Republic of the Philippines

UNIVERSITY OF EASTERN PHILIPPINES

COLLEGE OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

THE ISRAEL- PALESTINE CONFLICT

Cardenas, Hannah Francess

SY: 2021-2022
CASE STUDY: The Israel-Palestine Conflict
Introduction

The Israeli-Palestinian issue is one of the world's most controversial and unchanging.

It strays in response to the establishment of a Jewish state on Arab territory. The State of

Israel has not only occupied Palestinian territory, but also the sovereign territory of three of

its four neighbors. Israel committed evident and potential crimes against humanity by using

missiles, rockets, and murdering people. This enormous war involved political tensions,

military clashes, and other issues between Arab nations and Israel, although it had generally

subsided by the early twenty-first century.

The centuries-old Ottoman Empire fell after the Allied Powers defeated the Central

Powers in World War I in 1918. Two years later, the League of Nations was established as an

international organization to ensure world peace. In 1922, the League formally approved

the decision to have Great Britain act as Palestine's administrator. "Palestine had been ruled

by the Ottoman Empire for several centuries,” Atamaz said. “When the Ottoman Empire fell,

and when Britain and France won the war, it became a British Mandate. It came under the

British rule.” According to the United Nations, the British Mandate for Palestine was meant

to be temporary, only lasting until the League recognized Palestine as a fully independent

nation. That point never was reached.  The U.N. also has noted that the British government

had given assurances to Zionist organizations about creating a Jewish state in Palestine. 

"Zionism was an ideology and a movement that aimed to establish a Jewish state in

Palestine,” explained Atamaz. “According to the Zionists in Eastern Europe at the time, Jews

constituted a nation. They were not just a religious group, but they were an ethnic group

and they deserved their own state.” Jewish persecution in Europe during the early

20th century caused the United Nations to create a Jewish national homeland in 1948 by
partitioning Palestine to create a Jewish and Arab state; The State of Israel. Precipitated by

the Balfour and de-colonialisation within the British Empire (1947), Muslim Arabs were

displaced by Jewish returnees as the new country was established on their homeland.

Unsurprisingly, several wars were provoked within the territory creating the current border

lines; outcomes of two wars that were waged in 1948 and 1967.

The Six Day War of 1967 was very significant. In May 1967, Egyptian President Nasser

declared the blockade of the Straits of Tiran, a critical route for Israeli access to the Suez

Canal, and began to build forces along the Egypt/Israel boundary. Golda Meir, Israel's

Foreign Minister, said in 1957 that any blockage of Israeli ships through the Straits of Tiran

would be a declaration of war. Israel attacked Egyptian airfields on June 5, 1967, and the

ensuing fight devastated Egyptian troops. As a result of the Israeli/Egyptian Suez Crisis

confrontation in 1957, Israel acquired control of the West Bank, Sinai Peninsula, and Gaza,

all of which had sizable Palestinian populations.

However, in 1987, when no Camp David solutions were implemented and the

Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) had accomplished nothing for the Palestinians, the

spontaneous First Intifada (uprising) began with Palestinian violence targeted against Israel.

The revolt reshaped Palestinian-Israeli ties, altered internal Palestinian politics, and

significantly altered world perceptions of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. During the 1987

intifada, however, Hamas emerged as an alternative to the PLO and launched an offensive

against Israel in 1989, with assaults on civilians and military personnel continuing into the

1990s. It is critical to recognize that anger with Camp David's inaction established the

groundwork for the intifada. As a result, the goal of the 1991 Madrid peace summit was to

resurrect the Israel-Palestine peace process. According to Harms and Ferry, the symbolism
of Madrid was more important than its results, despite the fact that bilateral discussions

between Palestine and Israel would lead to the Oslo Accords. Until far, the issues have been

that foreign initiatives and third-party backing have done nothing more than set the path for

additional discussions, while Palestinian discontent has grown. Despite the fact that Camp

David established effective structures, nothing was executed.

In July 2000, a Camp David summit was arranged by US President Bill Clinton, in an

attempt to build upon the Oslo Accords. The summit concluded with no agreement as the

interim process put in place had not satisfied the hopes of either Israel or Palestine. In late

September, the dissatisfaction of no outcome at Camp David, and the visit of Israeli

opposition leader Ariel Sharon to the Temple Mount, caused frustration to erupt into the

Second Intifada, which continued until February 2005 when Sharon and Palestinian

Authority President Mahmoud Abbas agreed to stop all acts of violence. This period began

the current stalemate that exists between the two factions.

Israel’s main concern was that giving up territory would result in more violence, while

Palestinians believed that Oslo simply brought more Israeli settlements and more

occupation. In September 2005, however, Sharon withdrew troops and uprooted Jewish

settlements from Gaza, closing the border and relieving the occupation. With the lack of a

peace deal and Israeli retention of border control, it could be considered that there was no

negotiation, simple unilateral action by Israel, which is in contradiction to peace talks.

Currently, the West Bank is under Palestinian authority, but experiences Israeli

occupation with troops imposing restrictions on Palestinian activities. Continued expansion

of Jewish communities in the West Bank curtails Palestinian land ownership, while Gaza is
under the control of the Islamic fundamentalist group Hamas and subject to an Israeli

blockade, but not occupation.

