depth study #2 - Arab-Israeli Conflict 1948 to 1956

the creation of Israel

- Becomes an independent country on 14th May 1948

- David Ben Gurion becomes the first Prime Minister

- Recognised by the US and USSR

- Secular state; Arabs technically have the same civil rights as Jews

- Tel Aviv becomes the capital

- Jerusalem to be managed by the UN

- Immediately attacked by Syria, Lebanon, Transjordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Egypt

- Egypt occupies Gaza, Jordan occupies the West Bank

1948 to 1949 - Nakba

- The expulsion of Arabs

- The Jewish state becomes 50% larger than the UN plan due to Israeli land gains

- Gain lands in the North and South as well as West Jerusalem

- 'Palestine' was no longer really a Palestinian state

- 700,000 Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the West Bank and surrounding Arab countries

1948 to 1949 - First phase of the Arab-Israeli War

- Arab armies from six surrounding countries immediately invaded, supplemented by those who had fled during the Civil War

- Referred to as the War of Independence in Israel

- main focus of fighting was Jerusalem, Jews unable to defeat the Arab Legion as planned but gained control of West Jerusalem before a ceasefire was signed

June 1948 - First Ceasefire

enacted by UN, used by Israelis to build up weapons and forces from Eastern Europe

1948 to 1949 - second phase of the Arab-Israeli War

- Israelis keen to take over Arab lands to secure the route to Jerusalem, successful as they increased their land in the south and gained control of Galilee, peace plan introduced by UN representative Count Bernadotte who was then assassinated by the Stern Gang

- Stern Gang and Irgun disbanded and incorporated into the Israeli Defence Force (IDF)

1948 to 1949 - third phase of the Arab-Israeli War

Israelis drove Egyptian forces out of the Negev Desert, final ceasefire agreed in January 1949

January 1949 - final ceasefire

agreed upon with the help of the UN but no official peace treaties were signed as this would mean recognising Israel

Weapons and Equipment during the first Arab-Israeli War

Israelis poorly equipped at the start but gained access to equipment from Eastern Europe during first truce, gained tech from fighting in the British army during WW2

Israeli political unity and leadership during the first Arab-Israeli War

Ben-Gurion was a determined and inspiring leader with sufficient vision, able to plan ahead, common goal, bravery of Israeli military leadership, united under Ben-Gurion and Jewish Agency

Military during the first Arab-Israeli War

Israeli army increased from 35,000 to nearly 100,000 by December 1948, total number of Arab troops was similar at the start but didn't build up as quickly, Israelis had British military experience (25,000), only organised and trained Arab force was Arab Legion (10,000)

Arab disunity during the first Arab-Israeli War

coalition of armies from several countries, no single common aim or plan, no organised military or defence force, Arab army was technically led by King Abdullah, but his motives were questioned

Jordanian aims and actions during the first Arab-Israeli War

Abdullah had a secret meeting with Jewish leaders, agreed not to invade Israel and gained parts of the West Bank, saw himself as the leader of an enlarged Arab state

1950s - Israel's relationships with neighbouring countries

- Final ceasefire in January 1949

- Changed Israel's relationships with each Arab country

- Formal peace treaty was never signed as this would mean recognising Israel

- Borders and refugees were not agreed on

1949 - general relationships after the war

- Israel lost 6000 lives but were still well organised

- Israelis now controlled 79% rather than allocated 55%

- Arab refugees in Gaza and the West Bank (1 million)

- Between January and July of 1949 armistice agreements were signed under UN supervision

1949 - Israel's relationship with Jordan

- Armistice signed in April 1949

- Abdullah wanted to keep control of the West Bank; the Israelis were quick to agree

- Became the enlarged kingdom of Jordan

- Israelis keen to make peace as they would keep control of newer Western Jerusalem

1949 - Israel's relationship with Egypt

- First armistice agreement in 1949

- Confirmed pre-war borders

- Gaza was to be under Egyptian military rule

- Israel had some troops in the Gaza area, but the US convinced them to leave

1949 - Israel's relationship with Syria

- Agreement took longer as Syrian forces took control of some territory in 1948

- In July 1949 the UN negotiated withdraw, became a demilitarised zone

- Provided a buffer zone as Israel were unable to keep troops or weapons there

1940/50s - Israel

- 40s; less united, less organised government, British influence

- 50s; well established education and military, more connections with other countries, better technology

1940/50s - Perpetual War

- no peace treaties signed for 30 years, couldn't agree on borders or refugees

- Arab League blamed Israel, Israel blamed the Arabs

- Arab public opinion barrier to peace as they were bitter about defeat and hated Israel

