THE ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT

An Executive Summary submitted by:

Cabrera, Daniel Anthony L.
Flores, Josef Reinard I.
Guanio, Arvin
Joaquin, Blanche Louise

In Partial Fulfilment for the Course

Asian Civilization

September 7, 2018
Palestine before the Ottoman Empire
 “Jebusite” a Canaan Tribe once lived in Palestine 6000 Years ago and as the years passed

by, more and more tribes resided in the said area coming from the Mediterranean Sea. The

place eventually became known as the Land of Canaan and many Palestinians of today

have claimed to have descended from them.

Origin of the Name of Palestine

 The name originated from the tribe of the Philistines or tribes who came from the sea. This

sea can be seen in the map of the Middle East part of the world which is the Mediterranean

Sea. Specifically in 134 AD, a Roman Emperor Hadrian has been continuously oppressing

the Jewish people in the Kingdom of Judea and the remaining Jews to exile. As he was

determined to obliterate the existence he decided to rename the province of Judea to “Syria

Palestina”. The basis of “Syria Palestina” was from the Philistines who were the main

enemy of the Jews. Overtime many nations have lived and resided in Palestine or Modern

Day Israel. Some ecamples would be Canaanites, Prophet of David (1004 BC), Prophet of
 Solomon (963 BC), Kingdom of Israel (923 BC), Assyrians (721 BC), Babylonians (586

BC), Persians (539 BC), Greeks (332 BC), Romans (63 BC) and the Crusades (636 AD).

End of 19th Century

 Zionists began to arise and the Palestine Conflict began. It was in this time span that the

Ottoman Empire have full authority to Palestine. During this time the Palestine Population

was 460,000 while the Jews occupied 3% of the land mass.

 Zionists are people who advocate Israel’s Ideology which is Zionism. Zionism is a belief

establish by Theodor Herzl. He was the one who formed the Zionist Organization and

promoted Jewish immigration to Palestine in an effort to form a Jewish state. It began in

1882 along with the first wave of Jewish immigration to Palestine.

The Ottoman Empire in the Middle East

 In 1299 AD, the Ottoman Turks established there empire specifically in South West and

Central Asia and 600 years later during World War 1, the Ottoman Empire took the side of

Austria and Germany against England and France. England and France however decided

to move to the weaker parts of the Ottoman Empire and helped many local and ethnic
 groups to rebel against the Ottoman Empire and become independent. This was done by

putting loyal and local rulers in charge by giving their troops money and army resources.

Sykes and Picot Agreement (1916)

 This was a secret accord signed on May 16, 1916 that carved up the ultimate control over

the Arab territories to different zones of influence under British, France and Russian

Control. This agreement was signed by Mark Sykes and Fracois Georges Picot. They drew

a line extending from Palestine to Iraq in order to mark the land South and East for Britain

and North and West for France. Basically, France took over Syria and Lebanon while

England took over Palestine or Modern Day Israel. The purpose for this agreement was

signed to protect Britain and France of their influence in the invaded territories under the

Sykes and Picot Agreement. Another would be that the British wanted to protect land and

sea routes to India. However the Arabs did not know the division of the land under the

Sykes and Picot Agreement until the Russian newspapers fully furnished a copy of the

agreement and that Britain promised them something entirely different.

Balfour Declaration of 1917

 Arthur Balfour a British Foreign Secretary penned a letter that would change the face of

the Middle East. This declaration was for the purpose of establishing a National Home for

the Jewish People and wherein nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and

religious rights of exisiting non-jewish communities in Palestine. This was actually a secret

promise given by the UK to the Jews in establishing a state in Palestine and support there

immigration and land ownership. This was backed up by the Unites States Government.

This declaration created different views for Jews and Arabs which eventually led to their

conflict.
San Remo Conference of 1920

 This was an international meeting and held the conclusion of World War 1, where they

determined the precise boundaries of the division of land or territories captured by the allies.

