0
Israel
Located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea, Israel is the only Jewish-majority state in the world. It has a total land area of 22,072 sq km with an estimated population of approximately 7.7 million as of 2010.
6,421 Questions
Where were the Phoenicians located in relation to Israel?
The Phoenicians had numerous colonies, but the central Phoenician area was in central Lebanon, which is due north of Israel along the coast. Phoenician colonies ringed the Mediterranean, making all of them further west than Israel, but some were due west (like Carthage), and others were northwest (like Greece or Spain).
How did Israel come to control the occupied territories?
As concerns West Jerusalem, Israelis took that relatively early in the Jewish-Arab Engagement of 1947-1949. There were a large number of armed Jewish Militias in West Jerusalem and they were able to use their position to prevent Arab incursions. The Jews in the Old City, however, were forced out. The Old City of Jerusalem was taken by Israel in the Six Day War when, on the third day, Israeli troops both launched a ground assault as well as using paratroopers. East Jerusalem was taken on the fourth day of the Six Day War as Israeli troops effectively pushed the Jordanian soldiers to the East Bank of the Jordan River and blew up the bridges that cross it.
Will there be peace between Israel and Palestine?
Religious Answer
The Bible says that there will be seven years of peace in Israel, then the end of the world. So yes, there will be in the future.
Practical Answer
A number of things would have to take place before a long-standing peace (as opposed to a mere cessation of hostilities) could take place. There are other requisites, but there are the most important.
1) Mutual Recognition: Israel would need to recognize a completely independent and sovereign Palestinian Government that would fully control a certain amount of the former British Mandate of Palestine (most likely Gaza and the West Bank). Israel would also have to confer on this state the unambiguous nature of being correct and necessary for Israel. Conversely, Palestine would have to recognize the Right for Israel to Exist as a Jewish State occupying the remaining amount of the British Mandate of Palestine (most likely 1949-Israel). Both sides would have to recognize the historical and emotional value that the land also has to the other.
2) Regional/International Recognition: States that have adopted attitudes strongly favoring one side at the expense of the other, such as the Arab States would need to recognize the legitimacy of both Israel and Palestine.
3) Israeli Reparation Payments: Israel dispossessed many Palestinians of their property, either by malicious activities that took place during the Arab-Israeli Wars or by Ben-Gurion refusing to let Palestinians who left return after the 1948-9 War. Israel needs to pay the Palestinian government reparations for the land that was taken in this way.
4) Israeli Withdrawal from the Settlements: Israel must withdraw from the Settlements to provide Palestine with a viable infrastructure and complete sovereignty. The Settlers must return to Israeli territory. The buildings, however, should be left as partial payment of the above-mentioned reparations.
5) Palestinians Must Concede Right of Return: Recognizing the State of Israel as a Jewish State is meaningless if Palestinians en masse are allowed to Return to Israel. Therefore, Palestinians (and their backers) must abandon the notion that they can ever return to Israeli territory. Palestinians should leave the refugee camps and become proper citizens in this new country of Palestine.
6) Jerusalem Must Be Shared or Internationalized:Palestine and Israel both want Jerusalem and the only way to solve this is either divide the city East/West respectively and divide the Old City or Internationalize the City or some combination of Internationalization and division. Neither side will rest until it can assure its followers that its holy sites will be protected.
7) Liberal Thought: Just in general, people have to be willing to compromise and live with that compromise.
Why did Great Britain not want to give israel to the Jews?
Because Palestine had been a British Mandate from 1918 to 1947. But after the second world war the British Mandate had become increasingly untenable with acts of terrorism by Jews committed against British workers including the terrible bombing of the King David Hotel in Jerusalem by Jewish terrorists, which caused great anger back in the UK. So Britain withdrew from the Mandate.
The future of Palestine was then debated and voted on by the United Nations General Assembly in May 1948. Most countries in Europe including the Soviet Union and Soviet Bloc and all countries in America including the USA and Canada voted for Israel to become the State of Israel. But all Muslim states were opposed to this and because Britain had held the mandate the then British government under Prime Minister Attlee decided it had an obligation to be neutral. So the UK abstained in the UN vote and thus did not vote in support of giving Israel to the Jews.
What did secretary kissinger engage in to reach a cease fire between israel and Arab nations?
