Israel-Palestine6









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Type: Parliamentary Democracy Democratically-elected Hamas seized control of the Gaza in June 2007 Hamas leader (prime minister): Khaled Mashaal Fatah (PLO- see key people for more information) Current President: Mahmoud Abbas abu-mazen
 * < **Subject** ||< **20th and 21st Century** ||
 * **Government** ||< **Gaza Srip and Palestine:**

Type: Parliamentary Democracy Current Prime minister: Binyamin Netanyahu Current President: Shimon Peres || Palestinian Arab (Gaza strip), Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% (West Bank) Muslim (predominantly Sunni) 99.3%, Christian 0.7% (Gaza strip) Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% (West Bank)
 * Israel : **
 * < **Religion and Ethnicity** || ** Gaza strip and Palestine: **
 * Ethnic groups:**
 * Religions:**

**Israel:** Jewish 75.6%, Muslim 16.9%, Christian 2%, Druze 1.7%, other 3.8% (CIA world fact book 2008 census) || Non-profit organization founded in 1994: Israel helps to mend Palestinian standard of living in order to create better relations. Stone-cutting is a major occupational opportunity for many Palestinians. Israeli and Palestinian officials both created many economic benefits: -tourism/traveling promoted in new projects -Palestinians created handicrafts to sell locally -new institutions -joint language center(Arabic and Hebrew and cultural heritage) GDP: 12.95 billion (2009 est.) GDP GROWTH: 8% (2009 est.) INFLATION: 9.9% (2009 est.) UNEMPLOYMENT: 16.5% (2010 est.) MAJOR INDUSTRIES: cement, quarrying, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, mother-of-pearl souvenirs, food processing || -established in 1994 -foreign relations run through PNA offices in many countries -conducted by Riyad Al-Maliki (as of July 2007) -want to gain support of State of Palestine from the United Nations Fatah and Hamas created unity government beginning to gain full control over Gaza and the West Bank || EXPORT GOODS: olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone, citrus, flowers, textiles IMPORTS: $3.772 billion c.i.f. (2008) IMPORT GOODS: food, consumer goods, construction materials ||
 * Ethnic groups:** Jewish 76.4% (of which Israel-born 67.1%, Europe/America-born 22.6%, Africa-born 5.9%, Asia-born 4.2%), non-Jewish 23.6% (mostly Arab) (CIA world fact book: 2004)
 * Religions:**
 * < **Economics** ||< **Israeli** economy and ** Palestinian ** economy are interrelated.
 * < **Foreign Relations** ||< PALESTINIAN NATIONAL AUTHORITY (PNA):
 * < **Internal/External Factors** ||< EXPORTS: $529 million f.o.b. (2009)

**Video:**

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<span style="color: #06b106; font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">**Key People In <span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Israeli History:**

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">__**David Ben-Gurion**:__ The first Prime Minister of Israel, a remarkable statesmen, leader, and politician. He is considered the "father" of modern Israel. Ben-Gurion was named also one of //Time Mag////azine//'s 100 Most Important People of the Century.



<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">__**Golda Meir**__: One of the most influential women leaders of the 20th century. She was Israel’s first female prime minister during a key time in Israel's history and the world’s third female prime minister. Meir <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">was often described as the "Iron Lady" of Israeli politics, being associated with British prime minister, Margaret Thatcher.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">__**Uri S**____**avir**__: An Israeli politician and diplomat who played an essential role in the negotiations and the signing of the Interim Agreement (an agreement governing several aspects of the Palestinian territories of Gaza Strip and West Bank) with Palestine in 1995. He was Israel’s Chief Negotiator with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in the Oslo Accords between 1993 and 1996. He was also the head of Israel’s delegation for the negotiations with Syria. He was Israel's consul in New York from 1988 to 1992 and general manager of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel from 1993 to 1996. He’s been an associate of the current President of the State of Israel, Shimon Peres, since 1984.

