Introduction
At the heart of the Arab-Israeli conflict lies the disagreement on the land and boundary issues. The land dispute has defined and shaped the politics of the regions for ages. For many, individuals, the conflict is a century old problem; however, the course of the conflict runs way beyond the century. The onset of the conflict can be traced back to the 1250BC when the present Israel was conquered by the Israelites while it was called Canaan. From 961-922 BC the land remained under the leadership of King Solomon and the Jews before it spilt up into two kingdoms (Fraser 195). The southern region was later conquered by the Babylonians only to be recaptured seventy years later by the Jews, and the reconstruction of the temple of Solomon begun.
In 63 BC, after the settlement of the Jew on the land of Judea, it was incorporated into the Roman province in Palestine resulting in innumerable protests by the Jews for decades. The onset of the Jewish Diaspora can be traced back to 70AD when the Temple of Solomon was destroyed. In 638 AD, the Arabs conquered the land that was previously owned by the Israelites and it remained under the control of Muslims until the United Nations mandate in 1948 that saw them occupy the land to establish the nation that is now referred to as Israel (Bunton 95). This essay is an analysis of the conflict over the years, the numerous peacemaking attempts that have been made and the possible scenarios for the future with the evolving global political dynamics.
The conflict and Its Impacts
The onset of the Zionist movement created the backdrop upon which Jews would go on to demand their land back. They argued for the original ownership of the land from 1897 and began to demand for resettlement in a land that was now fully occupied by the Israelites. The core challenge and problem that caused the conflict was the claim from both the Arabs and the Jews on the original possession of the land. In 1903, a bunch of over 25000 immigrants resettled in Palestine. Between 1904 and 1940 a batch of over forty thousand immigrants had moved back into the region (Schulze 99). Living among Palestinians sowed the seeds of discord that would see the conflict blossom in a spiraling war series. By 1917, however, the British colonial masters made a commitment towards the restoration of the land that was now Palestinian to the Jews.
In 1922, Sir Winston Churchill, who was the British Prime Minister, developed a white paper that was aimed at reassuring the Arab nations against the establishment of Jewish state. While the British struggled to hide their intensions of the division of Palestinian land, anti-British and anti-Zionist movements began to crop up in Palestine (Karsh 42).
The Black Hand for instance, initiated military enlistment and training to Arab peasants in Palestine during the 1930s, with the aim of preparing them against a possible invasion by the Jewish minority. Vandalism on Jewish settler plantations and terror attacks were used as methods of scaring and maiming the immigrant Jews to discourage their settlement.
The onset of the conflict began with the influx of Jews in Palestine to creating the impetus for the Arabs to rise against the threat of invasion on their land. In 1937, the conflict became fully fledged when the British proposed the division of the land between the Palestinians and the Jews, where the Jews would take a third of the land including Galilee and the coastal plain. For the Arabs or Palestinians, the land have been conquered and occupied for centuries and thus made it theirs while for the Jews, their claim was based on the original occupation of the land before the Palestinians. For the British, the major goal was to ensure that the Jews would have a land to call their own, after having lived in the diaspora for ages.
The ongoing atrocities of Nazi Germany that saw the death of millions of Jews created the need for the resettlement of the Jews and thus came the issue of division of land between the two conflicting communities (Karsh 53). 1948 saw the proclamation of the nation of Israel followed by the removal of the British troops from the region.
The subsequent years have been characterized by war and the never-ending conflicts between the two nations based on boundaries and further worsened by the religious difference. The land of Negev to Galilee was conquered by the Israelites through wars and a major massacre that saw most of the Palestinians resettle in Lebanon, Egypt and Jordan.
In an attempt to re-establish their dominance in the region, the Arab nations comprising of Lebanon, Egypt, Syria, Iraqi and Jordan invaded the nation only to be defeated in what would later be referred to as the Six Day war of 1969. The Palestinian Liberation organization, which was formed in the same year was created as a vehicle that would help the nation reclaim the land that is considered to be theirs. The Arabs, inclusive of all the nations that had participated in the war, suffered a major embarrassment from the defeat of their nation that had been in existence for less than two decades (Schulze 78).
Over half a million Palestinians lost their homes, which were occupied by the Israelites. The international community, which was largely silent during this period engrained the aspect of neglect for the Muslim community and further widened the conflict from a religious perspective. The legality of process of evacuating hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homes without a resettlement plan was shocking to the Arabic community.
While, most scholars and authors may argue against the role of religion in the escalation of the conflict, the years of war have time and again brought out the aspect of religious difference at the center stage of the conflict. Religion has played a greater role in the conflict if the claim of original ownership by the Israelites is to be considered.
The Temple of Solomon is often used by the Jews as evidence of their original ownership of the land, while for the Muslims, the ascension of prophet Muhammad is recorded to have occurred in the same region. The religious and cultural importance of the region has been instrumental in fueling the conflict for all the years of its existence.
Offensive attacks by Syria and Egypt under the Palestinian Liberation Organization would follow to an attempt to reclaim the pieces of land that had been lost. The attacks would be devastating to the nation of Israel, to the extent that it became dependent of the United States for, military, economic and diplomatic support.
