Among the world’s most violent and protracted conflicts is the one between Israel and the Palestinian people. Its beginnings date back over a century. Between Israel and the Arab countries, there have been numerous wars. Israeli retaliation and crackdowns have also occurred, as have uprisings against Israeli occupation, known as intifadas. Among the ongoing effects of the ancient conflict over land, borders, and rights is the most recent conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. The region that Israelis and Palestinians both refer to as the “Holy Land” has been enmeshed in conflict for almost a century. Both Jews and Palestinian Arabs anticipated a state. They might finally control their destiny after the long-decomposing Ottoman Empire fell apart following World War I. Examine the background of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, its significant events and personalities, and the opportunities and challenges for achieving peace.
Israel Before 1948
After the Ottoman Empire, which had dominated that region of the Middle East, was defeated in World War I. Britain seized control of what is now known as Palestine. Along with other ethnic groups, the predominant population was Arab., while the minority was Jewish. The UK consented in principle to the creation of a national home in Palestine for Jews. The commitment known as the Balfour Declaration, tensions between the Jewish and Arab communities grew.
Although Palestinian Arabs had a centuries-old claim to the property that was against the relocation, Jews had historical ties to it. According to the British, the rights of the existing Palestinian Arab residents must be upheld. Jews began to arrive in greater numbers between the 1920s and 1940s. Many of them were escaping persecution in Europe. Demands for a sanctuary became even more urgent after six million Jews were murdered during the Holocaust. The United Nations (UN) agreed in 1947 to divide Palestine into Jewish and Arab states. Jerusalem would develop into a global metropolis. They contended that the plan granted the Jews greater land. Just hours before British rule ended, Jewish leaders in Palestine proclaimed the creation of an independent state called Israel.
Balfour Declaration
On November 2, 1917, more than a century ago, Lionel Walter Rothschild, a prominent member of the British Jewish community, received a letter from Arthur Balfour, the country’s foreign secretary. Despite being brief—only 67 words—the letter’s impact on Palestine continues to this day. It obligated the British government to facilitate the achievement of this objective and establish a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine. The Balfour Declaration is the name of the letter.
1948 Arab-Israeli War
The armies of five Arab countries surrounded and invaded Israel the day after it declared its independence. Israel dominated the majority of the region by 1949, when the conflict came to an end with an armistice. According to agreements, Israel now occupies West Jerusalem. Jordan occupies the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and Egypt occupies the Gaza Strip. Approximately 750,000 Palestinians were forced to leave their homes on land that became Israel and became refugees as a result. The event is called the Nakba (Catastrophe) in Arabic. Israel dominated the majority of the region by 1949, when the conflict came to an end with an armistice.
1967 Middle East War
It began when Israel attacked Egypt’s air force out of fear that Egypt and Syria would attack. Israel had taken the West Bank and East Jerusalem from Jordan, the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza from Egypt, and most of the Golan Heights from Syria. Israel took control of about a million Palestinians living in the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem. These regions are still under Israeli occupation. Israel signed a peace treaty with Egypt in 1979 and returned the Sinai. The majority of the international world has not acknowledged that Israel now owns East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, which it annexed.
First Intifada (1987–1993)
In December 1987, an Israeli truck struck two vans transporting Palestinian workers, killing four Palestinians, sparking the first Palestinian Intifada in the Gaza Strip.
With teenage Palestinians hurling stones at Israeli army tanks and troops, protests quickly expanded to the West Bank.
Additionally, it resulted in the formation of the Hamas movement, a branch of the muslim brotherhood. They used violent resistance to oppose the Israeli occupation. Young people were the main force behind the Intifada, which the Unified National Leadership of the Uprising led. A group of Palestinian political groups dedicated to bringing an end to Israeli occupation and achieving Palestinian independence.
The Second Intifada
With thousands of security troops stationed in and around Jerusalem’s Old City, Likud opposition leader Ariel Sharon made a provocative visit to the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The compound on September 28, 2000, sparked the start of the second Intifada. Over two days, clashes between Israeli authorities and Palestinian protesters left 200 people injured and five Palestinians dead.
Israel inflicted unparalleled harm on the Palestinian economy and infrastructure throughout the Intifada.
