And now, some history

Israel-Palestine: A Brief Timeline

I think it might be useful before I go any further with my blog to give a VERY abbreviated history of some of the root and underlying causes of conflict here in the region. Some of you probably know all this (and more), but hopefully it can prove helpful to those a little less aware of the situation. I offer this to allow a better understanding of some of the history and struggles of the people that I am living and serving among. 

So hasn’t there always been fighting in the Middle East? Isn’t it just a problem of clashing religions?

While there certainly has been conflict between different groups of people in the Middle East for thousands of years, this particular conflict can be traced very specifically to 20th century events relating to post-colonialism, the formation of the Jewish nation of Israel in Palestine, and the Arab response to this development.

1896: Theodore Herzl publishes Der Judenstaat (“The State of the Jews”), one of the foundational texts of the Zionist movement. The Zionist movement championed the settlement of Jewish people in the region of Palestine, and the establishment of a Jewish nation in the Biblical “Land of Israel.” Starting in the late 1900s, increasing “Aliyah” (waves) of Jewish people began immigrating to Palestine, many fleeing anti-Semitism in Europe.

1917: With the end of WWI and the defeat of the Ottomans, Palestine comes under the control of the British, beginning the period of the British Mandate.

1948: In the aftermath of WWII, the British Mandate ends, and the region is handed over to the United Nations. The UN declares the Partition Plan to divide Palestine into two states, including the establishment of a Jewish nation. This plan results in the outbreak of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, which resulted in many deaths on both sides, and over 700,000 Arab refugees. The area of Palestine is divided between Israel, Jordan, and Egypt. Essentially the area that is now the West Bank was under Jordanian control. Israel celebrates this as their independence. Palestinians refer to this event as the Naqba, or “catastrophe.”

June 1967: The 6-Day War. Israel defeats many neighboring Arab countries and the areas of the Sinai Peninsula, Golan Heights, Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem come under Israeli military control.

November 1967: The United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 passed, calling for the withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from areas occupied as a result of the 1967 War. Israel does not comply.

1987:The first Palestinian “Intifada” or uprising. Violence, riots, and strikes by Palestinians break out in the occupied territories of the West Bank and Gaza Strip and are met with resistance by the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces). It is estimated that over a 1000 Palestinians and 160 Israelis were killed in the conflict.

1993: Oslo Accords signed by Yasser Arafat (president of the Palestinian Liberation Organization or PLO) and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. These accords were intended to grant interim self-government to Palestinians in phases. In most places, military occupation continues to some degree.

2000: The Second Intifada, or Al-Aqsa Intifada breaks out, not long after the peace process breaks down at the Middle East Peace Summit at Camp David. Violence continues on both sides until 2006. By the end of the Intifada, over 5000 Palestinians and 1000 Israelis were dead.

2002: Israel begins construction on the Israel-West Bank Separation Wall, a measure designed to decrease the instance of suicide bombings in Israel. The result of the wall and the checkpoints that have been set up all over the West Bank has been severe restriction of movement for Palestinians, along with serious human rights violations.

2004: The International Court of Justice declares the separation wall to be illegal, and calls for the removal of the wall. Israel has not complied, and continues to construct the wall today.

2005: Israel withdraws its military and settlers from the Gaza Strip, but continues to control its airspace, coastline, and most of its borders.

2007-Present: The situation is Gaza is dire, following a continued blockade of the region, along with the recent 22-day war between December 2008 and January 2009, in which over 1300 Palestinians were killed.

The situation is so much more complex than this very brief outline, and I encourage you to read more and understand more. Some useful, very readable resources that I highly recommend:

Understanding the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict: A Primer
                                Phyllis Bennis

The Lemon Tree: An Arab, A Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East        Sandy Tolan