BLOODY HISTORY

The state of Israel, now 76 years old, shares the same age of its existence with the conflict with the Palestinians—a conflict that has been a defining aspect of the Middle East's recent history. The current war in Gaza, ongoing for seven months, coincides with the anniversary of Israel's establishment.

Creation of the State of Israel

The inception of Israel was preceded by decades of Jewish repatriation, spurred by pogroms in Europe and Russia. The World Zionist Organisation, founded in 1897, aimed to "establish for the Jewish people a rightful refuge in Palestine." The Jewish question became a significant international political issue during World War I, with the British and Ottoman empires clashing over Sinai and Palestine. The Balfour Declaration by British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour supported the establishment of a "national hearth for the Jewish people in Palestine."

The early 1920s witnessed unrest in Palestine as local Arabs opposed the increasing Jewish immigration. In 1922, the League of Nations mandated Britain to facilitate the creation of a Jewish national home in Palestine, leading to restricted Jewish immigration to prevent Arab revolts.

The late 1920s saw a surge in Jewish immigration to Palestine, primarily due to the rise of the Nazi regime in Germany. The influx of 250,000 German Jews led to the Arab uprising of 1936-1939. The British White Paper subsequently imposed severe limitations on Jewish immigration, which, under Nazi rule, equated to a death sentence for many Jews.

The Holocaust, claiming 6 million Jewish lives, and the growth of the Jewish population in Palestine, which rose from 11% in 1922 to 33%, underscored the necessity for a Jewish state. In 1947, Britain relinquished its mandate over Palestine, unable to reconcile Arab and Jewish interests, and the United Nations took up the Palestinian issue.

On November 29, 1947, the UN proposed the partition of Palestine into Jewish and Arab states, with Jerusalem and Bethlehem under international control. While the Jewish community accepted the plan, the Arab League and the Arab Supreme Council rejected it, leading to preparations for an independent Jewish state. Despite US concerns and calls for postponement, on May 14, 1948, David Ben-Gurion declared the establishment of the State of Israel, officially named Medinat Israel.

Both the USSR and the United States recognized the State of Israel, with the former establishing diplomatic relations first. Following Israel's elections in January 1949, which saw Chaim Weizmann as president and David Ben-Gurion as prime minister, the U.S. also extended de jure recognition.

The First War

Israel's declaration occurred amidst a civil war between Arab and Jewish communities in Palestine. The day after the declaration, a coalition of Arab states invaded Palestine. The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) were formed on May 31, 1948, and after an armistice in July, Israel launched an offensive in October, extending its control to the Sinai Peninsula and the Red Sea.

A cease-fire agreement in July 1949 granted Israel control over additional territories, while Jerusalem was divided between Israel and Transjordan. The Gaza Strip fell under Egyptian administration, and Syria gained territories in the Golan. The war displaced hundreds of thousands of Arabs and Jews, with many Arabs leaving homes in both Jewish and Arab state territories, and Jews expelled or fleeing from Arab countries to Israel.

Israel became a UN member on May 11, 1949, but no Arab state was established in Palestine, setting the stage for the ongoing conflict.

Decades of Entrenched Animosity

In 1956, Israel allied with Britain and France over the Suez Canal, while Syria, Jordan, and Egypt formed an opposing alliance. Israel's offensive on October 29, 1956 led to control over the Sinai Peninsula.

The Six Day War in 1967 saw Israel capture the Sinai, Gaza Strip, West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Golan Heights, extending its authority over all territories intended for both Jewish and Arab states. The Arab world's non-recognition of Israel persisted, with Palestinian Arabs rallying around the PLO, which advocated armed struggle and, at times, terror tactics.

The Yom Kippur War in 1973 brought another Arab defeat. Subsequently, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat's visit to Israel and address to the Knesset marked a shift towards recognition of Israel's right to exist. The Camp David Accords in 1978, mediated by the US, laid down principles for peace between Egypt and Israel and in the Middle East. On March 26, 1979, President Sadat and Prime Minister Menachem Begin signed the Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty in Washington, formally establishing diplomatic relations between the two nations. Under the treaty, Israel returned the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt and committed to initiating negotiations on Palestinian autonomy.