"Shuttle diplomacy". He spent a few weeks flying back and forth between Tel Aviv and the various Arab capitals because the Arab leaders refused to meet with Israel, and all the borders were sealed.
What country did israel take the west bank from in 1967?
Before World War I, the area ka the West Bank was considered a part of the province of Syria within the Ottoman Empire. In 1920, by the decisions of the victorious Allies, the area became ka the British Mandate of Palestine. After World War II, the area was captured during the Arab-Israeli War of 1948, and annexed by Jordan. Jordan maintained rule over the area until 1967, even though Jordanian claims found no major international recognition other than by the United Kingdom. Israelcaptured the West Bank during the Six-Day War of June 1967. But Jordan made no official relinquishment of claims to the land until 1988.
After what war was israel given to the Jews?
Answer 1
UN doesn't interrupt between the partition of state. It leaves this upon those people. This is called " self determination of people". But this time Under considerable Zionist pressure, the UN recommended giving away 55% of Palestine to a Jewish state - despite the fact that this group represented only about 30% of the total population, and owned under 7% of the land.
Answer 2
The answer that the person is looking for is the "United Nations". However, this is not historically correct.
The phrasing of the question misconstrues the authority of the United Nations Resolution 181. Most people incorrectly believe that the UN Resolution "created" a Jewish State (Israel) and an Arab State (Palestine) on the map. This is not the case. What the UN Resolution does provide for is the permission for the different ethno-religious groups in Mandatory Palestine to declare a state. In the case of most mandates, the understanding was that the mandate would eventually become independent as one new state, like Iraq or Syria had. The case of a Palestine was therefore unique and needed the permission to deviate from the traditional path of independence. Because of their being two states, provisional borders had to be provided, which is why a map was used, but those borders would only come into play if both sides decided to remain at peace.
The Jews acted on the permission granted to them by UN Resolution 181 by declaring independence on May 14, 1948 (nearly six months after the Resolution was passed) and therefore creating the State of Israel.
Answer 1 neglects to mention the immense amount of Arab pressure in the United Nations directly opposed to any Jewish State and the statements that they would not abide by any decision that they would not like. Arabs applied just as much pressure as the Zionists did. Both the Soviet Union and the United States found the Zionist arguments more convincing. Additionally, just because the Jews only owned 7% of the land, it does not mean that the Arabs owned the 93%. The overwhelming majority of the territory was either: Owned by nobody (huge swathes of the Negev Desert had no ownership), Owned by Ottoman/Turkish Lords, or Owned by the British Mandatory Authority. Arabs owned roughly 10-15% of the Mandatory Territory.
When did Israel come into existence?
The modern state of Israel was created in 1948, the UN had planned to make two separate states one for the Jews and one for the Palestinians with Jerusalem under the control of the United Nations, but when the British pulled out, the Jews declared the state of Israel and the Palestinians never got their country.
The Palestinians never took the oppurtunity which was given to both the Jews and the Palestinians because they did not recognize Israel's right to exist. They wanted all of the land and therefore would not settle for anything less. They also could have had their country in the years 1949-1967 but did not want it then either.
The Jews have had a presence in this land for 3,000 years. While many Jews have not lived there the entire time, there has always been a presence in the land.
cut diamonds
Who did Palestine originally belong to?
It depends on how far back you wish to go. The earliest archaeology dates settlements near the city of Haifa from 100,000 years ago. It then passed hands to early tribe, Proto-Canaanites, Canaanites, Israelites, Philistines, Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Macedonian Greeks, Egyptian Greeks, Syrian Greeks, Hasmonean Jews, Romans, Byzantines, several different Arab Caliphates and Turkish Empires, Crusader States, the Ottomans, the Britons, and finally Israel and modern Arab States.
Why do so many countries hate Israel?
These are two separate, but interrelated questions. For information solely on "Why do people hate the Jews" and "Why do people hate Israel" see the links below. The Community Answer below will speak solely to the conflagration of hating Jews and Israel.
Related Questions:
Why do people hate the Jews?
Why do people hate Israel?
Did Hitler only hate Jews?
For so many people, both Jews and non-Jews, Israel is believed to be a Jewish State in a religious sense, even though when examined, this view makes little sense. Israel never describes itself as being a country where citizenship is conditioned on being Jewish, never requires any religious test or examination for public office or private work, has numerous laws which contravene (quite explicitly) Jewish religious principles or views, and has a generally secular population.
