Israel

There are several reasons why Israelis settled in the West Bank:

Holy Sites: The majority of Jewish holy sites in Mandatory Palestine are actually in the West Bank or East Jerusalem, which are both considered Occupied Territories. These include the Western Wall in Jerusalem and the entire Old City, the Cave of the Ramban, the "City of David", David's Burial Ground at Mount Zion, the Tomb of Samuel just north of Jerusalem, the city of Hebron and the nearby the Cave of Machpelah, Joseph's Tomb in Nablus, the tombs of Pinehas and the Elders of the Great Assembly at Awarta, and Rachel's tomb outside of Bethlehem. The Palestinians under Israeli occupation currently deface many of these sites and attack Jews who seek to pray at them. Jordanians actively forbid Jews from visiting these places when they controlled the West Bank in 1949-1967. The Ottomans were not great protectors of the region either.

Many Jews are worried that if the Palestinians gain full autonomy, they will prevent Jews from visiting and praying at their holy sites, especially the Western Wall. The Islamic Waqf, which owns the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque has actually said, "The Jews have no connection to the Western Wall. It is a Muslim site that was used by Mohammed to tie up his Buraq." The Waqf then claims that the Jews "made up" their claim concerning the holiest site in Judaism in order to facilitate Palestinian repression. With people so insensitive poised to gain power over Jewish Holy Sites if the Occupied Territories are devolved, it is not surprising that Jews are worried about handing over the Occupied Territories.

Military Defense: One of the best military advantages of holding onto the West Bank is the Jordan River Valley. The river plunges precipitously on either side, making it a perfect tank-ditch for invading armies. This would force any invaders from the Jordanian side to use the bridges across the river and allow the Israelis have an effective defense. Additionally, the West Bank is the area of the former British Mandate of Palestine with the highest elevation. Several Air-Towers have been built in the Judean Highlands to spot air traffic moving around Israel and detect in-coming military planes. Without these positions, Israel leaves itself in a much worse position. Additionally, Israel becomes only 10 miles wide near Hadera, Israel if the West Bank is lost.

Size of Israeli Settlements: Close to 500,000 Israelis live in the West Bank or East Jerusalem in several major cities like Ariel, Modiin Illit, East Jerusalem, Pisgat Zeev, Ma'ale Adumim, and Efrat. Entire neighborhoods, schools, universities, companies, and livelihoods have been built up in the West Bank, not to mention voters in Israeli elections. The removal of settlements is a difficult political and social issue within Israel as it would be very costly both monetarily and socially to uproot 500,000 people and resettle them.

Natural Expansion: Many Israelis who settled in the West Bank have claimed that they did so expressly because its the natural growth of the State of Israel. This is especially true when Jerusalem is discussed. It is not natural for neighborhoods to exist in a frozen status for 40 years. Some Arab neighborhoods will become gentrified by Israelis. Ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods are expanding at the cost of Secular Jewish neighborhoods. It is only natural that populations move and expand.

Economic Incentives: There are several tax incentives by which the Israeli government makes settlement in the Palestinian Territories more desirable than living in the major cities of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Also, since communities are built in an almost factory-like way, it is easier and cheaper to build a house in the Palestinian Territories than in 1949-Israel.

There are two definitions for the term "Palestine". One refers to Mandate for Palestine, which was a British Possession in the Middle East that was all of the land between the Mediterranean Sea, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and Egypt (all of Israel and the Palestinian Territories). The other refers exclusively to the Palestinian Territories, which are considered by many to be the areas that a future Palestinian State will occupy (West Bank and Gaza Strip).

Mandate of Palestine

According to the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine, all efforts were supposed to develop a future Jewish State in the Mandate. However, in order to placate Arabs, the British began to impede the establishment of the necessary infrastructure, allowing the development of a stronger and larger Arab population. UN Resolution 181 approved the division of the Mandate of Palestine into a Jewish State and an Arab State. The Jews declared independence on their assigned portion of the Mandate of Palestine as per the UN Resolution. They were then forced to defend their state against Arab armies and succeeded, establishing an independent country.