1950 - Law of Return

only Jews had the right to become Israeli citizens, population doubled within four years

1950s - survival and development of Israel

- welcomed immigration to aid security

- IDF received training, learnt Hebrew and defended + shaped the nation

- desert irrigated and cultivated, new industries built

- aided by US; Gov + American Jews sent approx $1 billion

1860s - Suez Canal built

- funded by the British and French

- used Egyptian labour, many died

- essential for the British as they had many military bases in the East and depended on oil from the Persian Gulf (last 6 weeks without)

- 2/3 of Western European oil supplies passed through

1952 - Britain and the Suez Canal

- Prime Minister Anthony Eden told Khrushchev that 'oil supplied were so vital that Britain would fight for them'

- Britain had 70,000 troops stationed in the canal zone

- Egypt felt this was intolerable and saw it as an act of British imperialism

- Egyptians blamed the government and King Farouk for their country's weakness, and many army officers also blamed them for being defeated by the Israelis in 1949 due to poor equipment and incompetent commanders

1952 - Egyptian Revolution

- led by Nasser and the Free Officers movement

- military coup that overthrew the Egyptian monarchy

- wanted to make Egypt entirely independent and rid it of British troops

1954 - Nasser becomes president

- originally General Naguib became President but all the power lay with Colonel Nasser

- Nasser becomes president

- persuaded the British to withdraw their troops from the canal zone

- Britain initially agreed because they wanted to use Egypt as an ally against the Soviet Union during the Cold War due to the Suez Canal

1955 to 1956 - Nasser's actions

- Refused anti-Soviet coalition as wanted to remain neutral in the Cold War

- Israel wanted Nasser gone after he encouraged Palestinian raids in Gaza

- February 1955; Israel attacked Gaza and killed 35 Egyptian troops; Ben-Gurion wanted to embarrass Nasser

- Led to demands for reprisals from Palestinian Arabs and Egyptians, Nasser began to train the Fedayeen (Palestinian Arab) guerillas to fight in Israel

- September 1955; Nasser announced a deal to obtain arms from Czechoslovakia, controversial as it was part of the Soviet Union, so he was no longer neutral

- West thought they could control Nasser because they were financing the Aswan Dam (would irrigate the Egyptian desert)

- Nasser further angered the West by recognising Communist China in 1956

- Britain and US withdrew their loans for the Aswan Dam

- Nasser responded by announcing he was nationalising the Suez Canal and would use the profits to build the dam

- Britain and France withdrew their canal pilots, but it remained open

- Nasser became a hero of the Arab world

- PM Anthony Eden decided to intervene

July 1956 - Suez Canal nationalised

response to Suez Crisis and Britain + US withdrawing loans for the Aswan Dam

1956 - Suez War (second Arab Israeli War)

- October 1956; Israeli forces invaded Egypt, advanced towards the Suez Canal

- Britain and France then ordered Egypt and Israel to cease fighting and withdraw 10 miles, threatening force upon refusal

- 31 October 1956; British and French planes bombed Egyptian airfields and destroyed the AirForce, as well as bombing Port Said (a city at the Northern end of the canal)

- 5 November 1956; British and French troops landed at Port Said and advanced along the canal, Egypt responded by sinking ships filled with concrete to obstruct them

1956 - results of the Suez War

- Arab nations condemned the Anglo-French actions and stopped oil and supplies to the West

- The US also condemned the actions as they worried they would lose the support of the Arab states

- US government threatened to cut off financial aid to Britain and withhold oil supplies

- Soviet Union threatened to use military force

- The UN declared a ceasefire and ordered the British and French to withdraw with an emergency force supervising

- Israel gained a little bit of land back and some access to the canal for shipping

1956 - winners of the Suez War

- Nasser; became an Arab hero

- Egypt; removed British troops and nationalised canal

- Israel; made some gains, proved the IDF strengths, prevented raids and regained access

1956 - losers of the Suez War

- Britain; Eden was forced to resign and there was tension with the US

- France; underestimated the Egyptians, lost power and influence

- US; Arabs more willing to seek Soviet aid

1957 - Eisenhower Doctrine

- Middle Eastern countries could request US economic or military aid if threatened by armed aggression

- US forces could protect nations from armed aggression from any country under international communism

- Many Arabs saw it as an attempt to advance Western influence and restrict Arab nationalism

- Syrians publicly denounced the initiative as an example of US imperialism

February 1955

Israel attacks Gaza, killing 35 Egyptian troops