Arab-Israeli Conflict The Arab-Israeli conflict is a long-running conflict in the Middle East regarding the existence of the state of Israel and its relations with Arab states Some uses of the term Middle East conflict refer to this matter, but the region has been host to other disputes and wars not involving Israel Despite the relatively small land area, number of casualties, and total size of populations involved, the conflict has been the focus of worldwide media and diplomatic attention for decades. Some groups fear that the Arab-Israeli conflict is a part of (or precursor to) a wider clash of civilizations between the Western World and the Arab or Muslim world. Animosity from this conflict has caused numerous attacks on supporters of one side by supporters of the other side around the world.

Jewish Origins In order to analyze the conflict you have to go back 3000 years According to the Old Testament, God gave Palestine to the Hebrews (Jews) 1025 BC the Jews organized the kingdom of Israel in Palestine In 722 BC the Assyrians attacked & destroyed Israel Romans would destroy the Jewish state, enslave the Jews and spread them out throughout the Roman Empire This is known as the Diaspora which refers to any situation in which a group is forced to leave its homeland

Zionism After the Jews scattered throughout the Middle East & Europe the area previously known as Israel was occupied by Christians In the 600s the religion of Islam was introduced by Muhammad & Muslims took root in the area & defended it against Christian attack In the early 1900s a Theodore Herzl helps spread a Zionist movement Zionism= Belief that Jews should have own nation Many Zionists migrated to the former Israel which was controlled by Islamic Turks (Ottoman Empire) In 1918 Britain gained control of territory previously held by the Ottoman Empire The term Palestine was used to refer to the area formerly known as Israel as well as the West Bank & Gaza Strip In 1948 after WWII, Britain had to decide how to divide Palestine

Israel Established Palestinians (Muslims) feared that increasing Jewish immigrants would create hardship Britain called for partition (division) of the land Unable to find a compromise Britain turned the issue over to the U.N. The UN called for a partition of Palestine into a Palestinian & Jewish state Jerusalem a holy city for both religions would remain neutral Islamic countries & Palestinians voted against The Jews supported it partly because it gave them 55% of the land (only made up 34% of population) The U.S. & other European nations felt bad for the Jews b/c of the Holocaust They voted in approval & in 1948 Israel a separate Jewish state was created

Creation leads to Conflict The new nation of Israel got a hostile greeting from its neighbors The day after its creation six Arab states (Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia & Syria) invaded Israel Arabic is a language, but many Arab countries are Muslim This was the first of many Arab-Israeli wars, this one ending with an Israeli victory Israel depended on strong American support in this & the other wars The Palestinian state set aside by the UN never came about Israel seized half the land in the 1948-49 fighting , Egypt took the Gaza Strip & Jordan took the West Bank Many Palestinians (Muslims) fled & went to UN sponsored refugee camps surrounding their homeland

Suez Canal Crisis The 2nd Arab-Israeli conflict followed Egypt’s seizure of the Suez Canal in 1956 The Suez canal was built to connect the Mediterranean & Red Seas It was extremely valuable for trade The British & French provided air support to the Israelis as they invaded Egypt They quickly gained the Suez Canal back However, the world community, including the U.S & Soviet Union pressured Israel & its European allies to leave The left Egypt in control of the canal & ended the Suez crisis

Six-Day War Tensions between Israel & the Arab states began to build again in the years following the Suez crisis In 1967 Egypt & its Arab allies equipped by the Soviets were prepared to invade Israel They moved to cut off the Gulf of Aqaba, Israel’s outlet to the Red Sea Convinced the Arabs were about to attack, the Israelis attacked airfields in Egypt, Iran, Jordan & Syria Safe from air attack, Israeli ground forces attacked on three fronts The war was over in six days, Israel lost 800 troops, Arab losses were over 15,000 As a consequence of the Six-Day War Israel militarily occupied Jerusalem, the Sinai Peninsula & the West Bank This was meant to create a buffer zone Palestinians who lived in Jerusalem were given a choice of Israeli or Jordanian citizenship Palestinians living in other areas were not given the choice & were stateless

Attack on Yom Kippur A fourth Arab-Israeli conflict erupted in Oct. 1973 Egyptian President Anwar Sadat planned a join Arab attack on the holiest Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur The Israelis were caught by surprise Arab forces inflicted heavy casualties & recaptured territory lost in 1967 The Israelis, under their prime minister Golda Meir launched a counterattack & regained most territory An uneasy truce was agreed to after several weeks, ending the October war

Camp David Accords Since no treaty was signed ending Yom Kippur War, may people feared another one would start However, in 1977 Anwar Sadat (Egypt) stunned the world by offering peace to Israel No Arab country to that point had recognized Israel’s right to exist Sadat said that in exchange for peace, Israel would have to recognize the rights of Palestinians It would also have to return territory seized in the Six-Day war in 1967 In 1978, U.S. President Jimmy Carter invited Sadat & Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin to Camp David, the Presidential retreat in Maryland For 13 days they negotiated & in 1979, signed the Camp David Accords The first agreement between Israel and an Arab country, ended 30 years of hostility between Egypt & Israel

Terror Continues While world leaders praised Sadat, his peace initiative enraged many Arab countries In 1981, a group of Muslim extremists assassinated him Egypt’s new leader, Hosni Murbarak maintained peace with Israel Peace agreements between Israelis & Palestinians were harder to achieve Unwilling to give up territory they had seized for security, the Israelis began to build settlements on the West Bank & the Gaza Strip Palestinians in Israel resented Israeli rule

Conflict Causes Terrorism As Palestinian anger mounted, they turned increasingly to the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) led by Yasir Arafat During the 1970s & 1980s, the military wing of the PLO conducted an armed struggle against Israel Israel turned to strong measures, bombing suspected bases in Palestinian towns In 1982, the Israeli army invaded Lebanon in an attempt to destroy strongholds in Palestinian villages Israelis became involved in Lebanon’s civil war & were forced to withdraw In 1987, Palestinians began voicing their frustration in campaigns of civil disobedience called intifada or “uprising” The intifada took the form of boycotts, demonstrations & attack on Israeli soldiers The Intifada continued into the 1990s, finally in Oct. 1991 Israeli & Palestinian delegates met for the first peace talks

Where does it go from here? Status of the Israeli-occupied territories proved to be a bitter issue However, in 1993, secret talks held in Oslo, Norway produced a surprise agreement Israel’s Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin agreed to grant Palestinian self rule in the Gaza Strip & West Bank beginning with the town of Jericho PLO leader Arafat agreed, but the assassination of Rabin showed just how difficult it would be to work out Rabin was killed by Jewish extremists who opposed concessions to the Palestinians Rabin was succeeded by Benjamin Netanyahu who opposed the plan, but tried to stick to it Peace plans continued, but the election of Ariel Sharon, a former military leader, to Israeli prime minister complicated the process U.S. support of Israel has created conflict with Islamic countries and extreme groups who promote terror In Nov. 2004, Yasser Arafat, PLO leader died Some saw him as a strong leader, while other saw him as a terrorist It is yet to be seen as to how Arafat’s death will effect the conflict