Summary Sheet for Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict 1880-1947

For each point include where necessary a summary of events, causes and significance. Remember to keep in mind when summarising your notes that you are looking at these different events in relation to how they led to the conflict between the Arabs and Israelis.

History:
Middle Eat- one of the most important regions in the world due to its great empires and important trade routes across the region produces a sixths of the worlds oil Above all, Middle East is the birthplace of three great religions- Judaism, Christianity and Islam- and the area at its centre is often called the Holy Land In 1518, Turks conquered Palestine and made it part of the Ottoman Empire

Arab claims

Jewish claims

Islam was the third major religious that spread to all parts of the Middle East during the 7th Century Followers were known as Muslims- those who submit to God Mohammed, Prophet of Allah, the one true God, and the nature of the Allah was revealed to him by the archangel Gabriel (these revelations were recorded in the holy book of Islam, the Koran) Mohammed left Mecca in 622CE after his preachings were unpopular and built up an army and alliances and by 630 CE, he returned to Mecca unopposed Islam spread rapidly and within 300 years Muslims had conquered all the middle east as well as north Aftica Written in the Koran, five years after Mohammeds death, Muslims captured Jerusalem from the Byzantines who then controlled Palestine and the city became one of the most important centres of Islamic faith Rock from which Mohammed rose to heaven was made the centre of the Mosque of the Dome of the Rock Until 1917, when the Ottoman Empire started to break apart, the people language, customs and culture of Palestine remained largely Arab God made an agreement with Abraham by which he and his descendants would carry the message of God to the rest of the world God then promised Abraham the land of the Canaan for his people and Abrahams descendants settled in the promised land Descendants became known as the children of Israel or Israelites A famine forced the Israelites to leave Canaan and settled in Egypt and they lived for 600 years until 1300BCE when the ruler of Egypt made them into slaves Israelites escaped from slavery and Moses, one of the Israelites, lead his people into Sinai After 40 years living as nomads in the desert, the Israelites were led by Joshua into the promised land of Cannan. By the 1st Century BCE, Israelites gained control over the Canaanites, Gibeonites and the Philistines Saul, Davis and then Solomon ruled over a united kingdom of Israel but after

 Definitions: Zionism Arab Nationalism Important documents:

his death, the Kingdom divided into 2. Eventually both were destroyed. Babylonians defeated the Jews and took them into captivity- which made the Jews become a united community Jews put together their sacred writings into the bible and by the time they returned to Palestine, they were deeply committed to their religion- Judaism Jews remained in Palestine for 600 years after returning from Babylon and were ruled by Persians, Greeks and finally Romans Romans expelled most Jews from Palestine and forbade them to entermeant that Jews were to live all over Europe

Zionism: a nationalist movement that originally aimed to return the Jewish people and the sovereignty to the area of Palestine Major event that led to growth of Zionist movement was the emancipation of Jews in France (1791) followed shortly by their emancipation in the rest of the continental and Central Europe Jews began to rise in academia, medicine, the arts, journalism and other progressions and there was accelerated assimilation of Jews into European society The Jews also wanted to reconcile traditional Judaism Rise of ethnically based nationalism gave birth to another first of antiSemitism Before the 19th C, European anti-Semitism was based mainly on Christian antipathies toward Jews for they refused to convert to Christianity. This meant that Jews could easily convert to Christianity Nationalism meant that the population saw Jews as a separate people who could never be full participants in nations history A minority who believed that greater assimilation would not alter the hostility of non-Jews, adopted Zionism Arab nationalism: an expression of identity and of group of solidarity within the new format of the nation-state Main features: old Arabian tradition and loyalties as well as the heightened importance of Arabian language and literature. Features a sense of pride in Arabism Arab identity- idea of what it meant to be an Arab Ottoman Empire ruled Arab lands from a central government in Turkey however the Turks were not Arabs and nationalist ideas began to spread to Arabs in late 19th C During WW1, Arab nationalists popularised the idea of independence from the Ottoman Empire Fuelled by the conscription of Arab youth into the Ottoman army, famine due to the conflict, labour shortages, and the Ottoman governments repressive policies Arab nationalists believed that life would be better if Arabs were united under an independent Arab government

Hussein Main players: MacMahon Hussein bin Ali- Sharif of Mecca. Proclaimed himself King of Hejaz. Initiated Arab Correspondence

