Modern World HistoryAssign. #6-1

Israel and Conflict in the Middle East

Flag of Israel

Israel in gold above

ISRAEL►

Romans expel Jews from Judea (#1)

• A Jewish kingdom ruled the lands around Jerusalem 3,000 years ago (under Kings David, Saul, and Solomon)

• The Jews then fall under various other empires and eventually become part of the Roman Empire

• 133-135 A.D. a Jewish rebellion is crushed by the Romans and the Jews are expelled from their homeland

• The movement of the Jews to new areas following this defeat is known as the Diaspora

The Diaspora

• Map shows where Jews settled after being kicked out of Judea by the Romans• Jews became minorities where they settled and were discriminated against

Anti-Semitism(prejudice against or hostility towards Jews)

• This map shows areas of Europe that Jews were kicked out of during the Middle Ages

Anti-Semitism• Among the worst of the anti-semitism

movements was the Russian pogroms• A pogrom is generally an organized attack on

lives and/or property of Jews which generally took place in the late 1800s

Palestinians (#1)• Palestinians are the name

of the people that lived in the Jewish homeland after they were expelled

• Palestinians are Arab and eventually adopted the religion of Islam

• The land became known as Palestine

• They were ruled by the Ottoman Empire from 1450 to the end of World War I in 1917

• The British ruled Palestine after WWI until the end of WWII

Zionism (#2)• Zionism is the international

political movement that supported the reestablishment of a homeland for the Jewish people in Palestine

• The Arab Palestinian people lived there and claimed this land as its homeland

• Waves of Jews immigrated to Palestine during the late 19th century and early 20th century

• Conflict between the two groups over the land was inevitable

Balfour Declaration (#2)

• Near the end of World War I the British issued the Balfour Declaration, promising a “National Home” for the Jews in Palestine

• British allowed Jews to settle in Palestine after taking control of the region during the war

• The British ruled Palestine until the end of World War II

The Final Solution• When Adolf Hitler and the Nazis took over Germany in

1933 they began a policy of discrimination and violence against Jews

• The “Final Solution” or systematic execution of Jews in territories under his control began in 1942 after 1 million had already been killed

Holocaust• The Nazis killed over 6 million Jews

in Europe during the Holocaust• This horrible act led to greater

worldwide sympathy for the Jews and the Zionist cause to bring them a homeland

Creation of Israel (#2)• World opinion begins to favor the Jewish

people after the Holocaust• Palestine is partitioned by the United

Nations in 1948 creating the Jewish state of Israel

• the British leave Palestine

Israel War of Independence

 (#3) • Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon,

Jordan, Saudi Arabia declare war on Israel

• Egyptian, Syrian and Jordanian invasion begins in 1948

• Israel won with the help of the U.S. and gained about 50% more territory than was originally allotted to it by the UN Partition Plan

Suez Campaign (1956)• Egypt conducts a series of

escalating border raids and closes off the Suez canal to Israeli shipping

• To prevent Egyptian use of newly acquired Soviet arms in a war, Israel invades the Sinai peninsula and occupies it for several months, with French and British help

• US and USSR pressure Israel to withdraw (to avoid WWIII)

Six Day War (1967)• Egypt amassed tanks and

planes from the Soviet Union• Israel destroys the Egyptian air

force on the ground, conquers and occupies Sinai and Gaza, then conquers the West Bank from Jordan, and Golan Heights from Syria

• Israel wanted these territories to be a buffer against future Arab attacks

• Palestinians were forced to flee to neighboring Arab nations or be ruled directly by Israel

Yom Kippur War (1973)

• In a surprise attack on the Jewish day of atonement, Egypt and Arab neighbors retook most of the land Israel had previously taken

• Israel, led by Prime Minister Golda Meir, counter-attacked and won back most of the land

• Still, Egypt ended up retaking the Suez Canal, and Syria reconquered the Golan Heights