Regardless of these facts, the two are mixed together since many Jews see Israel and Jewish Nationalism (Zionism) as outgrowths of their ethno-religious identity. Many non-Jews recognize this and therefore see Israel's actions as connected to Jewish ideals and desires. Of course, such a thing is ridiculous to do and this is why nobody ever judged the actions of the world's one Hindu State (Nepal - which is now no longer Hindu) as representing the views of Hinduism, or China of representing Confucianism, or Thailand of Buddhism. Only recently have people been judging the Vatican (a country actually founded on religious grounds) as an outgrowth of the virtues of the Catholic Church. Many of the actions taken by Israel are problematic for a number of reasons (see the Israel question for more on this) and extrapolate those problems to the Jews themselves. Conversely, a person may feel little antagonism towards Israel, but holds Anti-Semitic views which eventually color his perception of Israel. Admittedly, the latter is much less common than the former.
In many Arab and Muslim countries, in addition to attacking Israel's policies, acts which may have merit, they circulate Anti-Semitic propaganda such as the "Protocols of the Elders of Zion" and similar texts in order to buttress their claim that Israel is evil. Such virulence can only lead to Anti-Semitism and goes directly against the Islamic tenets of treating the Jews with dignity as they are Ahl Al-Kitaab. However, the rulers and religious elites in these countries are perfectly fine with suspending such views in order to achieve a political objective.
Who invaded Israel on Yom Kippur in 1973?
Egypt and Syria invaded Israel in 1973. They were additionally aided by Jordanian and Iraqi Expeditionary Forces.
What portion of the population in Israel and the Palestinian territories is Jewish Arab?
As concerns "Jewish Arabs":
It is important to note, before answering the question, that the people you are referring to are not considered to be "Jewish Arabs" by either Arabs or Jews or themselves. They are typically referred to as "Jews from Arab countries", "Mizrahi Jews", "Mizrahim", or "Sephardi Jews". Many Jews consider the term Jewish Arab offensive because the Jews were in much of the Middle East and North Africa long before the Arabs arrived and did not intermarry with them to a large degree, making them Un-Arabized (as opposed to the remaining indigenous population which did experience this). Therefore, they are not Arabs of Jewish faith, but Jews who happened to grow up in Arab countries.
As concerns Israel:
Racial Jewish demographics are always hard to do in Israel because there is a huge push in Israel for Jews from all different walks of life to intermarry and create a United Sabra Culture. (Sabra is the term for Israeli Cultural Judaism). Mizrahim first came to Israel in the "Exodus Wave" which occurred from 1950-1952. During that period, between 450,000 and 550,000 Mizrahim left the Arab World and came to Israel, with the largest communities leaving from Iraq and Morocco. Israel had, prior to that point, a population of around 600,000. This made the Mizrahim a very large percentage of Israelis.
During the 1960s, the Israeli Religious Population was relatively small and Mizrahim reproduced at a slightly higher rate than Ashkenazim which led to Mizrahim being the largest Jewish community from that period until the 1990s when a mass of Russian Jews shifted the balance back to Ashkenazim being the Jewish majority. However, it is also important to note that the children of the Mizrahim born in Israel in the 1960s and 1970s began to intermarry with the Ashkenazim, leading to many in Israel having mixed heritage. (For example, one-quarter of Israelis claim Moroccan heritage, but only one-fifth claim it from both sides, representing a difference of 250,000 people)
The best estimate today of the Mizrahi Jewish population in Israel would be around 2 million individuals.
As concerns the Palestinian Territories:
There used to be a relatively sizable Mizrahi Jewish population in what would become the Palestinian Territories in the early 1900s (prior to the increase brought on by the Mandatory Period). There were roughly 20,000 Jews in Jerusalem and its environs, as compared with an Arab population of around 300,000 (which is nearly 7%). This grew during the the Mandatory Period to roughly 100,000 Jews, most of whom were not Mizrahi Jews, but the descendants of Europeans.