Revolt in 1916 against the Ottoman Empire during WWI in support of British Sir Arthur Henry McMahon- British diplomat who served as High Commissioner in Egypt 8 letters written between July 1915- January 1916 Two men negotiated the terms under which Hussein would encourage Arabs to revolt against the Ottoman Empire and enter WWI on the side of the Allies Hussein demanded British recognition of the independence of Arab areas of the Ottoman Empire known as Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Israel, The West Bank, Gaza and Saudi Arabia After the war McMahon and Hussein disagreed on what areas had been included in the territory McMahon believed Palestine was not guaranteed of independence but Hussein said otherwise Letter was ambiguous and interpretation has been a subject of great controversy British motivation: Wanted to defeat Ottoman Empire, new front against access power Sykes-Picot Agreement A secret agreement concluded in May 1916, during WWI, between Great Britain and France, with the assent of Russia for the dividing of the Ottoman Empire An agreement to the division of Syria, Irag, Lebanon and Palestine into various French and British-administed areas. Main players: Sir Mark Sykes of Britain and Georges Picot of France Areas that were independent still were under British or French influence Meant that British and France had rights of enterprise and local loans Shall alone supply advisors or foreign functionaries at the request of the Arab state Red and blue zones mean direct or indirect administration or control as they desire Advantages France and Britain: Meant that they could claim Alexandretta as a free port for trade (for British Empire) and Haifa as a free trading port for France British motivation: Trade routes (Suez Canal), Oil, Maintain good relationship with France The British pledge that formally committed the British to the Zionist cause British PM David George and foreign secretary Arthur Balfour saw British control over Palestine as much more attractive than the proposed BritishFrench control of the Sykes-Picot agreement George was determined, as early as March 1917, that Palestine should become British Negotiations for a Jewish entity were carried out by Chiam Weizmann, a prominent Zionist, and negations were completed on November 1917 by a letter known as the Balfour Declaration. Claimed they are in favour of the establishment in Palestine of a National Home for the Jewish People.

Balfour Declaration

Question: How do these documents conflict? Arab response

Document was not legally binding but the first time a major European power had given support for a Jewish homeland in Palestine Led to increase in Jewish immigration to the region British Motivation: To get America to support the war, Thought of Zionists as a potential ally in safeguarding the British imperial interested in the region Fearful that Germans would form an alliance with the Jews first Britain promised land for the Arabs, The French and the Jews All documents contradicted each other

Jewish response

Arab responded with shocks and betrayal Arabs said British promised the Hews land that they believed belonged to them and promised in the McMahon-Hussein Correspondence as an independed Arab Kingdom Also did not say that Arabs would not be disadvantaged due to this Declaration Arab protests were ignored in the postwar negotiations and the Balfour Declaration was incorporated into Britishs Palestine Mandate British recognition of Jewish rights to a national home was seen as a significant step forward in achieving political independence Balfours letter was hailed as the fulfilment of Herzls strategy of marry the symbolic with the practical Increased immigration towards the area

British Mandate: Years 1919-1939 At the end of the war, the victorious Allied countries met at Versailles near Paris to draw up a peace treaty to formally end the war Paris Peace Conference also redrew the map of Europe, as the pre-war Russian, German, Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman empires no longer exist Created a new League of Nations to be responsible of the Arab lands A system of Mandates was establish and Britain and France were given the power to rule over one or more of these territories Britain was allocated the territories of Iraq and Palestine and France was allocated Syria and Lebanon Britain was given a mandate to govern Palestine and, for the next 30 years, the British government would rule the country It allows them to prepare the country for independence and selfgovernment Arabs of Palestine felt that they had simply exchanged Turkish rulers for British ones Arabs of Syria and Iraq were not given their independence Thought that Jews were buying land from their country 1921- Violence on a massive scale erupted in the town of Jaffa main port of arrival for Jewish immigration 1921- riots erupted in Tel Aviv between rival Jewish groups Fighting spread into Arab Jaffa and led to Arab attacks on Jews and their property

The Mandate

(Arab-Jewish Riots)

