amount of goods Israel allowed into Gaza was one quarter of the pre-blockade flow.

The Israeli navy maintains a sea blockade from three nautical miles offshore.

Egypt is constructing an underground steel barrier to prevent circumvention of the blockade through tunnels.

Israel maintained that the blockade is necessary to limit Palestinian rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip on its cities and to prevent Hamas from obtaining other weapons.

Egypt maintained that it cannot fully open the Rafah crossing since completely opening the border would represent Egyptian recognition of the Hamas control of

Gaza, undermine the legitimacy of the

Palestinian National Authority and consecrate the split between Gaza and the West Bank.

United Nations have called the blockade illegal according to the Geneva Conventions on a number of occasions,

2010 Facing mounting international calls to ease or lift their

blockade, Egypt and Israel lessened the restrictions starting in June 2010,

Egypt’s opened the Rafah Border Crossing foreign ministry has made it clear that the crossing will

remain open mainly for people, but not for supplies, to go through.[18]

In June 2010, Israel announced that it will allow all strictly civilian goods into Gaza preventing certain weapons and dual-use items from

entering Gaza Israel continues to severely restrict and/or prevent people

from entering or exiting Gaza according to a July 2010 report by the Israeli NGO Gisha

Legal Center for Freedom of Movement, Israel continues to prevent normal functioning of the Gazan economy

WEST BANK TO THE PRESENT

international community generally regards the West Bank to be under military occupation

Even though Jewish settlements were dismantled in Gaza and the Sinai Peninsula, they do still exist in the West Bank As of July 2009, approximately 304,569

Israelis live in the 121 officially recognised settlements in the West Bank

The continued existence and expansion of these settlements despite a temporary ban on expansion is thought to be a key issue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

These actions are frequently criticized as an obstacle to the peace process by third parties including the United Kingdom, the European Union, the United Nations, and the United States.

GOLAN HEIGHTS TO THE PRESENT

Israeli diplomatic efforts since the 1990s have oscillated between the so-called “Syrian track” and “Palestinian track

The current difficulties in restarting direct negotiations in the Israeli-Palestinian track, Reflects deep structural problems, Could renew Israeli interest, and/or that of the

international community, in pursuing “progress” in the Israeli-Syrian track. Peace

negotiations with Syria

Peace negotiations with Syria are at present unlikely due to the ongoing turmoil. But if the situation in Syria calms down If no Islamist regime has taken the reins in

Damascus, calls for a return to negotiations are likely.