The Arab-Israeli Conflict Midterm

First Zionist Congress (1897)

Held in Basel, Switzerland; promoted the establishment of a Jewish state.

First and Second Aliyah

Early waves of Jewish migration to Ottoman-controlled Palestine, focusing on agricultural settlements.

Sykes-Picot Agreement (1916)

Secret agreement between Britain and France to divide Arab territories post-WWI.

Arab Revolt (1916-1918)

Led by Sharif Hussein of Mecca against Ottoman rule, with British support.

Balfour Declaration (1917)

British support for a Jewish homeland in Palestine.

British Mandate for Palestine (1920-1948)

League of Nations granted Britain control over Palestine, leading to increased Jewish immigration and tensions.

Arab Rebellion (1936-1939)

Palestinian Arabs revolted against British rule and Jewish immigration.

White Paper (1939)

Limited Jewish immigration to Palestine to 75,000 over five years, aimed at placating Arab opposition.

Exodus Affair (1947)

the 1947 incident involving a ship which carried over 4,500 Jewish Holocaust survivors attempting to immigrate to British-controlled Palestine illegally. The British navy intercepted the ship and, after a violent confrontation, forced the passengers back to Europe, ultimately returning them to displaced persons camps in Germany. The event garnered significant international attention, highlighting the plight of Jewish refugees and contributing to increased global support for the creation of Israel

UN Partition Plan (1947)

Proposed the division of Palestine into Jewish and Arab states; accepted by Jews, rejected by Arabs.

Proclamation of the State of Israel (May 14, 1948)

David Ben-Gurion declared Israel's independence.

First Arab-Israeli War (1948-1949)

Arab states invaded Israel; the war ended with the Armistice Agreements and Israel's expanded territory.

Palestinian Exodus (Nakba) (1948)

Around 700,000 Palestinians fled or were expelled from their homes, becoming refugees.

The Green Line (1949)

Armistice line after the First Arab-Israeli War, marking Israel's internationally recognized border until 1967.

Suez Crisis (1956)

Egypt's nationalization of the Suez Canal led to a military invasion by Israel, Britain, and France, followed by U.S. and Soviet intervention.

Six-Day War (June 5-10, 1967)

Israel preemptively attacked Egypt, Jordan, and Syria, capturing the Sinai Peninsula, Gaza Strip, West Bank, and Golan Heights.

UN Resolution 242 (1967)

Called for Israeli withdrawal from the occupied territories in exchange for peace.

Zionism

Jewish nationalist movement advocating for a homeland in Palestine, led by figures like Theodor Herzl.

Jewish National Fund

Organization responsible for land acquisition in Palestine for Jewish settlers.

Aliyah

Waves of Jewish immigration to Palestine

Arab Nationalism

Movement seeking Arab independence and unity, particularly after the decline of the Ottoman Empire.

Nakba

Term used by Palestinians to describe the 1948 exodus during the establishment of Israel.

Theodor Herzl

Founder of modern Zionism, author of Der Judenstaat (The Jewish State).

Sharif Hussein of Mecca

the ruler of the Hejaz region during the early 20th century and played a significant role in the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I. In exchange for leading the revolt, the British promised him an independent Arab kingdom, though this promise was not fully kept due to conflicting agreements like the Sykes-Picot Agreement and the Balfour Declaration.

David Ben-Gurion

Israel's first Prime Minister and leader during the establishment of Israel in 1948.

Gamal Abdel Nasser

Egyptian President who nationalized the Suez Canal and led Egypt in the Six-Day War; a central figure in Arab nationalism.

Yasser Arafat

Leader of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), emerging as a key figure post-1967.

Peel Commission (1937)

a British Royal Commission established in 1936 to investigate the causes of unrest in Mandatory Palestine. It released its report in 1937, concluding that Arab-Jewish tensions were irreconcilable and recommending the partition of Palestine into separate Jewish and Arab states, with a British-controlled corridor around Jerusalem. This was the first official proposal for partition, but it was rejected by Arab leaders and led to further tensions.

Hussein-McMahon Correspondence (1915-1916)

British promises of Arab independence, which were contradicted by the Balfour Declaration.

Armistice Agreements (1949)

Ceasefire agreements signed by Israel and neighboring Arab states after the First Arab-Israeli War.

Hezbollah

A radical Shiʿite Muslim organization in Lebanon engaged in guerrilla warfare against Israel

Hamas

a militant Islamic fundamentalist political movement that opposes peace with Israel and uses terrorism as a weapon

Levi Eshkol

Israeli Prime Minister from 1963-69. On May 27, 1967, at the request of the USA, he agreed to defer going to war for two weeks to give the USA time to get international support to put pressure on Egypt. He was criticized for this uncertainty within Israel, but it probably helped to ensure the success of the Six Day War, because it gave the Israeli army time to achieve maximum combat readiness.

Ba'athism

an Arab nationalist ideology that wanted to create a unified Arab country

Straits of Tiran

A crucial waterway for Israeli shipping, which Egypt blocked in 1967, sparking a significant escalation that led to war.

Egyptian-Syrian Defense Pact

Nasser and Syria signed a defense pact, signaling growing Arab unity against Israel

UN Emergency Force (UNEF)

A peacekeeping force deployed in the Sinai Peninsula after the Suez Crisis

Egypt's Closure of the Straits of Tiran (May 1967)

Considered a direct threat to Israel's economic and security interests, leading Israel to prepare for war

Withdraw of UNEF (1967)

Egypt demanded the removal of the UNEF from the Sinai, which was seen as a move toward military confrontation

Israeli Preemptive Strike (June 1967)

Israel launched a surprise attack on Egypt, destroying much of the Egyptian air force on the ground, which started the Six-Day War

King Abdullah I of Jordan

had the big army, the Arab Legion, and wanted to annex the West Bank and make it a part of Transjordan. Jordan is a large area but the land was not very fertile so the population was very limited before 1950. But in 1950 Jordan annexed the West Bank. In doing so Transjordan (the area beyond Jordan) became Jordan. After annexing the West Bank it became the "heart of the Kingdom of Jordan." Abdullah had gained 700k Palestinians in the West Bank, he tried to present himself as a champion of the Palestinian cause and grievances. The Palestinians dreamed that King Abdullah would somehow destroy Israel and let them return home. However, he did not have any interest in that. Abdullah's support for Palestinian aspirations was largely rhetorical. What he truly wanted was national Jordanian unity, which meant assimilating Palestinian Arabs to a Jordanian identity, and suppressing a distinct Palestinian identity. In 1967 Jordan lost the West Bank to Israel in the Six-Day War.

Haj Amin al-Husseini

Grand Mufti of Jerusalem and a prominent Palestinian Arab leader

Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) (1964)

organization with the purpose of the "liberation of Palestine" through armed struggle, with much of its violence aimed at Israeli civilians

Tripartite Declaration of 1950

an agreement made between the United States, Britain, and France, with the primary goal of maintaining stability and peace in the Middle East following the creation of Israel and the first Arab-Israeli War (1948)

Feisal and Weizman Exchange

a brief attempt at cooperation between Arab and Zionist leaders who agreed to support each other's national aspirations. One conditionally accepted Jewish settlement in Palestine as long as Arab independence was achieved