Despite the peace accord between Israel and Egypt, tensions in the Middle East remained high, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict persisted. In 1982, Lebanon became the focal point of hostilities. Israel, intervening in Lebanon's civil war, executed Operation Peace for Galilee to dismantle PLO strongholds. The periodic intifadas, uprisings against Israeli governance in the occupied Palestinian territories, became a recurring element of the conflict.

The Oslo Accords, initiated by a clandestine agreement in Norway's capital between Israel and the PLO, offered a renewed opportunity for Middle Eastern peace. The accords encompassed two pivotal documents signed in Washington in 1993 and 1995, which established the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) with jurisdiction over parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip and delineated the trajectory for Israel-PLO relations. The 1994 peace treaty between Israel and Jordan further contributed to the regional peace landscape.

However, a spate of terrorist attacks—Arabs targeting Israelis and Jews targeting Muslims—eroded the peace process. Among these calamitous incidents was the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin by an ultra-right Jewish radical.

A new chapter of the conflict unfolded in 2006 with the electoral triumph of the militant Hamas faction in the Palestinian Legislative Council elections. Once in power, Hamas repudiated the PNA's prior accords with Israel. In June 2007, Hamas usurped control of the Gaza Strip. In retaliation, Mahmoud Abbas, PNA chairman and Fatah leader (the predominant faction within the PLO), declared the government dissolved and assumed complete authority. This schism among the Palestinians initially escalated to a civil war. Hamas maintained governance solely in the Gaza Strip, while Fatah controlled the West Bank.

The ensuing years saw escalating strife between Israel and Hamas. In October 2007, Tel Aviv designated the Gaza Strip a "hostile territorial entity" and instituted a partial economic embargo. Furthermore, three military campaigns were waged against Hamas—Cast Lead in late 2008 and early 2009, Pillar of Defense in 2012, and Unbreakable Rock in 2014. Yet, these operations failed to neutralize the military and political clout of the radical Palestinian faction.

Is peace possible in the Holy Land?

The latest conflict erupted on October 7, 2023, following an incursion into Israel by Palestinian radical factions spearheaded by Hamas, resulting in the abduction of civilians and soldiers and the massacre of Israelis.

Israel retaliated with an extensive military campaign in the Gaza Strip. Throughout the seven-month operation, ongoing to this day, over 30,000 Palestinians have perished, and a significant segment of the enclave's populace has been displaced.

Ceasefire talks have faltered. Nor has peace been advanced by Hamas's endorsement of Qatari and Egyptian mediation propositions. These included the exchange of Jewish captives for Palestinians in Israeli detention, the Israeli military's withdrawal from Gaza, a definitive ceasefire, the repatriation of Palestinians who fled from the southern to the northern part of the Strip, and the ratification of a Gaza reconstruction blueprint.

Israel's principal objection centres on the prospect of Hamas's continued governance of the Gaza Strip. Indications of Hamas's intent to persist solely as a political entity have not mitigated this disapproval. At an April meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh signalled readiness to disband the movement's military wing, the al-Qassam Brigades. Additionally, for the first time, Hamas contemplated a two-state solution, implicitly acknowledging Israel's right to exist. Nevertheless, the organization's insistence on a Palestinian State within the 1967 borders, encompassing the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip, clashes with Israel's goals. This primarily concerns Israel's proclamation of Jerusalem as its "undivided capital" and its reluctance to halt settlement expansion in areas earmarked for a Palestinian State.

The persistence of substantial disparities in positions only perpetuates the military conflict. This is underscored by the initiation of the IDF ground operation in Rafah, which, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is indispensable for overcoming Hamas. Consequently, further civilian casualties are a grim inevitability.

Resolving this protracted and violent dispute necessitates mutual concessions and a resolute commitment to forging enduring peace. The global consensus is that a lasting resolution between Israel and Palestine is unattainable without enacting pertinent UN resolutions and embracing the two-State paradigm. The annals of this conflict corroborate that no alternative path exists for peace to flourish in the territory sacred to three major religions.