 Arab Revolt 1936-39

Jewish Immigration

Peel Commission

British immediately stopped all Jewish immigration and Palestinian Arabs were told that only part of Palestine was made into a Jewish home Immigration began again but British insisted it to be limited 1929- violence erupted again in Jerusalem Arab crowds attacked Jews inside and outside In total around 350 Jews and 250 Arabs killed In the 1920s there was no great rush of Jewish settlers In one year, 1927, more Jews left Palestine than came to it Mass immigration started after the Nazis began to persecute the Jews in the 1930s Via the Balfour Declaration, 16500 Jews to immigrate each year When Hitler became dictator of Germany in 1933, number of Jews emigration jumped Jews that immigrated were better educated for they knew it was the only place they could go in a hurry Many of the settlers were quite well off Jewish Agency encouraged them to buy, live and cultivate the land Due to methods of farming and their enthusiasm, Palestine became a more productive place, with richer farmlands and better standard o fliving Brought a new sense of ownership and nationhood in Palestine as the Jews revived their ancient language and became a stronger group Sparked outrage with the Arab population for most of the land the Jews bought were from absentee Arab landowners who formerly rented the land to poor Arab farmers Arabs became bitter about the stronger Jewish community as well as the purchase of the land they thought of as their own 100 000 Arabs moved into Palestine at that time as well because there was a better standard in living More Arab attacks and demonstration after the wave of Jewish immigration April 1936- widespread fighting broke out as armed Arab bands attacked Jewish settlements Arab political elites and political parties met and formed the Arab Higher Committee- called Arabs to join strike until three demands were met: 1. Cessation of Jewish immigration 2. An end to lands ales to Jews 3.Establisment of an Arab national government 80 Jews and 200 Arabs were killed (most by British soldiers) British responded harshly- hanged several Arab leaders and destroyed houses suspected of containing Arab terrorist or arms. Britain also trained and organised the Jewish Defence Force, the Haganah in 1920s and they grew and become more organised The Irgun, an underground army of Jews, which often used violent methods, carried out revenge attacks on the Arabs Arab revolt reignited from early 1937-1939, sporadic outbreaks of violence eventually results in Britain losing control of large areas of Palestine By 1939- Palestinian leadership has been disbanded and Arab leaders were exiled in 1937 by British forces. 1037- was an inquiry from the British Government to have a partition of Palestine and separate the nation into two separate states- one Jewish

 White paper Success or failure? (give reasons) British motivations Arab response Jewish response

and the other Arab. Peels reason was that the two national communities were too different in religious and cultural values And narrow bounds of such small country risen conflict Recommended that Jewish immigration should be limited to 12 000 per year and sale of land to Jews should be restricted. Sparked outrage for both the Hews and the Arabs. Arabs rejected the plan while the Jews wanted more land than what they were given 1939- White Paper was a government document that helped decided how Palestine was rules State that Palestine would be an independent country within 10 years, meaning that the Arabs and the Jews would have to live together Limit of Jewish migration to be applied- 10 000 Jews to be allowed to migrate to Palestine every year and after 5 years no further Jewish immigration was to be allowed unless the Arabs permitted to it Sale of land from Arabs to Jews was to be banned unless approved by the British High Commissioner Failure for not one was satisfied Lord Peel stated that Arbs and Jews could not share a government yet White Paper recommended that they be made to work together Wanted to get rid of their responsibility over Palestine Wanted to get rid of the involvement between the Arabs and the Jews Hated the Peel report and the White Papers. Could not accept any part of their home-land being given over to the Jews who they saw were invaders Condemned Peel for it suggested that Jews should have a homeland, meaning that Arabs would have to move out of Jewish Palestine Rejected White Paper because it allowed for more Jewish Immigration and gave Jews a say Jews were dissatisfied because they wanted a homeland for any Jew who wanted to come Home Thought that Britain did not keep promise to its Balfour Delcaration of 1917

WW2 and Holocaust: British, Arab and Jewish role in WW2 September 1939- war broke out in Europe after Germany invaded Polant Britain declared war on Germany 30,000 Jews joined the British armyeven thought they opposed of the White Paper Arab response to war: Nazi agents were sent to forge alliances with Palestinian leaders to urge them to reject all proposals for partition of the country between Arab and Jewish populations Nazis were confident that they could count on the loyalty of Palestinian nationalist leader Hajj Amin al-Husseini Muftis links to Nazi Germany help to explain his continuing opposition to