<span style="color: #06b106; font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">**Key People in <span style="color: #ff00ff; font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif;">Palestinian History:** = = = __Abu Nidal:__ = Originally named Sabri Khalil al-banna was born in May 1937, he was the founder of Fatah Revolutionary Council (also commonly known as the Abu Nidal Organization) Sabri Khalil al-banna was later on named Abu Nidal because of the literal Arabic translation of “father of the struggle”. He was against Israel and his goal was to destroy it. He later on accused the PLO of having diplomatic relations with the country of Israel so he set up his own organization the Fatah Revolutionary Council (a.k.a the Abu Nidal Organization) after he split away from Yasser Arafat who was the original creator of Fatah. .




 * Ahmad al-Shukeiri**: Was born on January first 1908. In 1908 and in 1912 he was elected to be in the Ottoman Parliament, and he was the first chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization, and served in it during the years Of 1964 through 1967.




 * Yasser Arafat: ** Fully named Mohammed Yasser Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini Abu- Ammar (Yasser Arafat for short)was born on August 24th 1929. He was a Palestinian leader, Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization, and the first president of the Palestinian National Authority (Gaza and the West Bank) In 1959 he founded the Fatah political party, and became its leader. Araft dedicated his life to fight against Israel, as he believed that it was in the name of "Palestinian self determination" since he was against Israels existence. Many Palestinians viewed him as a "Freedom fighter", that represented them. Although Israel and some other countries viewed him as a terrorist. He received a Noble peace prize, along with Yitzhak Rabin (the 5th prime minister of Israel) and Shimon Peres (the 9th president of Israel) for their negotiation on the declaration of principles on interim self government arrangements (DOP or Oslo, an agreement for the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli Conflict) Thus there was an agreement on the creation of a Palestinian National Authority, and that Israel would withdraw its troops from the West Bank and Gaza.

<span style="color: #040490; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 190%;">//**Timelines:**//

===<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">__Israel__**__:__** ===


 * Pre-establishment:**
 * December 9, 1917** - British Expeditionary Forces capture and occupy Jerusalem.
 * September 1918 -** the entire land of Palestine is liberated by British Forces.
 * November 29, 1918 -** German forces surrender to American, British, and French forces.
 * 1920** - Arabs hold riots in Jerusalem for four straight days.
 * 1933** - Hitler becomes chancellor to Germany.
 * September 1, 1939** - Nazi Germany invades Poland. Two days later Britain and France declare war on Germany, signifying the start of World War II.
 * September 2, 1945** - The Japanese surrender on the USS Missouri, officially ending World War II.
 * October 10, 1945** - Palmach fighters walk all 208 detainees right out of camp a camp in Atlit to Kibbutz Beit Oren.


 * Post- establishment**:


 * May 14, 1948** - Israel is declared independent, and no longer under British rule
 * May 15. 1948** - Surrounding Arab countries, and armies, attack the new Jewish state (Israel), causing the beginning of the 1948 13 month Arab - Israeli war.
 * 1946 - 1956** - attacks by Fedayeen (terrorist organization group) from Egypt unto Israel
 * 10 March 1949** - End of the 13 month Arab - Israeli war.
 * 1949** - Armistice Agreements are set between Israel and surrounding countries. What was the British Mandate of Palestine is now divided between Israel, Egypt, and the kingdom of Jordan.
 * June 1967:** The Six Day war: Israel attacks the United Arab Republic (a.k.a present day Egypt), Israels victory lead it to control of the Gaza strip, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights.
 * December 8th 1987:** First Intifada. Palestinians from the West Bank and the Gaza strip, start civil disobedience campaigns, and riots.
 * 1987:** Hamas was founded by Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, and Mahmoud Zahar
 * 1982:** First Lebanon war. Israel attacks Lebanon because the the Abu Nidal Organizations attempt to assassinate the Israeli ambassador to the United Kingdom.
 * 2006:** Second Lebanon war. Hezbollah a Lebanese terrorist group, attacked Israel with rockets