The Jewish-Arab Engagement of 1947-1949 saw the expulsion of all Jews in the Palestinian Territories as they were seen to be on the side of the Jewish State. The period from 1949-1967 (the Jordanian West Bank) was the only time in the last two millenia when no Jews lived in or were permitted to visit the Old City of Jerusalem. Any endemic Palestinian Jewry crossed into Israel after this forcible expulsion. In 1967, a minority of Israeli Mizrahi Jews (of which some were historically Palestinian, but had shed that title) joined in the settlement building in the West Bank and Gaza, primarily in the environs of Jerusalem and in the Old City itself. However, this was a minority of settlers both because a stronger pull to attract settlers existed in the Ashkenazic Communities (Nationalist fervor) and because those communities contained more individuals. With the Israeli unilateral withdrawal from Gaza, there are no more Mizrahi Jews in that area.
A decent estimate of the Mizrahim remaining in East Jerusalem and the Israeli Settlements scattered throughout the West Bank would be 60,000 (of a total of between 200,000 and 300,000 settlers).
What are the similarities between the Arab-Israeli conflict and the Indian-Pakistani Conflict?
No. The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict is something that actually exists. There is no such thing as the Indian-Palestinian Conflict. Therefore, they cannot be the same thing.
Perhaps you mean the Indian-Pakistani Conflict, which is a real conflict, but a different one from the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. Both conflicts are similar in that there were two different groups of people were living in the same former colony that wanted to each form their own country and did so with varying degrees of success.
What was a major consequence of the Yom Kippur War?
It lead to numerous things. The most important result was bringing Egypt and Israel together to make peace.
To what extent did the Camp David Accords resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict?
The Camp David Accords of 1979 resulted in the Egyptian-Israeli Peace Agreement, which returned the Israeli-occupied Sinai Peninsula to Egypt in return for Egyptian recognition of Israel's existence and a cessation of war with Israel. This was critical in giving Israel a stable and functional ally in the region that could provide Israel with petroleum and natural gas after Iran broke off relations with Israel in the same year.
What was life like in israel before Christianity?
The best reference to this question is the Old Testament. All of this happened in and around Israel before the apostles were called Christians in Antioch. Moreover this all happened before Christ was on the Earth.
The Kurds of Iraq/Turkey. The Basque people of Spain/France.
Does the US support Israel or palestine?
Answer 1
In the Israel -- Palestine conflict, the US is neutral on the side of Israel. The United States is trying to get Israel and Palestine to reach a peace agreement between each other.
Answer 2
The United States supports both Israel and Palestine. The United States is also prepared to support and aide any Arab country (like Egypt) that is willing to trade violence and antagonism for peace.
The United States support for the State of Israel is the stronger of the two and comes from a variety of sources. Israel has cooperated with the United States on diplomatic issues, military and intelligence exchanges, large amounts of trade, and significant technological investment. In addition there a numerous Americans who support the State of Israel because of religious convictions on top of the already-listed reasons.
The United States is the largest donor to UNRWA, the UN organization maintaining the Palestinian Refugee Camps, and is one of the largest donors to the Palestinian Authority, the current official government of Palestine. The United States has consistently endorsed a Roadmap to Peace with a Two-State Solution since the Oslo Accords in 1993.
Why should we as Americans care about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?
For the simple reason that we should prefer that fewer people die or live horrible lives. It is the same reason we should care about the Kurdish conflict, the Burmese conflicts, the large-scale strife in Africa, and so many other humanitarian problems.
What are four major unresolved issues in the Arab-Israeli Conflict?
Neutral Answer:
The Arabs and the Israelis both have several main issues, but the most important issue for the Arabs is that the Palestinians are returned to their homes and given the right of self-governance. The most important issue for the Israelis is that they be allowed to have a state with secure borders. To read about all of the causes of the Arab-Israeli Conflict in detail see the below related question.
Pro-Palestinian Answer
There is one main big issue which is the fact that Israel has stolen Palestinian land and continue to do so today through ethnic cleansing of Palestine.
This book can tell the truth and its written by a Jewish professor called Ilan Pappé:
The_Ethnic_Cleansing_of_Palestine">The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine
Did many Jews immigrate to palestine in the 1930s to escape persecution?
European Jewish immigration to Palestine started in the 1800's, not in 1930. Prior to the establishment of the modern state of Israel, when the Palestinian territories were still under control by the British due to the mandate assigned to them by the League of Nations, Jewish immigration to the territory was strictly limited. That being said, many Jews did attempt to immigrate to the territories due to persecution in Europe.
