arab-israeli conflict

hussein-mcmann letters

world war one: British promised the Arabs independence (land) in exchange for support in the war against the Ottomans

balfour declaration

world war one: British promised Jews a homeland in exchange for war support

sykes picot agreement

secret agreement between the French and the British to carve up the ME and make an Arab state under their control

feisal-weizermann agreement

after world war one: Jews and Arabs make their own agreement w/ the idea of a two state solution

• Arabs would only accept if the Brits kept their wartime promises, which they did not

zionism

the desire for a Jewish country

world war two

Jews wanted a safe place to call home

• chose Palestine b/c of religious significance

• Arabs don’t want them moving in

un partition plan

1947

two state solution:
Israel for Jews and Palestine for Arabs

• after world war two

• Palestinians protested

green line / pre-1967 boundary

boundary b/w Israel and the West Bank

• came from the 1948 independence war

  • Israel was better organized than Palestine + Arab neighbors, so they won

• Israel took over Palestinian land, creating refugees

six day war

1967 war in which Israel launches attacks against neighbors (Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Iraq)

why?

• they were mobilizing troops on the border

• preemptive strike - Israel wanted to be on the offense

land claimed from the 1967 six day war

Egypt - Sinai peninsula and Gaza strip

Jordan - west bank

Syria - Golan Heights

• Arabs are left with nothing

• Israel wants to use this land as a buffer zone

camp david accords

vacation home for the president

1978 “land for peace agreement” b/w Israel and Egypt in which:

1. Egypt gave Israel recognition

   1. first country to acknowledge Israel as a country

2. Egypt got the Sinai Peninsula back

who negotiated the camp david accords

jimmy carter, prime minister begin (Israel), anwar sadat (Egypt)

intifada

• “shaking off”

• Palestinian uprising against Israeli soldiers in the 1980’s

oslo accords

a 1990’s PLAN for peace (not an agreement) w/ the goal of eventual Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank and Gaza - “land for peace”

• lack of trust made plan hard

• first time Palestine could self rule and first time Israel + Palestine negotiated for peace

independence war

1948

Israel declares independence and Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon attack

• Israel seized more land b/c they were better armed and organized

• created many Palestinian refugees

refugee

a person who seeks safety in another country to escape a crisis

who negotiated the oslo accords

yasser arafat (Palestine) and PM rabin (Israel)

oslo II accords

• gave Palestinians more land in the West Bank

• Jewish settlements stayed

both Oslo accords omitted major problems: settlements, borders, refugees, and Jerusalem

peace agreement between Israel and Jordan

came before the oslo II accords - Israel got borders, peace, recognition, and water rights

Palestinian political groups

Palestinian authority (federal government)

Hamas - terrorist group that is political

abraham accords

2020 effort for peace

Israel, Bahrain, and UAE, negotiated by USA

Israel got peace and recognition, Bahrain + UAE got slowing of Israeli settlements + slowing of annexing in the West Bank

both got economic opportunities and shared security concerns vs. Iran

issues blocking peace (Jerusalem)

israel pov:

• site of first and second Jewish temples

• temple mount + western wall

• fear of arab control - Jordan misused and limited access to holy sites

palestine pov:

• security barrier does not follow the Green Line - see it as a way for israel to steal land

• dome of the rock + noble sanctuary

temple mount (Jewish) + noble sanctuary (Muslim)

the name of a hilltop area where the most holy sites are located

western wall

the remains of the first and second Jewish temple ever

dome of the rock

monument built to honor the spot where Abraham sacrificed his son and Mohammed ascended to Heaven

issues blocking peace (borders)

Israel pov:

• built the security barrier to prevent terrorist attacks

• used to protect larger settlements close to the Green Line

• very effective

Palestine pov:

• believe the security barrier is a way for Israel to get more land

• not on the Green line, cut off Jerusalem + access to businesses, hospitals, and valuable land

issues blocking peace (settlements)

Israel pov:

• created as a land for immigrants

• used as a buffer and for resources

• won’t move because it’s hard to move thousands of people out

Palestine pov:

• thinks Israel is breaking the laws of warfare by annexing land

  • Israel argues that Palestine isn’t a country

• wants the land to be contiguous

contiguous

land that is connected

settlements

Jewish communities paid for and built by the government

outpost

Jewish communities not created by the government

colony

Palestinian term for the settlements; negative connotation

hamas

terrorist group that is political

• elected in 2006

• refused to recognize Israel, agree to past peace agreements, or renounce violence

gaza battle

2007 civil war: PA vs Hamas

• Hamas kicked the PA from Gaza and PA was left with only the West Bank