__**Arabic Territories:**__
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1915: ** Hussein-McMahon Correspondence: Britain promised Arabs land, did not explicitly include Palestine. Arabs argued that Britain promised them Palestine. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1916: ** Sykes-Picot Agreement: Britain secretly claimed Palestine with a Mandate. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1917: ** Balfour Declaration: Balfour declared that British government will let Jews have a national home in Palestine. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1919: ** Supreme Council of the Peace Conference(Allied Forces) decided that the Ottoman Empire’s Arab provinces would not be returned to Turkey. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1920: ** Nationalist Arabs protested multiple times in Jerusalem against Zionist immigration. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1921: ** Arabs rioted against Jewish residents of Jaffa (area in Palestine), British attempted to restore peace and order. Later: Arab nationalist (al-Husayni) was made the Sunni religious leader of Jerusalem; he made plans to prevent Jewish immigration to Jerusalem. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**February:** Arab leaders announced that they couldn’t accept the Mandate of the Balfour Declaration; they also demanded national independence. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> **June and July:** Churchill White Paper: Britain clarified its position regarding Palestine (on the Jews’ side). British Mandate for Palestine was approved- British described their main intent as establishing a national home for Jews. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> **September:** Britain claimed Transjordan for itself, but did not include it in the land set aside for the national home. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1923: ** British and French Mandates (for Palestine and Syria, respectively) came into operation- Britain intervened frequently during Jew-Arab disputes. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1939: ** White Paper of 1939: called for creation of unified Palestinian state; commitment to Balfour Declaration, yet limited Jewish immigration(75000 over next 5 years) and Jewish ability to purchase land. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1947: ** Partition Plan: British Mandate of Palestine to be split into two states, Jewish leaders accepted plan but Arab leaders rejected; announcement of plan caused Palestinian Arabs to react violently. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1948: ** British Mandate of Palestine expired; Israel declared independence from Britain. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1949: ** Egyptians and Israelis disputed over the Gaza Strip <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**May 28th 1962:** The Palestine Liberation Organization was created by Mahmoud Abbas <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1956-57: ** Israel occupied the Strip, but then withdrew its troops because of international pressure. Egypt gained control. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1967: ** Israel recaptured the Strip, but UN Security Council Resolution 242 told Israel to withdraw. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1970: ** Jews started settling on the Gaza Strip; Palestinians become upset and riots between the two ethnicities became common. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">** 1978: ** Hamas (radical Islamic organization) was formed.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">1922: **

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Up to modern day, violent clashes between Israelis and Palestinians were common, especially on the Gaza Strip.

=<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 140%;">20th-Century Issues: =

Pre-1945:
After Britain claimed Palestine from the Ottoman Empire, it let Jews live in it and practice their religion there. There were tensions between the (Muslim) Arabs and the Jews, but Britain told the Arabs to accept the Jews. In 1920, Arabs rioted in Jerusalem for 4 days straight to protest the Jews. In 1933, Adolf Hitler became chancellor to Germany. He exterminated the Jews by taking them from all over Europe and taking them to camps. Jews fled to avoid being taken from the Nazis, which caused them to be spread apart and disunited all over the world.

After 1945:
After the Great War (WWI), Britain closed mass immigration to Palestine to prevent any additional Jew-Arab tension. The Palestinian Jews were upset about other Jews being denied access to their national "home", so they protested and formed the Palmach. When people were caught smuggling into Israel, they were taken to detention camps. The Palmach wanted to free these detainees, so they arranged for a Jewish camp guard to disarm the British. On October 10, 1945, the armed Palmach walked out with all 208 detainees and took them to a kibbutz(a communistic community). The British later surrounded the kibbutz, but Jews from another area (Haifa) surrounded and overwhelmed the British. Israel then became an independent state, but the violence between the Jews and the Arabs still existed.

