Aya christina merhej
Id:202100027
Arab-Israeli conflict:
The first intifada
Dec 8, 1987 – Sep 13, 1993
By the end of the 19th century, the anti-Semitism that the European Jews were
experiencing in Europe prompted them to start looking for a solution They
developed the concept of Zionism, or the desire to establish a secure Jewish state
for all Jews worldwide. The primary driving force behind the conflict between
Palestinians and Israelis was the desire for a Jewish state in Palestine. When the
Israeli settlers arrived, the Jewish people and society had been taught that Palestine
was a “land with no people and that Jews were a people with no land”; yet,
Palestine was really occupied country by Arabs who had a culture and had positive
connections with the outside world. With a total population of 462456 people in
1878, Palestinians (Muslims and Christians) made up 96.8% of the population,
while Jews made up to only 3.2%1. 65000 European Jews moved to Palestine
between the years 1882 to 19142. Since the 1917 Belfour Declaration, which
asserted the right of the Jewish people to establish a state over the territory of
Palestine, more Jews have immigrated to Palestine under British rule. In contrast to
the Palestinians, who were denied the right to self-determination, Britain was
strongly supportive of the Zionist cause and assisted it in many ways in
establishing its state. The earliest conflicts between Palestinians and Israelis
occurred in the 1920s when the Palestinians became aware of European
involvement in their nation. Over 108800 Jewish immigrants came to Palestine
between 1920 and 1931. With a total population of 1,035,145 in 1931, the
percentage of Palestinians dropped to 81.6% while the percentage of Jews rose to
1
https://www.cjpme.org/fs_007, Factsheet Series No. 7, updated: June 2022, Canadians for Justice and
Peace in the Middle East “DEMOGRAPHICS OF HISTORIC PALESTINE PRIOR TO 1948”
2
https://www.cjpme.org/fs_181, Factsheet Series No. 181, created: November 2013, Canadians
for Justice and Peace in the Middle East,“JEWISH IMMIGRATION TO HISTORICAL
PALESTINE”
, 16.9%. Hitler's rise to power in Germany between 1932 and 1945 led to the
immigration of 174,000 more Jews to Palestine in just 5 years, more than doubling
the number of Jews living there. Palestine welcomed 119,800 Jewish immigrants
between 1937 and 1945. The campaign to establish a Jewish state over the region
of Palestine was stepped up as the world tried to atone for the murderous practices
that the Nazi Germans had carried out against the Jewish people. The Palestinians
were made to pay for the Nazis' error. When the conflict between Palestinians and
Israelis erupted in 1947, Britain turned over the issue of Palestine to the UN (UN).
A proposal that would have split Palestine into two states (one Arab and one
Jewish) was forced onto the UN. Despite the Palestinians making up 69% of the
people and controlling more than 92% of the land, only 43% of it was allocated to
the Arab state. On the other hand, the Jewish State received 56% of the land
despite the fact that Jews only made up 31% of the population and owned less than
8% of the total area3. Later, the Zionist authorities had the advantage in terms of
military capability, which they utilized to take the majority of Palestinian cities.
The massacre at the village of Deir Yassin in 1948, where 250 Palestinians,
including men, women, and children, were systematically and brutally killed, was
the most infamous campaign.4 In addition to the systematic expulsion of
Palestinians, it also represented an ethnic cleansing operation that was occurring.
As a result of the intense dread and panic this campaign instilled in the Palestinian
people, 300 000 of them were forced to flee for safety.
On May 14, 1948, Israel declared its independence, which came to be known to
Palestinians as al-Nakbah. The following day, neighboring Arab nations launched
an attack on Israel. Despite strong rhetoric from the Arab side, the number of
soldiers they dispatched was noticeably low, giving Israel the upper hand for most
of the conflict. As a result, Israel seized a significant portion of the territory that
the UN's dividing plan designated for the Palestinians. 78% of all of Palestine's
land was incorporated in the new Israeli state. Jordan was given authority of the
West Bank, and Egypt was given control of the Gaza Strip. Years later, ongoing
tensions between Israel and its neighboring Arab nations caused the six-day war of
1976 where Israel prevailed against Egypt, Jordan, and managed to seize the West
Bank and Gaza Strip. More than 400,000 people were displaced during the battle;
half of them had already been relocated in 1948, making this their second
displacement in less than 20 years. Palestinians endured difficult social and
economic conditions throughout the next years of the occupation; they were treated
poorly and were forced to live as third-class citizens. Both the UN resolutions and
3
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "United Nations Resolution 181". Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 Nov. 2014,
https://www.britannica.com/topic/United-Nations-Resolution-181. Accessed 8 December 2022.