Status of the West Bank Now
Three million Palestinians are thought to reside in the West Bank. The West Bank is situated between Israel and the Jordan River. It is included in what are commonly referred to as the Occupied Palestinian Territories, along with East Jerusalem and Gaza. The vast majority of the world community supports the Palestinians in these regions and their desire to be a part of a future independent state. Although a Palestinian government known as the Palestinian Authority has controlled the majority of the West Bank’s towns and cities. Israel nonetheless maintains ultimate sovereignty over the region. In the West Bank and East Jerusalem, roughly 700,000 Jews live.. Since Israeli settlements are unlawful, Israel assumed power in 2022. The Israeli government declared its intention to increase the number of settlements. The International Court of Justice (ICJ), the highest court in the United Nations, declared in July 2024 that Israel’s continuous presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territories is unlawful. It claimed that Israel was in violation of international agreements on racism and apartheid and that it should remove all of its settlers.
Dispute Over Jerusalem
After capturing East Jerusalem during the 1967 war, Israel already controlled West Jerusalem and declared the entire city. It’s permanent capital. Jerusalem cannot be divided, it declares. East Jerusalem is the capital of a future Palestinian state, according to the Palestinians. Only a small percentage of the Palestinian community has decided to become Israeli citizens. East Jerusalem is viewed by the UN and the majority of people worldwide as Palestinian territory that Israel has occupied.
Separation of the Gaza Strip
A portion of the Mediterranean Sea, Israel, and Egypt encircle the Gaza Strip. It is 10 km wide and 41 km (25 miles) long. Gaza has one of the highest unemployment rates in the world. Before the most recent conflict between Israel and Hamas, the number of people relying on food assistance to survive was high, and many lived below the poverty line. After Egypt was forced to leave Gaza during the 1967 war, Israel took control of the Strip, establishing settlements and imposing military authority over the Palestinian inhabitants. Israel unilaterally withdrew its troops and settlers from Gaza in 2005. Because of Israel’s degree of control, the UN continues to consider Gaza to be Israeli-occupied territory.
United Nations and Recognition of Palestinian Statehood
A Palestinian petition for full UN membership, which is only available to nations, was approved by 143 of 193 members of the UN General Assembly in May 2024. It has the official status of “Permanent Observer State” at the UN, which grants it a seat but no vote. Along with the US, some European nations claim they will only recognise a Palestinian state as a long-term political settlement to the Middle East problem. The UK will recognise a Palestinian state at a time of our choosing. When it best serves the objective of peace. Israel rejects an independent Palestinian state, claiming it would be an intolerable threat, and asserts its historical claim to the West Bank.
Two-State Solution
International support exists for the “two-state solution” as a means of achieving peace between Israel and the Palestinians. With East Jerusalem as its capital, it suggests creating a separate Palestinian state encompassing the West Bank and Gaza. It would coexist with Israel. Israel opposes the idea of two states. It states that negotiations with the Palestinians must lead to any final deal and that statehood shouldn’t be required. Hamas does not support a two-state solution since it opposes Israel’s existence, but the Palestinian Authority does. Suppose refugees were allowed to return. Hamas claims it could accept a temporary ceasefire. Palestinian state based on the de facto borders of 1967, without formally acknowledging Israel.
1947 UN Partition Plan
Despite owning only 6% of the land, the Jewish population in Palestine had grown to 33% by 1947. Resolution 181, which called for the division of Palestine into Arab and Jewish states, was adopted by the UN. The Palestinians made up about 67% of the population at the time and controlled 94% of historic Palestine.
Palestinian Refugees
Those who lost their homes and their means of subsistence due to the 1967 Six-Day War and the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict are known as Palestinian refugees [292].[293] In 1949, an estimated 711,000 Palestinians were forced to leave Israel or flee.[294] According to the UN, all refugees’ descendants—not just Palestinian refugees—are also refugees [295]. There are 4.7 million Palestinian refugees as of 2010.[296] The 1967 Arab-Israeli War resulted in the displacement of between 350,000 and 400,000 Palestinians.[293] In Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip, a third of the refugees reside in officially designated refugee camps.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why can’t Palestine be a state?
Following 1967, several legal defences were put forth that rejected the Palestinians’ claim to statehood and self-determination. In general, they backed Israeli claims to the remaining Palestine Mandate area and suggested that Palestine was a land devoid of a legitimate sovereign.
Why did jews leave Israel?
The Jewish diaspora began when the Roman Empire (and its successor, the Byzantine State) began a protracted era of brutality, enslavement,
expulsion, displacement, forced conversion, and forced migration against the local Jewish community.
Who is ruling Palestine now?
Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh is the head of state of the Palestinian Authority. In addition, President Abbas is the general commander of the Fatah organisation and the chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organisation. In the West Bank, six security forces agencies of the Palestinian Authority were in operation.
Why did Christian leave Israel?
Christians accounted for about 10% of the population in 1948. It’s about 1% now. In the past ten years, over half of Gaza’s Christian population has departed. The Israeli occupation and a lack of economic opportunities are mentioned as the main reasons for departure.