**A 20th century war:** First Lebanon War 1982: The first Lebanon war also known as ‘Milhemet Levanon Harishona’ began on June 6th 1982. On that day the Israeli Defense Forces (tzahal) invaded the southern portion of Lebanon, as a result of Abu Nidals organization’s (Fatah revolutionary council) attempt to assassinate Shlomo Argov, the Israeli ambassador for the United Kingdom. Israel’s goal was to attempt to remove the control of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) in Lebanon. Instead of the PLO they wanted to place a Christian government which would be run by Bashir Gemayel, and would therefore allow for the signing of the peace treaty as Menachem Begin promised, would result in forty years of peace between Lebanon and Israel. But once Bashir Gemayel (Lebanon's president) was assassinated there was little chance of Lebanon agreeing on the peace treaty. Therefore Lebanon created Hezbollah (a Lebanese terrorist group) because they decided to fight Israel back.

**A 21st century war:** Second Lebanon war 2006: The second Lebanon war also called the '2006 Israel-Hezbollah war' or 'Milhemet Levanon HaShniya' was a 34 day long war between Israel ( Israeli defense forces) and Lebanon(Hezbollah). The war began on July 12th 2006, and ended on September 8th 2006. On July 12th Hezbollah had fired Rockets at the the Israeli territories that bordered Lebanon. Israel responded by attacking back with airstrikes (attacks using aircraft) and artillery fire on Lebanese structures that are used in daily life (attacks using weapons on 'civilian infrastructure' ) As a result of this war thousands of people died and approximately 300,000-500,000 Israeli and approximately one million Lebanese people lost their homes.

<span style="color: #b10fd7; font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 140%;">__**Israel-Palestine Current Events (21st century):**__

<span style="color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">1).Fatah and Hamas Work to Accomplish a Unity Government * : <span style="background-color: white; display: block; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=256591 <span style="background-color: white; display: block; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=256560 http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=256671 <span style="background-color: white; display: block; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Fatah President, Mahmoud Abbas, and Hamas leader, Khaled Mashaal, are continuing to make progressions to finally agree on the proper government control for Palestine and the Gaza Strip. Instead of ruling these two areas separately, these leaders are working on finding a balance within the government, which suits both governing policies. Settling on a prime minister to lead the unity government, implementing the alliance with Egypt, imposing the travel ban in the Gaza Strip, and distributing passports to West Bank citizens are all included in the stretch for a unity government agreement. Fatah and Hamas held a meeting with the Qatari prime minister, where they further discussed plans for the united government. The reconciliation with Egypt found itself among the obstacles facing the formation of the new government. The men argued through the identification of the next prime minister, and releasing the prisoners of the area. Prisoners which are found guilty of having an alliance with Hamas are being held for longer captivity. Peace agreements and political decisions are continually being worked out as Israel is also being blamed by the PA leadership for a settlement construction refusal in Palestine, and for ignoring pre-made state lines. <span style="background-color: white; display: block; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">A Fatah official, Azzam Ahmed, says that the unity government will officially be announced on February 18, 2012, as they are still implementing the reconciliation with Qatar and Egypt and preparing for parliamentary elections in order to repair government in the Gaza Strip. The power struggle between Hamas and Fatah is currently being reconciled thanks to Qatar, who has contributed greatly to leadership decisions. Whether the Palestinian prime minister, Salam Fayyad, should continue with his role, restoring institutions, and ceasing the travel bans in the Gaza strip.Finally, Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah was elected the new prime minister of the unity government of Hamas and Fatah. Though Hamas is not ecstatic about this decision, the government is almost guaranteed success through the Hamas and Fatah reconciliation. <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">2). Gilad Shalit Returns Home in Exchange for Hamas Prisoners: http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/gilad-shalit-prisoner-swap-israel-prepares-for-the-captive-soldiers-release/2011/10/17/gIQAZ2lFsL_story.htm