4
Farraj, A. R. (2022, April 9). The deir yasin massacre, 9 April 1948. Institute for Palestine Studies. Retrieved
December 8, 2022, from https://www.palestine-studies.org/en/node/1651135
Id:202100027
Arab-Israeli conflict:
The first intifada
Dec 8, 1987 – Sep 13, 1993
By the end of the 19th century, the anti-Semitism that the European Jews were
experiencing in Europe prompted them to start looking for a solution They
developed the concept of Zionism, or the desire to establish a secure Jewish state
for all Jews worldwide. The primary driving force behind the conflict between
Palestinians and Israelis was the desire for a Jewish state in Palestine. When the
Israeli settlers arrived, the Jewish people and society had been taught that Palestine
was a “land with no people and that Jews were a people with no land”; yet,
Palestine was really occupied country by Arabs who had a culture and had positive
connections with the outside world. With a total population of 462456 people in
1878, Palestinians (Muslims and Christians) made up 96.8% of the population,
while Jews made up to only 3.2%1. 65000 European Jews moved to Palestine
between the years 1882 to 19142. Since the 1917 Belfour Declaration, which
asserted the right of the Jewish people to establish a state over the territory of
Palestine, more Jews have immigrated to Palestine under British rule. In contrast to
the Palestinians, who were denied the right to self-determination, Britain was
strongly supportive of the Zionist cause and assisted it in many ways in
establishing its state. The earliest conflicts between Palestinians and Israelis
occurred in the 1920s when the Palestinians became aware of European
involvement in their nation. Over 108800 Jewish immigrants came to Palestine
between 1920 and 1931. With a total population of 1,035,145 in 1931, the
percentage of Palestinians dropped to 81.6% while the percentage of Jews rose to
1
https://www.cjpme.org/fs_007, Factsheet Series No. 7, updated: June 2022, Canadians for Justice and
Peace in the Middle East “DEMOGRAPHICS OF HISTORIC PALESTINE PRIOR TO 1948”
2
https://www.cjpme.org/fs_181, Factsheet Series No. 181, created: November 2013, Canadians
for Justice and Peace in the Middle East,“JEWISH IMMIGRATION TO HISTORICAL
PALESTINE”
, 16.9%. Hitler's rise to power in Germany between 1932 and 1945 led to the
immigration of 174,000 more Jews to Palestine in just 5 years, more than doubling
the number of Jews living there. Palestine welcomed 119,800 Jewish immigrants
between 1937 and 1945. The campaign to establish a Jewish state over the region
of Palestine was stepped up as the world tried to atone for the murderous practices
that the Nazi Germans had carried out against the Jewish people. The Palestinians
were made to pay for the Nazis' error. When the conflict between Palestinians and
Israelis erupted in 1947, Britain turned over the issue of Palestine to the UN (UN).
A proposal that would have split Palestine into two states (one Arab and one
Jewish) was forced onto the UN. Despite the Palestinians making up 69% of the
people and controlling more than 92% of the land, only 43% of it was allocated to
the Arab state. On the other hand, the Jewish State received 56% of the land
despite the fact that Jews only made up 31% of the population and owned less than
8% of the total area3. Later, the Zionist authorities had the advantage in terms of
military capability, which they utilized to take the majority of Palestinian cities.
The massacre at the village of Deir Yassin in 1948, where 250 Palestinians,
including men, women, and children, were systematically and brutally killed, was
the most infamous campaign.4 In addition to the systematic expulsion of
Palestinians, it also represented an ethnic cleansing operation that was occurring.
As a result of the intense dread and panic this campaign instilled in the Palestinian
people, 300 000 of them were forced to flee for safety.
On May 14, 1948, Israel declared its independence, which came to be known to
Palestinians as al-Nakbah. The following day, neighboring Arab nations launched
an attack on Israel. Despite strong rhetoric from the Arab side, the number of
soldiers they dispatched was noticeably low, giving Israel the upper hand for most
of the conflict. As a result, Israel seized a significant portion of the territory that
the UN's dividing plan designated for the Palestinians. 78% of all of Palestine's
land was incorporated in the new Israeli state. Jordan was given authority of the
West Bank, and Egypt was given control of the Gaza Strip. Years later, ongoing
tensions between Israel and its neighboring Arab nations caused the six-day war of
1976 where Israel prevailed against Egypt, Jordan, and managed to seize the West
Bank and Gaza Strip. More than 400,000 people were displaced during the battle;
half of them had already been relocated in 1948, making this their second
displacement in less than 20 years. Palestinians endured difficult social and
economic conditions throughout the next years of the occupation; they were treated
poorly and were forced to live as third-class citizens. Both the UN resolutions and
3
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "United Nations Resolution 181". Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 Nov. 2014,
https://www.britannica.com/topic/United-Nations-Resolution-181. Accessed 8 December 2022.
4
Farraj, A. R. (2022, April 9). The deir yasin massacre, 9 April 1948. Institute for Palestine Studies. Retrieved
December 8, 2022, from https://www.palestine-studies.org/en/node/1651135