It was not until the terrorist attacks and offensive attacks by the PLO, that the international community began to consider the involvement of the Palestinian community in the attainment of peace within the region. The course of the conflict from the proclamation of the new Nation of Israel in 1948 until 1970 when the attacks of Israel became so frequent was a Palestinian approach that had been ignored.
For the international diplomatic community, this was a major oversight that escalated the conflict. For the Palestinians, and larger Arabian society, the biasness of the international community, more so the western world built an antipathy against the Jews and stocked the fire of conflict that rages on to this age.
Peacemaking Efforts
Numerous peacemaking efforts have been made over the years to bring the conflict to an end without any success. For Palestine, the solution does not lie in a peaceful coexistence with the Jews, but through the evacuation from the land they claim. For instance, during the United Nations general Assembly of 1974, the Palestine Liberation organization was accorded an observer status to represent the Palestinian Arabs. However, the passage of Zionism as a form of racism by the United Nations resulted in the erosion of its credibility as an impartial mediator in the resolution of the conflict. Innumerable sanctions have been slammed against Israel without any tangible and positive results being realized.
A peace agreement between Egypt and Syria saw the returns of the Sinai desert to the Egyptians in 1979, after a long process of arbitration by the United States. However, the consultations that were made in an effort to ensure that the West Bank strip had been returned to the Palestinian Arabs failed owing to the condition of partial autonomy that Israel proposed as part of the deal (Ross 45). Israel on the other hand, refused to recognize the Palestinian Liberation Organization as a credible mediation partner in their negotiation process. In 1994, the most notable stride was achieved in regards to the realization of peace between the two nations.
An Oslo lead peace negotiation saw the establishment of Palestinian National Authority under the leadership of Arafat that saw the transfer of about thirty territories back to the Palestinians. The elections for leadership within the PNA and the Assembly of Palestine were conducted for the first time without violence. The subsequent plan was to ensure that, within the span of five years, a transition involving the resettlement of Palestinian refugees and the drawing of specific borders would be conducted. The peace process however, collapsed with the growth of terrorism networks when Israeli forces were withdrawn from Palestinian territories. Another major step that came close to ensuring peace was the bridging of proposals that were made by President Bill Clinton, which also failed and saw the reoccupation of Palestinian territories by the Jews.
Obstacles to Peace
The contention between Arabs and the Jews has majorly been enhanced by the religious differences that they hold. The holy sites that are claimed by both sides have hampered the process of peace realization within the region. The cultural ties to the land have been the major obstacle to the attainment of peace between the two nations. For the Palestinians, fighting to the last man is an option they are willing to purse if it will be the cost of preserving their ancestral land.
For the Jews on the other hand, the land is a God-given right to which they are ready to endure the violence and terror attacks that they receive from Palestinian militants. Demonization and negative misconceptions by both parties are another impediment to the peace process (Smith 61). For the Jews, the main misconception and perception that they hold against the Palestinians is in relation to the nature of violence and extremisms that their religion upholds.
This is an ironical concept considering the fact that it is Israel that is seen as an enemy to the eyes of the Arabs. Some Arab organizations have been known to train their children on paramilitary aspects that are aimed at wedging war against the Jews. In such an environment that focuses on inculcating war and violence ideology among children, one can begin to understand the challenge that comes with peace attainability in the region.
Achieving impartial negotiations in a volatile environment such as that of the Arab and Israelis is a daunting task. Citizens, leaders and commitment from both side is what is required to allow for a genuine address of the issue at hand. Compromising and sacrificing has been unachievable by the two parties owing to the fact that none of the sides are ready to accept the legitimacy of either side.
Conclusion
The attainment of peace between Israel and Palestine seems to be stretched far into the future. For the Palestinian side, they are the original owners of the land, who have been forcefully evicted from their ancestral homes and thus a point of negotiation would begin with the restoration of their property. Israel on the hand had spent centuries in Diaspora, and the reclamation of the land of Israel became a major victory for their future. For both nations, insatiable demands are often tabled making the peace resolution process a complex issue to be attained anywhere in the near future.
The religious undertone plays a crucial role in fuelling the conflict and often is the number one impediment in the process of peace negotiation between the two nations. Dwindling fuel prices and escalating Islamic state activity in the Middle East introduces a whole new dimension to the conflict and widens the rift between the two nations. For the Arabic community, Israel is a representation of western impunity and is thus targeted a lot of time to spite the west.
Works Cited
Bunton, Martin P. The Palestinian-Israeli Conflict: A Very Short Introduction. , 2013. Print.
Fraser, Thomas Grant. The Arab-Israeli Conflict. Palgrave Macmillan, 2015. Print.
Karsh, Efraim. The Arab-Israeli Conflict: The 1948 War. New York: Rosen Pub, 2009. Print.
Ross, Stewart. Causes and Consequences of the Arab-Israeli Conflict. London: Evans, 2004. Print.
Schulze, Kirsten E. The Arab-Israeli Conflict. Pearson Education, 2008. Print.
Smith, Charles D. Palestine and the Arab-Israeli Conflict. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martins, 2013. Print.