After five long years, captured Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, returns home to his family, and friends in October 2011. He was captured by Hamas militants on June 25th in 2006, when Hamas militants attacked his tank and killed two fellow soldiers that were with him. .After much discussions, and arguing Israel agreed to Hamas’s request to free Gilad Shalit, if 1,027 of the Palestinian prisoners who were held in an Israeli prison, were to be freed. The decision was made when Benjamin Netanyahu called his cabinet for an emergency meeting, were 21 people were in favor of the exchange and 3 were against it. The Palestinian prisoners were sent in bus loads back to Palestine (the west bank and Gaza territories) were they were greeted by crowds of people waving the Hamas flag (rarely seen in areas controlled by Fatah) It was recorded that Gilad looked pale and thin when he first stepped foot back on Israel (doctors noted signs of malnutrition and lack of sunlight), even though he was recorded stating that he was being taken care of well by Hamas during the five years that he was held captive. Before returning to his home, Gilad was sent to Egypt through the Rafah crossing (an international border between Egypt and Palestinian-controlled Gaza strip) and then was sent back up to Israel. Although Gilads release has removed one source of conflict between Palestine and Israel, Hamas has yet noted that they want the release of more than 4,000 more prisoners, besides the 1,027 that were already released with Gilad.Yet one thing that both countries share is the happiness that the release of the captured people has brought upon them. Whether it was the Palestinians who greeted their family members who they thought they would never see again, or the people of the country of Israel celebrating the return of a soldier that they had no idea what had happened to

**Videos on Gilad Shalit:** **1) The Israelis reaction** **2) The Palestinians reaction**

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<span style="color: #d20458; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 150%;">**__Primary Source:__** <span style="color: #d20458; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">//Survival is Not Enough// - by Yehoshua Zamir

Summary: //Survival Is Not Enough// is a collection of diary entries and letters written by a man named Yehoshua Zamir, whose son was killed in the first days of the Lebanon War. He talks of his struggle to keep going, writing many diary entries questioning whether he will be able to continue living without his son. However, he realizes that he must find a way to live with this fact, his motivation being that "survival is not enough" - that he must make sure that the Lebanon war is remembered forever as a terrible mistake, so that he can try to stop it from ever happening again. Zamir also recounts all of the other friends and family he lost in the war, as well as the thousands of lives taken of people he didn't even know. He describes many very gruesome details about conditions during and after the war, and about his struggle to find purpose without his son, hoping that it will encourage people to oppose another war like this from happening, for fear of their own loved ones.

Primery source from ( http://books.eserver.org/nonfiction/survival/):