• Following massive US resupplying, Israel succeeded in pushing back the Syrians

Prime MinisterGolda Meir ofIsrael in 1973

Golda Meir (#5)• Her family was from Kiev, Russia

but immigrated to the U.S. as her father couldn’t find work in Russia

• They settled in Milwaukee, WI where they lived for 10 years

• As part of the Zionist movement they moved to Palestine

• Golda Meir later became prime minister of Israel during the 1973 Yom Kippur War and the years right afterwards

• She was known as an effective and tough leader

Camp David Accords (#6) • Peace treaty signed in 1979 between Anwar Sadat of Egypt and

Menachem Begin of Israel with help from U.S. President Jimmy Carter which is first treaty between Israel and an Arab nation

• Israel agreed to return the Sinai peninsula to Egypt in return Egypt promised peace and recognized Israel’s right to exist

• Egyptian President Anwar Sadat is assassinated shortly afterwards for negotiating with Israel

P.L.O. (#7)(Palestine Liberation Organization)

• PLO founded in 1964 with the aim of creating a Palestinian state (nation)

• Yasser Arafat was its leader from 1969-2004

• Fought Israel with militant, guerrilla tactics (eventually seen as terrorist attacks) until recent years when it turned more to negotiations for peace

Yasser Arafat

Persian Gulf War (1991)• Iraq invades neighboring Kuwait• U.N. forces begin to push Iraq out of Kuwait• Iraq fires Scud missiles at Israel which result in some

damage and casualties• U.S. pressures Israel to remain out of the conflict (many

Arab nations were on the U.N. side but did not want Israel as their ally)

Oslo Accords (#8)• Secret talks took place in 1993 in Oslo, Norway between

Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestinian leaders• They were the first face-to-face diplomatic talks between

Israel and members of the PLO• Israel and PLO agree to mutual recognition and the PLO

was given some self-governing rule in its territories• Israeli PM Yitzhak Rabin assassinated by right-wing Israeli

fanatic who opposed negotiations with PLO

P.L.O. Loses Power• In 2006 the radical Islamist Hamas movement

won an upset victory in Palestinian Legislative Council elections, ending about 40 years of PLO leadership of the Palestinians which threatened hopes for peace with Israel

Second Lebanon War (2006)

• Hezbollah terrorists (armed by Iran) based in Lebanon cross the border and attack an Israeli patrol, killing 3 and capturing 2 soldiers

• At the same time, Hezbollah began a series of rocket attacks on northern Israel

• Israel responds by bombing sites in Lebanon, killing over 200 people

• Hezbollah responds with hundreds of rocket attacks on towns deep in northern Israel, killing 13 civilians

Gaza War (2008-2009)

• Israeli operation in Gaza Strip to stop Hamas rocket attacks on southern Israel

• Over 1,000 Palestinian killed in the rocket attacks and ground invasion

Iran Poses a Threat to Israel

• Iranian Pres. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has delivered speeches in which he stated "The way to peace in the Middle East is the destruction of Israel."

• The U.S. suspects Iran is trying to develop nuclear weapons

Range of Iran’s existing missiles

President Obama Speech in Cairo, Egypt (June 2009)

• Speech explains the desire of the U.S. to reconcile with the Arab and Muslim world and states goals to help resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

• Pres. Obama calls for an end to Israeli construction of settlements in the occupied territories, as well as Arab recognition of Israel and a two state solution.

Summary of

Events• Jews kicked out of homeland by the Romans• Jews discriminated against where ever they go• After the Holocaust the Jewish homeland of Israel is created by the

United Nations• Palestinians and their Arab neighbors are opposed to the creation of

Israel• A series of wars to defeat Israel are fought, but Israel survives and

takes more land with constant aid from the U.S.• Despite some efforts to negotiate peace, there have been a series of

threats and attacks on Israel• Major obstacle to peace is Jewish settlements in lands that otherwise

could be returned to a Palestinian homeland