This was attended by England, France, Italy and Japan with the United States as the neutral

observer and this occurred in San Remo Italy. It was attended by the four Principal Allied Powers

of World War I who were represented by the prime ministers of Britain (David Lloyd

George), France (Alexandre Millerand), Italy (Francesco Nitti) and by Japan's Ambassador Keishirō

Matsui. The San Remo Resolution adopted on 25 April 1920 incorporated the Balfour

Declaration of 1917. It and Article 22 of the Covenant of the League of Nations were the basic

documents upon which the British Mandate for Palestine was constructed.
Peel Commission of 1937

 During the revolt, Britain established the Peel commission which was formed to determine

the reason behind the conflict between the Jews and the Arabs and the commission

recommended to divide Palestine into a Jewish State and an Arab State, however Jerusalem

which is the center of conflict of both parties will be under the British Mandate. For the

Arabs, this meant evacuating hundreds and thousands of Palestines to the Arab States. In

1937, The Jews originally owned 5% of the Palestine Population but the proposed Jewish

State by the Peel Commission was for the Jews to take 33% of the entire Palestine territory

which aggravated the Arabs.

Macdonald White Paper of 1939

 This banned Jewish Immigration to Palestine after 5 Years and offers Palestine

independence in 10 years and this also restricted land transfers from Arabs to Jews. This

was rejected by the Zionist Movement and eventually committed bloody massacres.

Haganah, 1920, led by Yitzok Rabin is the biggest jewish militant and later became known

as the Israeli Army; Irgun, 1931, lead by Menacham Begin is a more violent group that
 splintered off Haganah and the Stern Gang in 1940, led by Yitzhak Shamir which is

considered to be one of the most radical militias to Palestine Arabs and Britain.

UN Palestine Partition Plan 181(II) on 1947

 This was the time when Britain gave to the United Nations the burden of the middle-east

conflict in which the United Nations proposed to divide Palestine into two states one for

the Israel and one for the Jews. Jerusalem will be under international jurisdiction. At this

time, Jews onwed originally 6.5%of Palestine however this resolution gave 56% of Land

to the Jews which created more conflict in the Middle East. In 1948 war between the Arabs

and the Zionists broke out in which at the end of the war, Zionists began taking more land

occupying 78% of Palestine and establishing the State of Israel in which the US

immediately recognized the new state.

 1967 “six day war”

 The Six-day war was fought between from June 5-10, 1967 which resulted in a decisive

victory for Israel. This war was caused due to an ominous build up of Arab forces (Egypt,

Syria, Jordan and Iraq) by launching simultaneous attacks against Egypt, Syria and Jordan.

But they were no match for Israel’s proficient armed forces. After the war, Israel was able to

occupy the Gaza Strip and they Sinai Peninsula of Egypt, the Golan Heights of Syria and the

West Bank and Arab Sector of East Jerusalem which was under the rule of Jordan. When the

Cease fire took effect on June 11, Israel’s territory has increased and they have also taken the

old city of Jerusalem and also about one million Arabs were placed under Israel's direct control

in the newly captured territories. This new territories would prove useful in the Yom Kippur

war(1973) a few years later. The war caused massive casualties on the losing side (Egypt,

Syria, Jordan and Iraq). Between 776 and 983 Israelis were killed and 4,517 were wounded.

The total casualties for the Arab coalition was between 9,800 and 15,000 killed or wounded.
1973 Yom Kippur War.

 In 1973, 6 years after the “Six Day War”, the lands of Sinai and Golan Heights are under

the authority of the Government of Israel. Such incident triggered both Syria and Egypt to

avenge such hostile takeover of their lands. Both Syria and Egypt agreed to conduct a

Surprise attack against the Israel. This is the Beginning of Yom Kippur War.

 The main reason for the occupancy of the land of Sinai is based on the Judaic ideology.

Sinai is a very important religious place for the Jews because it is where God, through

Moses, gave the 10 Commandments to the “Chosen People” or the Jews. Not only is it

religiously relevant, but also economically. It is only through Sinai that the Israelites are

able to gain access of the Suez Canal. The Suez Canal is a very important route since it is

the center of shipping from Asia to the Western Powers. The Suez Canal is also the faster

route than the Cape of Good Hope going around the southern hemisphere of the African

Continent.