Introduction : __1) Foreword__ //Survival is Not Enough// contains a small selection from amongst the thousands of pages I've written since that awful day, June 6, 1982, the day my son, Yaron, was killed at the Beaufort Castle on the first day of the Lebanon War. Today, ten years later, I am convinced that two of the factors which have enabled me to carry on have been the writing of a diary and the dreams I've had in which I've held an ongoing monologue with myself; another factor has been the large volume of correspondence through which I have maintained a dialogue with the human environment in which I live. Actually, though, it was the responses and reactions to my letters which convinced me that //survival is not enough//. I realized that my words had an impact, and that if I want to live in a nation where it is considered good to live and not to die [a reference to the dying words attributed to early Zionist Yosef Trumpeldor, killed in a skirmish with local Arabs: "It is a good thing to die for our country"], then I have to do all that I can to make sure the Lebanon War will not be forgotten, a war that should never have been waged and which caused such grief, such great suffering. This year will mark 46 years since my illegal immigration into Palestine from the United States. After my immigration, my kibbutz was established, the fourth North American kibbutz of the Hashomer Hatzair Zionist youth movement. In spite of the Second World War which reached its conclusion with the dropping of the atomic bomb at Hiroshima and the dreadful Holocaust, we believed that each one of us had the duty, the power, the right and the ability to change the world and alter Jewish existence, and to create here in Israel a proper homeland for the Jewish people. And on June 6, 1982, my son, Yaron, was killed at the Beaufort Castle... From the depths of my despair, I am sending out a slender life-line so that I may be pulled to safety, but also so as to proclaim that I am still alive, fighting for my life, my values and my conscience, hoping that I can hold out and keep my head above water until the day arrives when, thanks in part to my words and deeds, I may come back up on land and show my face. __2) Diary entries: Ex:__ June 1982 And on that fateful day, I sat by the extruder machine in the Tel-Dor factory. At that very place and it was 7 AM. Yechiel and Shraga walked up to me and I became frozen still. Everything came to a halt. Even my heart nearly stopped beating. Yechiel said one only word, "Yaron", and it was all over. Leaning on these two for support, I walked slowly home where I would try to pass on to Ramah this bitter news. And nothing can compare to a mother's reaction. She wailed and wailed until she had no strength left to wail any longer. And friends started arriving at our house, trying to surround us with love and console us - as if that were possible. I can't go on describing these hard, terrible days of burning pain over the loss of a young life and of the awful, frustrated feeling that this war was not a necessary one. This whole war won't do a thing except turn more people into refugees and cause suffering to the thousands of families who will see their loved ones wounded and their children taken from them. And back to you, Yaron. Will I ever really get to know you, ever gather together all my memories and all that was you. The longest days of the year. The sun rises and sets, the sky fire-red, blood-red. The special, ominous glow in the sky. Once, when everything was normal -- when I was still hopeful and optimistic -- the skies were full of beauty and hope. Now, they are an almost apocalyptic reminder: In the red of the skies, I see the fire of Holocaust furnaces and tanks bursting into flames... Today, at 7 AM, Yechiel and Shraga walked up to me again and told me that my niece's husband, Gal, was killed! How long can this go on? __3) Letters: Ex:__ March 1, 1985 To All Our Children. How shall I begin this time? Everything flows towards me all at once: The desire to envelope you all, to include you in what we've been going through, to stay in touch with what's going on with you, to love and cry for Yaron who cannot receive our embrace. We visited the cemetery a few hours ago, the sky blue, the fields turning green, the almond trees in the valley flowering radiantly in white, and around the graves of Yaron, Yaniv, and the other young men, the garden abloom. The lupins full of splendor, the anemones, cyclamens, and geraniums in full bloom in their planters. Why is it and how is it that Yaron is gone? It's incomprehensible. It's Purim [A Jewish holiday marked by parties and great festivity] this week, and the sounds of preparations in progress are echoing in my ears; [even] from our house, you can hear the rock and roll music emanating from the kibbutz high school. You know how much Yaron loved Purim; how he'd complain when he couldn't make it home from the army for the holiday; and later on, how the holiday lost its charm for him, after his best friend, Yaniv, died. Everything flows towards me all at once: The joy and the sadness, the grief and the rage, the bells of spring and the clouds of darkness. After all the many days that have gone by, I'm still unable to pass by one of the young men or women from Yaron's peer group without thinking how unfair it all is...nevertheless, I wish them only the best in life.
 * It's already been 1,000 days since Yaron died and the Lebanon War began.** The killing and suffering still go on. Now that Egypt is once more sending us a signal of peace, there are so few here willing to do what needs to be done. Spring will soon burst through the cold days of winter, and I'll be taking part in a protest rally of "Parents Against Silence". It will be held at Kibbutz Ga'ash, on the main coastal road [from Tel Aviv to Haifa]. Here, for 1,000 days, using numbers clearly visible from the main road, the kibbutz's members have painstakingly displayed how many days the Israeli Army has spent in Lebanon. I'll be there for I feel that this has also been the way that members of the peace movement have expressed their sense of identification with us, the families bereaved.

**Essential Questions and Answers** <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">__ What is the significance of this region/country to the Middle East? __

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #000000; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Israel is the cause of many tensions because it is predominantly Jewish in an area that is mostly Muslim. These tensions often result in violence and disputes between Israelis and its Middle Eastern neighbors.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">__ What is the significance in the region/country for the world at large? __

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Israel is the first and only homeland for Jews in the world. Jews have historically been discriminated against by all other religions and races of the world, so other countries might be uneasy about having good relations with Israel. Israel also occupies land that used to belong to other nations, so those nations and their affiliates might have held some grudges on Israel.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">__ What is the significance for the region/country in terms of the United States? __