Problems and Objectives

The Six-day War of 1967 that led violent confrontations, execution of Palestinian and

Israelite Civilians, and inhabitants of the area, the rise of religious and racist anti-Semitism

that led to a resurgence of pogroms in Russia and Eastern Europe in the late 19th century,

stimulating Jewish immigration to Palestine from Europe, and Two opposing parties that

wants to conquer the said territories are some of the problems in this case. The objective of

this study is to examine and understand the controversial conflict between Israel-Palestine

and provide a suggestion(s) and solutions with empirical evidences that could possibly solve

this unchanging conflict.

Suggestion and Solution

There are two basic suggestions for resolving the issue in Israel. The first is the 'two-

state' solution, which envisions an independent Palestinian state in Gaza and the West Bank,

with borders based on the 1967 pre-Six Day War borders. Israel would be the sole owner of

the remaining area. While this is a sensible and practical approach in theory, there is

disagreement between the two parties over how the administration would function in

practice. The second option is the 'one-state' solution, in which the region becomes either

Israeli or Palestinian; Israeli Jews and Palestinians would have equal rights and no national

or religious identity. Given the volatile nature of the relationship, this arrangement is likely

to exacerbate conflict. Demographic growth must be considered. The population of the

region is currently 60% Israeli to 40% Palestinian, but the Palestinian birth rate is growing at
a faster rate. Clearly this will create challenges within the population. The one-state

solution, however, is gaining ascendancy.

The Palestinians have splintered since 2006. Conflict still exists between the two major

parties: Fatah, traditionally the dominant party; and Hamas whose militaristic arm

frequently shows prominence. The differences now apparent between Hamas and Fatah

make them more hostile to each other than to Israel. The stalemate that exists re-enforces

the lack of confidence in a two-state solution. Despite many peace talks and brokered

arrangements, the gap between Palestine and Israel is as vast as ever. It seems neither

Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu, nor Palestine’s Abbas believe either faction are serious about

resolving their differences, neither are they under pressure from their electorate to make a

peace that the people reject. Netanyahu’s conviction is that Jews should not compromise.

Each side is more uncertain of each other than in 1967.

Solutions to the conflict, would seem to be a two-state solution; two administrations

over the existing territory; a one state solution, a single territory which becomes either

Israel or Palestine, each with equal rights and no national or religious identity; or another

possibility, a bi-national state with each group retaining their national identity. The

objections are clear. The Palestinian position denies the existence of Israel and so a two-

state position is untenable. A one state solution with Palestinian and Jewish equality, the

state being both Jewish and democratic (the hub of Israel’s aspiration), is not realistic. To

reduce Palestinians to second class citizens who do not hold full rights challenges Israel’s

rhetoric that it is a beacon of democracy in the Middle East. In contrast, acceptance that

the State of Israel will no longer be a Jewish state, denies the history which led to its
creation. Hamas is willing to accept a Palestinian state within the 1967 boundaries, but is

still committed to the liberation of all Palestine, meaning the end of Israel.

Conclusion

In conclusion, from Camp David to Oslo, peace efforts have been plagued by

disappointment and conflict for decades. Whether a two-state, one-state, or bi-national

solution has been proposed, failed peace talks and the resurgence of bloodshed reaffirm the

idea that "the other side" is always looking for conflict. The Middle East's 'beacon of

democracy' is fading. Indeed, Enterline and Greig show that the statement of Australian

Prime Minister Scott Morrison that Israel is a "beacon of democracy" is a problematic

supposition, because democracy is an element of regional prosperity, not anarchy.

The conflict is multifaceted with plenty of blame to go around, especially towards

political leaders, interest groups, medias and foreign government who all profit from the

suffering and the land inhabitants. Tensions rose as medias and extremist on both sides

manipulated the local populations using the controversy, leading to violent confrontations

braking out all over Jerusalem including on the temple between Palestinian Protestors and

the Israeli Police.

Hamas and Islamic Jihad have coordinated a full rocket attack from Gaza on

Jerusalem, Tel aviv and many other cities in Israel, leading to several civilian deaths and

many more injuries. These sites are located in the middle of dense civilian areas resulting in

the death and injuries of many Palestinians civilians.

Anon 1995, Main Points of the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement on the West Bank and
the Gaza Strip, The Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement-Main Points, Israel Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, viewed on 8th of April 2022.
The complex history of the Israel-Palestine Conflict, published July 2021, viewed on 8 th of
April 2022
https://www.abc10.com/article/news/community/race-and-culture/need-to-know-the-
israel-and-palestine-conflict/103-79ca68a9-31c4-4adb-9b74-99e26b16cebf?
fbclid=IwAR0GgssSG2wzdV434MZjVKRm4t10VwOJMFjMD85_-8nh2g7cqcVE83XCsus
Middle East 1967, The Six Day War, viewed on 8th of April 2022
https://www.britannica.com/event/Six-Day-War
2000 Camp David Summit, viewed on 8th of April 2022.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000_Camp_David_Summit#:~:text=The%202000%20Camp
%20David%20Summit,end%20the%20Israeli%E2%80%93Palestinian%20conflict .
Anon no date, The United Nations and the formation of Israel, United Nations Historical
Committee Secretariat, viewed on 8th of April 2022.
https://sites.ualberta.ca/~hsmun/Background%20%20Israel%20State%20Formation
%5b1%5d.pdf.
Yasser Arafat - From agreement to the second intifāḍah
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Yasser-Arafat/From-agreement-to-the-second-
intifadah