The commonly believed beginning of the Israeli-Palestine conflict began with the founding of the Jewish nationalist movement known as Zionism in the late 1800 with the ultimate goal of establishing a Jewish nation in their what Jews considered their historic homeland, which included areas in present-day Palestine, which was then under the control of the Ottoman empire. Despite the fact that, their traditional homeland was under Ottoman rule, the early 1900s, so many Jews across the world who believed or followed Zionism or supported the establishment of a Jewish nation began to immigrate to Palestine. The local Zionist movement was backed and supported by Jewish communities in the United Kingdom and the United States, who pushed their respective political leaders for all the assistance that they could provide for a new Jewish state in Palestine. It is important to note, that many of the same areas claimed by Zions as being part of historic Israel were also considered by several Arab populations as being part of their historic homeland that were robbed from them by the Ottomans.
In 1917, in furtherance of the Zionist goal issued the Balfour Declaration, which stated official British support for the “establishment of in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people” (UN, 2016). The Balfour Declaration also had the tacit support of the U.S., especially as both saw it as a way to support both nation’s policies in support of national self-determination but also as a way of gaining influence in the Middle East. Nonetheless, as long as the region remained under Ottoman rule, there was not much the UK or the U.S. could do to effect the declaration.
That all change after the end of World War I and the extension of British control over Palestine. Britain, however, did not immediately move to realize the Balfour Declaration. Instead, the British allowed in essence kept the status quo, namely Arabs and increasingly larger number of Jewish immigrants were allowed to carry on under British authority. However, by 1921, the UK began allowing for increased autonomy and local governance of areas controlled by Jews and Arabs. This often leads to conflicts among Jewish and Arab residents. Some of the most intense fighting occurs in or near Jerusalem and Tel Aviv as both Jewish and Arabs held the area in high importance in their histories. The fighting over territory, authority and control increase in seriousness until 1936 when the fighting takes a more serious turn that is described as a revolt. The fighting from the Arab side, while officially aimed at overturning British rule, largely focuses on attacks on Jewish communities. In response, the Jews, who also have little faith in British rule begin to arm and organize themselves to suppress Arabs attacks as well as take land that they considered theirs. The beginning of World War II momentarily decreases the fighting between Jewish and Arab communities as the British forces exert more control in an effort to build a united front against Germany.
After the end of World War II and the eventual plan to withdraw of UK forces and control in Palestine, the United Nations voted in 1947 to officially divide the parts of Palestine that were formerly under British control into two states; one for Jews which would eventually become Israel in 1948, and one for Arabs. The UN plan is met with widespread objection from the Arab world. As the last British forces leave the area, a combination of Arab countries invades the newly established Israel. Israel is able to maintain its survival, but the stage is set for continuing fighting between Arabs and Israelis in the years and decades to come. At times the fighting and conflict has been initiated by other Arab countries as in 1948 or Israel as in the 1957 Six-Day War against Egypt. More recently, however, the conflict has been between Palestinian groups such as the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) or Islamic groups operating within Palestine such as Hezbollah and Hamas.
References
Shiloh Silverman (2012, Jun 12). Israel Palestine Conflict History and Future-War-Global Public Political Awakening http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLGJhrG9tmA
United Nations (UN). Question of Palestine. Retrieved from https://unispal.un.org/DPA/DPR/unispal.nsf/home.htm