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">The United States have always supported a Jewish national home, even before Israel was established. Furthermore, Israel has a similar government, economy, and values(democracy, free-market, freedom). The United States accepts religious freedom, so no prejudices are held against a Jewish nation like Israel.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">__ What is the basic history of this location since the Ottoman Empire? __

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">The British promised it to the Arabs, but then took it for themselves. They then allowed Jews to go onto the land, which caused a lot of Jew-Arab violence. The Jews eventually declared independence, but relations with their neighbors were still bad.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">__ Who are some of the key players, past and present? __

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">The leaders on both sides of the long-lasting Israeli-Arab conflict that still goes on today.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">__ What are the factors, both internal and external, that have contributed/are contributing to the activities of this country? __

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Religion and Nationalism.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #000000; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%; vertical-align: baseline;">**Israel and Palestine Summary:**

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> In 1948, Israel was granted independence as its own country, while Palestine still remained a state dependent on Israel and other Arab countries. Before Israel became independent, it was under the control of the Ottoman and Arab nations surrounding them. Palestine had been secretly claimed by Britain with the Sykes-Picot Agreement, but soon Britain created the Balfour Declaration proclaiming that a national homeland for Jews will be located in Palestine. This upset many Arab countries around it such as Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Jordan, and Iraq, who claimed that the new Jewish homeland was actually Arab land. These countries began to go to war with Israel, attempting to reclaim the land they thought to be rightfully theirs. After the Israeli War and invasions by Fedayeen from Egypt, agreements were made that the British Mandate of Palestine was going to be divided between Israel, Egypt, and Jordan. After winning the Six Day War, in which Israel attacked Egypt, Israel was granted control of the Gaza Strip, West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Golan heights. During the Partition Plan, the British Mandate of Palestine was going to be divided into two states, but Palestinians rejected it and soon the Mandate expired. The formation of an independent Israel began, and trouble stirred up between the Israeli’s and Egyptians. Both countries wanted control over the Gaza Strip, but control was granted to Israel, and Jews began to settle there. Hamas, a Palestinian terrorist organization, captured the Gaza Strip, and drove the Jews out.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Hamas continues to be a recurring problem today within Israel and Palestine, where it still has control over Gaza and will kill any Israeli who decides to settle there. Where Israel tries to expand, Hamas or other Palestinian groups will fight them back for the land. One would think Israel and Palestine would have accepted their land and made peace already, their land being so interrelated in worldly issues. Instead of fighting, an alliance should be created to not only initiate peace but to lend a helping hand to each other. Palestine remains an unofficial country, and the United States have contributed to this where their control in the United Nations allows them to be able to prevent Palestine from gaining independence. Israel still lies as a small country between Gaza and the West Bank, and attempting to gain control of these surrounding lands leads them to trouble. Eventually, the problems and fighting throughout Israel and Palestine will end, but the road they are currently traveling is unpaved and not quite ready for the ride.


 * Disclaimer: Some of the Information in this page may change through out the course of the next few weeks, and therefore the information given is as of the dates: 02/05/2012 - 02/06/2012.

Sources: http://sites.nscireligiousschool.org/israelhistory/intro/israel-before-1948 http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/israel_and_the_1948_war.htm http://daytranslations.com/famous_israeli_people.aspx http://www.cfr.org/israel/abu-nidal-organization-ano-aka-fatah-revolutionary-council-arab-revolutionary-brigades-revolutionary-organization-socialist-muslims/p9153 http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Peace+Process/Guide+to+the+Peace+Process/Israeli-Palestinian+Economic+Relations.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_the_Palestinian_territories http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_relations_of_the_Palestinian_National_Authority http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_Israeli–Palestinian_conflict http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/middleeast/gaza_timeline.html http://www.jpost.com/topic/Ahmad_Shukeiri http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/para/ano.htm

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<span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="display: block; font-size: 110%; height: 1px; left: -40px; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; top: -25px; width: 1px;">Revolutionary Council <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; top: -25px; width: 1px;">[|5th] [|Prime Minister of Israel]