 At the heat of Cold War, the Soviet Union Supported the Offensive of Egypt and Syria.

Supporting their cause of reclaiming their land. Israel, on the other hand, was given aid by

the US. Providing them 22’000 tons of Military Weaponry.

  As a punishment for US’ involvement on supporting Israel resulted to the 1973 Oil Crisis

in America. The Oil producing countries raised the oil price by 70% and decreased

production by 5%. After the incident, Israel gave back the Sinai Peninsula back to Egypt

1979, retaining the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Contentions of Both Parties

 Both Israel and Palestine have raised multiple contentions on why they should have

control over the land. It is based on who should exercise sovereignty over the land which

is influenced by strong religious and ethnic beliefs that the land is theirs. Israel contentions

are more on the religious side which states that, the basis of them setting in the area which

they consider their land is on the legitimacy of the Zionist enterprise of returning to Eretz

Yisrael based on Jewish descent from ancient Israelites. They also contend that they did

not come as colonizers, but as pioneers and redeemers of the land, and did not intend to

disrupt the current inhabitants of the land. And Israel also contended that the British,

through the Balfour Declaration supported the idea of the Jews settling into the land.

 Palestine contentions are more focused on the ethnic side and contends that, Judaism

(the religion of Israel) is a religion of revelation, and has no inherent tie to a particular land.

Jews are not a nation but rather, a community of believers. They also contend that it was a

European colonialist enterprise because of the support of the British through the Balfour

Declaration and was intended as an ideology of robbing Arabs of their ancestral land.they

also contend that their ancestors were there before the Israelites, as shown by both biblical
 and archaeological evidence. They also contend that all the revolts of the Palestinian people

against the first and second Jewish (the Aliyah) Immigration were justified.

Palestine Liberation Organization

 The Palestine Liberation Organization is a political organization claiming to represent the

world’s Palestinians. It’s original charter stated that it desired for a Palestinian state

established within the entirety of the border of the British mandate prior to the 1948 war

(i.e. the current boundaries of the state of Israel). It was formed in 1964 to centralize the

leadership of various Palestinian groups. It only came to prominence after the “Six-day

war” of 1967,and came to promote a distinctively Palestinian agenda. Palestinian sought

greater autonomy in their struggle with Israel and employed military tactics to try to

achieve it. This approach changed when they accepted the Israel’s right to exist in exchange

for Israel recognizing it as the legitimate representative of Palestinians.

Hamas

 Hamas is Palestinian Sunni-Islamist fundamentalist organization and militant group

founded in 1987 during the first Intifada. It has waged war on Israel since it’s founding and

seeks to replace Israel with a Palestinian state. It also governs Gaze Independently from

the PLO. It’s original charter was revised in 2017 to allow for acceptance in the West Bank

and Gaza Strip rather than the entire territory, though Hamas still refuses to recognize the

legitimacy of the Israeli State.

Intifadas

 The intifadas were two Palestinian uprisings against Israel, the first in 1980 and the second

in 2000. The intifadas had a dramatic effect on Israeli-Palestinian relations; the secondis

widely seen as marking the end of the 1990s era negotiating process and ushering in a new,

darker era in Israeli-Palestinian relations.

 The first intifada was a series of Palestinian demonstrations, nonviolent actions like mass

boycotts and Palestinians refusing to work jobs in Israel, and attacks on Israelis. Palestinian

fatalities dramatically outpaced Israeli ones, as the Israeli military responded to the protests

and attacks with heavy force.

 The second intifada grew out of the collapse of the peace process in 2000. Negotiations

between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat broke down,

and the intifada began shortly afterwards. Typically, Israelis blame a conscious decision

by Arafat to turn to violence for the intifada's onset, while Palestinians point to an
 intentionally provocative visit to the contested Temple Mount by Israeli politician Ariel

Sharon. While both Arafat and Sharon played some part, the central cause was likely a

basic mistrust between the two sides that made war inevitable after peace talks broke down.

