Israeli–Palestinian conflict

The Israeli–Palestinian conflict is the ongoing conflict between Israelis and Palestinians .
Though Israel is a Jewish State,it has multi-ethnic society - Israeli Jews;Arab Muslims;Arab Chrisitians;Israeli Druze;Circassians(Sunny Muslims) and others.
The Palestine people are an Arab speaking 'Levantine People' with origins in Palestine-the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River and various adjoining lands.
The Palestinian territories comprise the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
The Arab–Israeli conflict refers to the political tensions and open hostilities between the Arab peoples and the Jewish community of the Middle East as a result of large-scale Jewish settlement in Palestine, especially after  creation of the modern State of Israel in 1948.The conflict, which started as a political and nationalist conflict over competing territorial ambitions has shifted over the years from the large scale regional Arab–Israeli conflict to a more local Israeli–Palestinian conflict.
 The status of Jewish citizens in Arab states worsened dramatically during the 1948 Israeli-Arab conflict. Major anti-Jewish riots erupted throughout the Arab World.Jews under Islamic regimes were uprooted from their longtime residency or became political hostages of the Arab–Israeli conflict. As a result, a large number of Jews fled or were forced to emigrate from Arab countries and some Muslim countries as well.
In Libya,Jews were deprived of citizenship.In Iraq, the Jews properties are seized.Egypt expelled most of its Jewish community.
Over 700,000 Jews emigrated to Israel between 1948 and 1952, with approximately 285,000 of them from Arab countries.

The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) is a political and paramilitary organization which was created in 1964and recognized as the "sole legitimate representative of the ''Palestine People'' by the UN and over 100 states with which it holds diplomatic relations, and has enjoyed observer status at the UN since 1974.

Six-Day War - June 5-10,1967

 was fought between Israel and Egypt,Jordan and Syria.Israel launched surprise air-strikes and took effective control of the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula(eastern bank of the Suez Canal ) from Egypt, the West Bank and East Jerusalem from Jordan, and the Golan Heights from Syria.The outcome of ''Six-Day War'' was a swift and decisive Israeli victory.

Khartoum Resolution - August 1967
The Arab leaders met in Khartoum(after the Six-Day War) and eached consensus that there should be no recognition, no peace, and no negotiations with the State of Israel, the so-called "three no's".

War of Attrition  - (1967-70)
was fought between Egypt and Israel.Egyptian President Gamel Abdel Nasser believed only military initiative would compel Israel or the international community to force a full Israeli withdrawal from the Sinai.Hostility between Israel and Egypt resumed along the Suez Canal which initially took the form of limited artillery duels and small scale incursions into the Sinai.On March 8, 1969, Nasser proclaimed the official launch of the War of Attrition, characterized by large scale shelling along the Canal, extensive aerial warfare and commando raids. Hostilities continued until August 1970 and ended with a ceasefire, the frontiers remaining the same as when the war began.

Yom Kippur War - October 6 to 25, 1973
was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria. The war began when the coalition launched a joint surprise attack on Israel on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in Judaism which coincided with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.Egyptian and Syrian forces crossed ceasefire lines to enter the Israeli-held Sinai Peninsula and Golan Heights  respectively, which had been captured and occupied since the 1967 Six-Day War.

Camp David Accords - September 17,1978

                                          Menachem Begin,Jimmy Carter and Anwar El Sadat                                       


The Camp David Accords were the result of 18 months of intense diplomatic efforts by Egypt, Israel, and the United States that began after Jimmy Carter became President of the USA. Efforts initially focused on a comprehensive resolution of disputes between Israel and the Arab countries, gradually evolved into a search for a bilateral agreement between Israel and Egypt. There were two 1978 Camp David agreements:-
(1)A Framework for Peace in the Middle East and  
(2)A Framework for the Conclusion of a Peace Treaty between Egypt and Israel
The Camp David Accords prompted the disintegration of a united Arab front in opposition to Israel.The success of Begin, Sadat, and Carter at Camp David demonstrated to other Arab states and entities that negotiations with Israel were possible.

 Israel and Egypt Peace Treaty - March 1979
Following the Camp David Accords,Israel and Egypt signed a Peace Treaty in March, 1979. Under its terms, the Sinai Peninsula returned to Egyptian hands and also provided for the free passage of Israeli ships through the Suez Canal and recognition of the Strait of Tiran and the Gulf of Aqaba as international waterways.

First Intifada(1987-93)

was a Palestine Uprising against the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian Territories which began in the Jabalia Refugee Camp and quickly spread throughout Gaza,The West Bank and East Jerusalem.It was the first time that Palestinians acted to together and as a nation. Palestinian actions primarily included nonviolent civil disobedience and resistance.There were general strikes;boycotts on Israeli productsrefusal to paytaxes; 

graffiti;barricades. The PLO, which until then had never been recognised as the leaders of the Palestinian people by Israel, was invited to peace negotiations.

 

Oslo Accords - September 1993

 

Yitzhak Rabin,Bill Clinton and Yasser Araft at the Oslo Accords signing ceremony on 13 September 1993

Israel and the PLO signed the Oslo Accords  known as the Declaration of Principles or Oslo I.Israel recognized the PLO as the legitimate representative of the Palestinian people while the PLO recognized the right of the state of Israel to exist and renounced terrorism, violence and its desire for the destruction of Israel.Under the Oslo Accords, Israel committed to the phased withdrawal of its forces from parts of the Gaza Strip and West Bank, and affirmed the Palestinian right to self-government within those areas through the creation of a Palestinian Authority

 

Second Intifada also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada

began in late September 2000. ''Al-Aqsa'' is the name of a mosque, constructed in the 8th century AD at the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem a location considered the holiest site in Judaism and third holiest in Islam. "Intifada" is an Arabic word that translates into English as "uprising"

The conflict began on September 28, 2000 when Ariel Sharon, a Likud party candidate for Israeli Prime Minister, entered the Temple Mount guarded by hundreds of Israeli policemen. He stated on that day, "the Temple Mount is in our hands and will remain in our hands. It is the holiest site in Judaism and it is the right of every Jew to visit the Temple Mount.Palestinians have since claimed his act was a provocation and see it as the beginning of the Second Intifada.