Top 10 Things to Know
About the
Israeli—Palestinian Conflict
1. Claims to the Land
Israelis
Jewish people with
religious and historical
ties to the land
Palestinians
Muslim Arabs with
religious and historical
ties to the land
Both groups controlled the territory at various points in time, as
well as other groups. The last group to have control over the
territory before the conflict “began” was the Ottoman Empire.
2. Promises Made
•
1916 Hussein—McMahon Correspondence: British
promised to set up an independent Arab state across all
Arab land that was part of the Ottoman Empire if they
would begin a rebellion against the Ottomans—which
helped the Allies win the war (WWI)
•
1917 Balfour Declaration: Britain pledged to help
establish a national home for Jews in Palestine. British
hoped to gain support from Jews in America to urge
US to join WWI
3. 1920 British Mandates
With the end
of WWI,
Britain took
control of the
territory and
broke it into
two states:
Palestine and
Transjordan.
4. 1947 UN Partition
Britain handed over responsibility for
solving the Zionist-Arab problem to the
UN in 1947.
The UN set up a special committee which
recommended splitting the territory into
separate Jewish and Palestinian states.
Palestinian representatives, known as the
Arab Higher Committee, rejected the
proposal; their counterparts in the Jewish
Agency accepted it.
The plan was never implemented.
5. Events in 1948
•British leave Palestine Mandate.
•Israel declares itself an independent state.
• Arab states refused to recognize Israel.
•Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq
forces invade Israel
•Armistice (cease-fire) was signed with Egypt
taking control of the Gaza Strip and Jordan
taking the West Bank.
6. 1967 Six Day War
• Israel launched surprise attack to destroy
Egyptian and Syrian air forces
• Took control of the Sinai Peninsula
• Drove Jordanian army out of the West
Bank
• Took control of strategic position of Golan
Heights in Syria
7. Notable Peace Settlements
1979 Camp David Accords
Egypt made peace with Israel.
They agreed to recognize Israel’s sovereignty.
In return, Israel returned the Sinai Peninsula and agreed to
allow limited autonomy for Palestinians
1993 Oslo Peace Accords
Palestine agrees to recognize Israel’s sovereignty and vice
versa
Israel agrees to withdraw from Palestinian territories and
allow them more self-rule.
8. Palestinian Leadership
1964: Palestinian Liberation Organization formed
1994: Palestinian Authority formed as governing body
over the Gaza Strip and town of Jericho on the West
Bank with the signing of the Oslo Accord.
2006, split within PA with Hamas winning elections
against Fatah (Hamas controls Gaza Strip, Fatah
controls West Bank)
9. Currently
Palestine received non-member observer state status
within the United Nations.
They hold the same status as the Vatican. Switzerland
once held this status.
Palestine wants to go back to 1947 boundaries.
Palestine believes this change in status will help them
in peace negotiations with Israel.
10. Items They Need to
Resolve
the status of Jerusalem
the fate of the settlements (in Gaza Strip and West
Bank)
the precise location of borders
the right of return of Palestinian refugees
water rights and security arrangements
Israeli security