 The second intifada, together with the wave of rocket fire from Gaza after the Hamas

takeover, had a transformative effect on Israeli attitudes toward the conflict. The Israeli

peace camp's traditional argument, that Israel would be eventually rewarded for trading

land for peace, became significantly less popular. Skepticism of the peace process grew,

complicating future efforts to arrive at a two-state agreement.

What is the Israeli-Palestinian peace process?

 Sometimes called "Oslo" after the 1993 Oslo Accords that kicked it off, the peace process

is an ongoing American-mediated effort to broker a peace treaty between Israelis and

Palestinians. The goal is a "final status agreement," which would establish a Palestinian

state in Gaza and the West Bank in exchange for Palestinians agreeing to permanently end

attacks on Israeli targets a formula often called "land for peace."

 Any successful peace initiative would need to resolve the four core issues that have plagued

the peace process: West Bank borders/settlements, Israeli security, Palestinian refugees,

and Jerusalem. So far there's been little success, and there are three major hurdles to any

agreement.
Camp David Accord

 This is an Israeli, Egyptian peace deal 1977 May - Menachem Begin's right-wing Likud

party wins surprise election victory, partly by harnessing non-European Jews' resentment

at political hegemony of European-origin Jews.

 Launches economic liberalization, and brings religious Jewish parties into mainstream

Egyptian President Anwar Sadat visits Jerusalem and begins the process that leads to

Israel's withdrawal from Sinai and Egypt's recognition of Israel in the Camp David Accords

of 1978. Accords is also pledge Israel to expand Palestinian self-government in the West

Bank and Gaza.

Laws Regarding the Israel-Palestine Conflict

 Balfour Decleration

In 1917, the Balfour made a promise to the Jewish Communities that they will be provided

with a state of their own in Palestine without prejudice to civil and religious rights of the current

inhabitants of the land.

 Peel Commission
In 1936, the civil unrest seems uncontrollable in Palestine. On 7 July 1937, the commission

published a report that, for the first time, stated that the League of Nations Mandate had become

unworkable and recommended partition.

 Resolution 181 of 1947

United Nations Resolution 181, resolution passed by the United Nations (UN) General

Assembly in 1947 that called for the partition of Palestine into Arab and Jewish states, with

the city of Jerusalem as a corpus separatum (Latin: “separate entity”) to be governed by a

special international regime. The resolution—which was considered by the Jewish community

in Palestine to be a legal basis for the establishment of Israel, and which was rejected by the

Arab community—was succeeded almost immediately by violence.

 Resolution 242 of 1967

The resolution is the formula proposed by the Security Council for the resolution of the Arab–

Israeli conflict, in particular, ending the state of belligerency then existing between the 'States

concerned', Israel and Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. The resolution deals with five

principles; withdrawal of Israeli forces, 'peace within secure and recognized boundaries',

freedom of navigation, a just settlement of the refugee problem and security measures

including demilitarized zones. It also provided for the appointment of a Special Representative

to proceed to the Middle East in order to promote agreement on a peaceful and accepted

settlement in accordance with the principles outlined in the resolution.

 Resolution 446 of 1979

United Nations Security Council resolution 446, adopted on 22 March 1979, concerned the

issue of Israeli settlements in the "Arab territories occupied by Israel since 1967, including

Jerusalem". This refers to the Palestinian territories of the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the

Gaza Strip as well as the Syrian Golan Heights. In the Resolution, the Security Council

determined: "that the policy and practices of Israel in establishing settlements in the Palestinian

and other Arab territories occupied since 1967 have no legal validity and constitute a serious

obstruction to achieving a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East"

 Oslo Accords

The Oslo Accords are signed in 1993 in Washington, D.C. between the Palestine Liberation

Oragnization and Israel for a more peaceful treatment to both sides.

Oslo Accords II was signed in Taba, Egypt. A peace process aimed at achieving a peace treaty

based on United Nations Security Council Resolutions 242and 338, and at fulfilling the "right

of the Palestinian people to self-determination." This accords also focused on the control of

the communities between the Israelites and Palestinians in West Bank

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