Holocaust

Britain even after the White Paper Hajj Amin lobbied Germany to stop Jewish immigration to Palestine and privately urged that they be sent to Nazi death camps Other Arab leaders sided actively with Nazis to remove British influence and eradicate Jewish presence in Palestine. In contrast, About 8000 Palestinian Arabs joined the British military forces to fight against Germany and tis a,llies Jewish Response: After the war broke out in 1939, Jews were inflamed against Britain due to the White Paper but was also an enemy to Nazi Germany Britain and Jews cooperated in war effort but tensions were heighted when 769 Romanian Jewish refugees arrived on a ship on December 1941 and Britain refused them entry visa and forced it back to sea. May 1942- Zionist leaders met in NY and determined official policy until the end of the Mandate Biltmore Program- founding a Jewish state in Palestine to fulfil the Balfour Declaration and the Mandate, integration of the Jewish state into the world community, total rejected of the 1939 White Paper Zionists were now in conflict with the Arabs and the Brits Some extreme Zionists refused to help Britain The Lehi (fighters for the freedom of Palestine/Israel) saw Brits as a worse enemy than Germany and used terror tactics against them The Irgun also used terror against the British, blowing up government offices and killing Brit soldiers Hitler wanted to exterminate all Jews of Europe and used anti-Jewish measures: 1933- Violence against Jewish-owned shops, burning of Jewish books, government hate campaigns against Jews November 1935- Nuremberg Laws passed depriving Jews of citizenships November 1938- Kristallnacht 1939-1940- Creation of ghettos to isolate Jews 1942- Mass shootings of Jews following the Nazi invasion of the USSRJews were rounded up, forced to dig their own graves, stripped and shot 1941-1942- The Final Solution- mass killing of Jews by gassing- building of gas chambers Impact of the Holocaust on the world Jewry was huge. 6 million Jews were killed by 1945, most of them in the main concentration camps The faith of observant Jews were shaken and the hope of the assimilationists smashed Their allies did nothing to save them and Zionism alone emerged as a viable Jewish response to this demonic anti-Semitism Zionism and its call for a Jewish national home and transformation of the Jew from passive victim to self-sufficient citizen became the only possible positive response for the Holocaust Zionism unified the Jewish people and became an integral aprt of Jewish identity and religious experience. Holocaust created a huge amount of sympathy and support for Jewish people. US became the main advocated for the creation of a Jewish national homeland in Palestine, due to the large Jewish population in the US

UN Partition Plan: British response Accepted the plan but refused to implement the plan by force because it was not acceptable to both sides Britain refused to share the administration of Palestine with a proposed UN transition regime and to allow the Jewish and Arab militiasto be officially created and to assist in smoothly handing over territory or authority to any successor Arabs opposed partition and continued to demand independence in all of Palestine, promising to respect the rights of the Jewish minority Argued that it violated the rights of the majority of people in Palestine, as non-Jewish people made up 67% Arab leaders threatened the Jewish population of Palestine by driving the Jews into the sea and ridding Palestine of the Zionist Plague The Jewish Agency praised and accepted the resolution despite its dissatisfaction with such matters as Jewish emigration from Europe and the territorial limits Accepted the partition since it provided international legitimacy for the creation of a Jewish state Mainstream Zionist leaders emphasized the heavy responsibility of building a modern Jewish state and commits towards working for a peaceful coexistences with the regions other inhabitants Revisionist Zionsits regects the plan as a renunciation of legitimately Jewish national Territory Warned that partition would not bring peace because the Arabs would also attack the small start and if there was a war they would have to fight alone Would lead to the creation of independent Aran and Jewish States and The Special International Regime for the City of Jerusalem. Adopted the plan on November 29th 1947 Palestine was to be partitioned into two separate states, one Arab and one Jewish with economic union between the two

Arab response

Jewish response

Civil War: 194748 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine broke out due to the UN Partition Plan British role In August 1945- Zionist conference decided on a policy of active opposition to British rule in Palestine The Haganah cooperated with the Irgun and Stern gangs and British military bases, railways, trains, and bridges in Palestine became the target of these terrorist groups. Terrorist incidenets weakened the morale of the British. American Zionists urged a drive to raise money for men and guns and this also lead to frustration 1947- 2 incidents convinved the British that they should withdraw- the haning of the two Brit soldiers in 1947 and the stopping of The Exodus, which carried 4500 refugess from Europe. Incident attract worldwide publicity and won sympathy for the Jewish refugees

 Arab role Jewish role

British authorities came in for worldwide criticism British were also exhausted after the war and could hardly afford to keep troops and police in Palestine. After 30 years of trying to solve problems of the Palestine, the Brit government decided that it would hand it over to the UN After the UN Partition Plan the Arab Higher Committee met and reject any solution other than an Arab state covering the whole of Palestine Viewed the UN plan as an illegal and illegitimate attempt to divide Palestine Called for a general strike Palestinian leaders also announced their intention to use force to resist the implementation of the plan Zionists targeted the British for the stopped the boatloads of illegal Jewish immigrants from landing into Palestine Jewish attacks on British forces now increased in retaliation for death sentences passed on Jewish terrorist April 1946- six Brit soldiers were murdered July 1946- Irgun carried out attack on the King David Hotel in Jerusalembuilt by the Brit military headquarters in Palestine Men dressed as Arabs got out of a lorry and drove up to the entrance of the hotel kitchen and bombed the British military headquater