Palestinian Territories

In 1967, in anticipation of an Arab Invasion, Israel launched a pre-emptive war against Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. This resulted in the occupation of the Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem, the West Bank, the Sinai Peninsula, the Eastern Bank of the Sea of Galilee, and the Golan Heights. The ceasefire negotiated on June 10, 1967 was enshrined in UNSC Resolution 242 that held that Israel was to return the land to the Arab nations from which it was taken in return for a final and lasting peace treaty. As a result of such peace treaties, the Sinai has been returned to the Egyptians and the Jordanian claim to the West Bank and East Jerusalem has been ceded to the Palestinians. However, as there is no lasting peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians, there is still an Israeli Occupation of the West Bank and an Israeli blockade around Gaza.

1) Terrorism As Advocacy Works: The Palestinian Cause, which up until 1972 had not been recognized at all by major world leaders, was now on everyone's lips. Terrorists learned that high profile violence would attract public media attention and force governments to pay more heed to them.

2) Terrorists As Individuals Pay: Eight of the Eleven members of Black September responsible for the attack were hunted down and killed. It showed that leaders of different nations would be relentless against terrorism.

Eight of the 11 terrorists targeted for death were killed. Terrorists throughout the world leaned that one can't get away with a terrible thing. - See more at: http://www.chacha.com/question/what-two-lessons-did-terrorists-throughout-the-world-learn-from-the-attack-on-the-israeli-athletes-at-the-1972-munich-olympics#sthash.vfwjCgWO.dpuf

Eight of the 11 terrorists targeted for death were killed. Terrorists throughout the world leaned that one can't get away with a terrible thing. - See more at: http://www.chacha.com/question/what-two-lessons-did-terrorists-throughout-the-world-learn-from-the-attack-on-the-israeli-athletes-at-the-1972-munich-olympics#sthash.vfwjCgWO.dpuf

Eight of the 11 terrorists targeted for death were killed. Terrorists throughout the world leaned that one can't get away with a terrible thing. - See more at: http://www.chacha.com/question/what-two-lessons-did-terrorists-throughout-the-world-learn-from-the-attack-on-the-israeli-athletes-at-the-1972-munich-olympics#sthash.vfwjCgWO.dpuf

Yes, on the Cross:

42 "He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him.

Houses and apartments in Israel look similar to houses anywhere in Europe, though on average, they are slightly larger, and more modern than European houses.

Backyards are usually very small or non-existent.

Answer:

Houses in Israel are built of stone, cinderblocks and cement, not wood. They have flat roofs, not sloped. Insulation is often not used in construction, because of the mild winters. A large percentage of apartment buildings are built with sufficiently few storeys so that an elevator is not included. There are detached homes as well as apartment buildings.

Answer 1

I am sure most countries in the world will be happy to receive them, and that include my country Malaysia. The Palestinians (both Muslims and Christians) have suffered so much over the years. However I am so sure that the Palestinians would rather die in their own homeland than having to move somewhere new. They are genuine fighters.

Answer 2

I wonder of the question. The Palestinians were living in their lands peacefully with Jews and Christians. When Israel was founded in 1948, it was the UN decree to divide the lands between both. Israel continued its occupation including the UN approved territories for the Palestinians. Then now you ask where the Palestinians (Muslims and Christians) will go? It was not better to ask what the Israelis should do to be fair with the native land people?

Answer 3

I would second Answer 2's curiosity concerning the origin of the question since Palestinians deserve the right to live on their own lands. Many ended up staying on their own lands and the number of Palestinian Israelis has increased every year since Israel's Independence War concluded in 1949. However, many Palestinians did flee the State of Israel and there are over 2 million Palestinian Refugees, so it is worth asking where those refugees should go. Many Palestinians fled to Lebanon and Syria, which have proven to be extremely bad choices. The way that the Lebanese, in particular, have brutalized the Palestinian Refugees is far worse than even the Israeli Occupation. Jordan was marginally better in that it afforded some Palestinians Jordanian citizenship, but the Jordanian monarchy is fearful (and reasonably so) that a substantial Palestinian majority could lead to its overthrow. As a result, Palestinians have regrettable treatment in Jordan.

Probably the best place for Palestinians to go would be the West, especially the United States and Canada if they could swing it. Those countries would treat them less barbarically than all of their neighbors would. Additionally, unlike any Muslim-majority country, Palestinians can apply for asylum in certain Western countries if their situation is severe enough.