1. What was the Ottoman Empire?
An empire that at the height of its power controlled most of the Middle East and northern Africa. Thought of themselves as unifiers of different ethnic groups. Only world power to challenge the dominance of Europe throughout the world.

2. How did they keep the empire together?
Ottomans allowed people they conquered to keep governing themselves under their own laws as long as they paid tribute to empire
Tolerated all religions
Improved the lives of peasants
They knew when to stop conquering and focus on defense
Conquered peoples could earn high government posts though education and merit
They controlled trade routes and charged Europe to use them. This kept the empire wealthy and military strong.

3. According to Judaic scripture, God gave Moses the laws while the Hebrews were on the Exodus from Egypt.

4. About 2,000 years ago the Roman Empire grew around the Mediterranean Sea.

5. The Jews revolted against Roman rule.
The rebellion was crushed and the Jews forced to leave Israel.

6. The Jews should have their own homeland…
Israel ceased to exist in 70 AD, and the Jews spread out around the world.
In the late 1800s, a Hungarian Jew named Theodore Herzl came up with an idea that would protect Jewish people from discrimination…
The Jews should have their own homeland…
This started the Zionist movement.
Jewish populations lived throughout the world.
Throughout history, the Jewish people lived in other people’s countries, and periodically they were discriminated against.

7. During WWI, the British Foreign Minister, Lord Balfour, issued the Balfour Declaration.
The British government promised to support the Zionist cause of creating a homeland for Jews in Palestine.

8. After World War I, the League of Nations gave the lands of the Ottoman Empire to the British and the French as Mandates (to look after until the people were ready for independence).

9. After World War I, the Zionists encouraged Jewish immigration to Palestine.
As conditions in Nazi Germany and Europe worsened for Jews, many decided to start new lives in Palestine.

10. The horrors of the Holocaust convinced many that the Jews needed a homeland.

11. The Arabs rejected this.
In 1947, the United Nations proposed dividing Palestine into a Jewish and an Arab state.
The Arabs rejected this.
The following year, Israel declared its independence and became a country.
This led to the Arab-Israeli War of 1948.

12. The Israeli military proved to be better equipped, trained, and motivated.

13. Today there are more than 3
Today there are more than 3.7 million Palestinian refugees living in refugee camps throughout the Middle East and many more exiles worldwide. The refugees have a claim to citizenship. The government of Israel, however, opposes Palestinian immigration, in order to maintain the Jewish character of the state.