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Israel-Palestine Conflict

  • Before World War I, the Turkish Ottoman Empire ruled the Palestine district
  • Before the Israel formation, Palestine was under the control of Britain. However, the trouble was already prevailing between Jews who wanted to live in Palestine and Arabs who lived there
  • Zionists believe Judaism is a nationality as well as a religion, and that Jews deserve their own state in their ancestral homeland, Israel. Jews have historical ties with the Palestine district as they believed the place was promised to them by their God
  • Herzl witnessed brutal European anti-Semitism first-hand, and became convinced the Jewish people could never survive outside a country of their own. Millions of Jews started moving towards Palestine to start a new life, giving rise to the Israel-Palestine Conflict
  • The British Balfour Declaration promised the establishment of a Jewish national home in Ottoman-controlled Palestine in 1917 in order to gain Jewish support for Britain’s First World War effort
  • People started to escape from Europe and Russia. Others moved to Israel after the Holocaust, including from Arab countries
  • After World War II, Palestine’s destiny was in the hands of the United Nations. Many years later, the United Nations suggested the Two-State Solution, which means dividing Palestine into two different countries for the Jewish and the Arab
  • The Arab leaders disagreed with the decision made by the United Nations and said no to the plan. However, the Jewish leaders agreed to it. Later, America massively supported the new state

Israel and the Occupied Territories

  • Since Arabs were not happy with the decision, they declared war. The war continued for months, and after intense fighting, Israel decided to back off. The Israeli forces captured the state of Israel. However, the Israel-Palestine Conflict was not resolved

  • After the 1948 war, the West Bank and Egypt were under the control of Jordan. Jerusalem was split into two parts where Jordan ruled over the East, while West Jerusalem was in Israel

  • The West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip were under the control of Israel during 1967. Since then, Israel has set up many Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. According to international law, these settlements are termed as. However, Israel disagrees with this

Living Under Occupation

  • Since 1967, Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem have been nestled under Israeli occupation

  • The Human rights groups recorded widespread abuses by Israeli soldiers of Palestinians have abused the Human rights groups. For example, there are several roadblocks and checkpoints between towns and villages

  • According to Palestinians, it’s tough to meet with family, friends, or work. Even restrictions imposed on Palestinians are also compared to being in prison

  • After the formation of Israel, the Israeli government believed these roadblocks were set up to protect people and prevent potential threats that could harm Israelis

The Gaza Strip

  • The 1.5 million Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip led a difficult life

  • The place is situated along the Mediterranean coast, where there is nearly zero access. Its coastline is controlled and all the entry and exit points into Israel are controlled by them. The Gaza Strip has no working airport. Since the access is highly restricted, not many goods can get in or out of Gaza

  • Although food is allowed in Gaza, people living there are not eating enough food to sustain a healthy life. There are often power cuts

  • Due to the restrictions on entry and exit, masses have lost their jobs, and people face regular financial crises

  • In 2005, Israel withdrew all of its troops and settlers from the Gaza Strip

  • In 1993, the two sides signed a historic agreement known as the Oslo Accords with American President Bill Clinton. They agreed to a peace deal based on the idea of ‘land for peace

  • The two sides met many times in the 1990s and did make some progress, but those talks ended when more violence broke out in 2000

  • During, Israel-Palestine Conflict, the Israeli Prime Minister and Palestinian President met regularly throughout 2008, but those talks ended when the fighting in Gaza began

  • In the  Israel-Palestine Conflict and regular fights, many people lost their lives

  • During the early 1960s, several Palestinians were frustrated that they did not have their state. Therefore, they started to form their groups and attracted Jewish and Israeli

  • Some leaders, including Fatah and the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, mentioned they wouldn’t hurt Israelis anymore

  • However, a few groups, such as Hamas, still choose violence and fire rockets in the towns of Israel. During 2000 and 2008, Palestinians killed nearly 1,000 Israelis

Human Rights

  • During the Israel-Palestine Conflict, in 2000 and 20008, Israeli forces killed more than 4,800 Palestinians

  • According to the Human rights groups, the Israeli army has beaten Palestinians many times

  • At the beginning of 2009, conflicts arose in Gaza

  • Since buildings are placed closely in Gaza, ordinary people and Hamas members were killed in masses

  • In 2003, international diplomats from the America, United Nations, Russia, and European Union introduced a plan called the ‘Road Map to Peace

  • A diplomat group that is a part of the UK government states that the best solution is to end the occupation in 1967

  • According to them, two states should be introduced; one for Israel and another independent state for Palestine

  • They also say there should be no more settlements and want Palestinian groups to stop using arms

Envoys

  • In 2007, Tony Blair, the former British Prime Minister, was appointed a special envoy to work to Russia, the UN, the US, and the EU

  • An envoy was responsible for establishing a peace deal by talking and helping others. George Mitchell was America’s East peace envoy

  • During a meeting, George Mitchell was asked by Barack Obama to help everyone agree on a peace deal

  • American President Barack Obama appointed American Senator George Mitchell to be his envoy

  • Agreements were signed with Israel to establish a peace deal

Conclusion

The formation of Israel and the Israel Palestine conflict has been a long-standing issue when it comes to maintaining global peace. Collective efforts are being taken to resolve it. It is also an important topic and questions related to it may appear in the UPSC exams.