Q2)
The six day war of 1967 was important in shaping the views of Israeli Jews today. The six day war began on 5th June 1967 when the Israeli Air Force were successful in their attempt to destroy the Egyptian air force. For the majority of Israeli Jews this signified a major turning point as they gained land including the Sinai, Golan Heights and the West Bank in the days that followed. Jerusalem was restored as the capital of Israel which pleased orthodox Jews who believe that the city should belong to them as it was promised by God. The views of many Israelis today is that the land they gained in 1967 is important to them and they will not comply with United Nations resolution 242 which states that Israel should withdraw from the conquered territories and that all involved states should renounce war and recognise the right of all countries to live in peace. Israeli citizens were split in their views of what to do with the conquered territories, although most believed that Jerusalem should be kept. No one agreed on what should be done with other occupied territories. However, on 15th July 1967, they began to set up Jewish settlements within the occupied territories. After these settlements began to appear it became clear that Israel would not give up the conquered territories easily.
The intifada began in 1987 when young Palestinians in West Bank and Gaza began to throw stones and petrol bombs at the Israeli troops occupying these areas. The Israeli tried to smash the ‘shaking off’ by force, many demonstrators were shot dead. In five years over 1000 Palestinian demonstrators were killed by Israeli troops.
The intifada encouraged world opinion to think better of Palestinians, whereas the Israelis were seen as being harsh towards the young Palestinian protesters. World leaders began to put pressure on the Israelis to compromise.
The PLO and its leader Yasser Arafat saw the Intifada as a way to gain support to create a Palestinian state in Gaza and the West Bank. To do this he needed American support, as a result in 1988 he made a number of concessions which were required by the Americans.
Israelis view the Intifada as a time when Israeli forces were attacked with provocation, when children were encouraged to attack and abuse Palestinians. The Israelis tried to regain control using tear gas and rubber bullets.
Whereas the Palestinian view is that 983 Palestinians were killed by military forces by 1991, huge numbers were beaten and imprisoned without arrest or trial. Unarmed and defenceless Palestinians were affectively under house arrest 24 hours a day for thousand of days.
Q3)
Following the intifada of 1987-1991 peace was sought by Palestinians, Israelis and America in the form of the Oslo accord of 1993. The terms of the Treaty were as follows:
- The establishment of a Palestinian authority to have control over everyday life.
- An armed Palestinian police force to be established in the new authority.
- The Israeli army to withdraw from populated areas.
These terms were not all kept, the Israeli army failed to withdraw and stayed and was ‘responsible for the security of Jewish settlements’. The Palestinians did take control of most of Gaza and of the town of Jericho in the West Bank; the agreement was for the whole of the West Bank and Gaza-22% of the original Palestine. However the agreement did not remove Jewish Settlements from the occupied territories and the settlements were not under the new Palestinian authority. Jerusalem was excluded from the agreement and nothing was offered to Palestinians in the refugee camps of Lebanon, Jordan or Syria.
Other peace plans which were agreed in the area include the previous Camp David agreement of 1978 which agreed the return of the Sinai to Israel. Limited local powers for Palestinians were also agreed but this was never put into practise. Following the Oslo accord was Oslo 2 in September 1995 which extended the Palestinians power to most of the West Bank.
Since the Oslo accord outbreaks of violence have continued including;
- The Prime Minister Rabin was assassinated by a Jewish extremist in November 1995.
- Suicide bombers killed 59 people in February and March 1996.
- Israeli troops invaded southern Lebanon in April 1996.
- 68 people were killed in a gun battle between Palestinian police and Israeli armed forces in September 1996.
These outbreaks have been the activities of extremist groups who believe that organisations like the PLO are compromising too much.
Recently another intifada has broken out in Gaza on the West Bank between Palestinians and Israelis. At present it is a year old having started in September 2001. Most Palestinian families have been affected in some way by this violence, many by the suicide bombers who are thought of as heroes by the Palestinians. The Israeli forces use ‘legitimate’ force in order to route out these terrorists.
The illegal Israeli settlements scattered throughout Palestinian ‘mini state’ has meant road closures, curfews and continued use of passes for Palestinians in the area. These restrictions have made working impossible for many Palestinian civilians as they go up against Israeli armed forces. The Jewish settlers have made earning a livelihood impossible for Palestinians, for example the Jewish destruction of Palestinian olive groves.
The September 11th attacks on America have complicated the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. The attacks resulted in the International War on Terrorism which has given the Israelis a legitimate reason to support it’s attacks on Palestinian compounds (i.e Arafat’s compound) as a harsh reaction to terrorist suicide bombers.