Who is the rightful owner of the land between Israel and Palestine?
Answer 1
That is a very good question - and a very sensitive one, as it is a very controversial subject - as I'm sure you know. Nonetheless, I shall offer my answer, and hope that it does not offend too much.
How does one measure the degree of 'rightfulness' in a claim such as this one?
The Israelis believe that they hold rightful claim to the Land as it was a gift to them from God, who promised it to their ancestors thousands of years ago, and as the only reason why they were no longer in actual possession of it for many centuries prior to 1948 is because it was it was forcibly taken from them and they themselves forcibly removed. It is interesting to note, though, that that is also the very means by which they themselves originally acquired it - by forcibly conquering and driving out those who already lived there, known as Canaanites. Many of the Palestinians of the day were allowed to remain in the land, because they made a pact with the People of Israel to help them to conquer it.
Isn't it funny how history can repeat itself.
Answer 2
This is one of those questions where the Asker appears to be looking for a number of opinions vindicating each side. The problem is that both sides have legitimacy in certain claims and extremists who would rather derail the process of negotiations than not get everything in their wishlists. The Israelis and the Palestinians who truly want to live together in peace respecting each others' Rights to Exist, are in the Right and those who would rather stir up antagonism and hatred on both sides are in the Wrong.
Some arguments on each side are as follows.
Israel:
1) UN Resolution 181: In 1947 the UN Partition Plan, which was passed into law split the British Mandate of Palestine into a Jewish and Arab State. The Jews decided to agree with the Partition even though the Arabs refused. Because the Resolution passed, Israel had the Right to Declare a State, which they did.
2) Wars Won: Israel fought for its right to exist and has fought three existential wars (the Arab-Israeli War of 1948-9, the Six-Day War of 1967, and the Arab-Israeli War of 1973). In each conflict, it was only by Israeli perseverance and cunning that the territory was maintained. If Israel had lost any of these wars, regardless of its international legal case, it would have been denied the ability to re-declare a State.
3) Jewish Nationalism: Jews have lived in other nations under other governments for two millennia and were either actively or passively discriminated against. Israel represents to Jews the guarantee that even if the situation in their current Diaspora country turns sour, they have somewhere to go. This guarantee of a homeland has actually been used in various waves such as the Post-Holocaust refugees, the Mizrahi Exodus, Operations Joshua and Solomon in Yemen and Ethiopia, and the Russian Immigration in the 1990s.
4) Population Exchanges: Just as Palestinians left the British Mandate of Palestine, Jews were forced to leave the Arab World in roughly the same numbers. Around 720,000 Palestinian Arabs fled the new state of Israel, whereas 850,000 Jews fled from Arab countries with 500,000 settling in Israel. As a result, just as Israel took in Mizrahi Jews fleeing the Arab World, it would be contingent on Arab countries to take in Palestinian Arabs fleeing the Jewish State.
5) Jewish Holy Sites: Israel is home to numerous holy Jewish sites across the country, harkening back to the Jewish biblical past and imagery. In addition, the holiest site in the world for the Jewish people is the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.
Palestine:
1) Original Inhabitants: This is the strongest case for the Palestinians and goes back to how the Palestinians lived in the British Mandate of Palestine for at least 800 years as the consistent majority of people in the territory. They have love and reverence for the land and consider it to be an intrinsic part of their identity.
2) Atrocities have no Statute of Limitations:Many Palestinians assert that Israelis stole their land and possessions from 1920-1949, most violently during the Arab-Israeli War of 1948-9 when numerous massacres were perpetrated by Jewish militias to secure the exodus of the Palestinian People. These Palestinians assert that Israel should not be allowed to profit from this seizure of territory.
3) Muslim and Christian Holy Sites: The Palestinians have numerous holy sites that pertain to their religions as well in the British Mandate of Palestine. Jerusalem holds Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock, the third most holy sites in all of Islam. There are also the Christian Monuments such as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the cities of Nazareth and Bethlehem. Many Palestinian Muslims and Christians want to live in these places as they used to.
4) Arab Reception: Palestinians have been confined to refugee camps and occasionally attacked in violent pogroms by their Arab neighbors (like the attack on Sabra and Shatila in 1982 and Nahr El-Bared in 2007). Palestinians assert like the Jews that nobody is really looking out for their best interests other than other Palestinians and this is why they could never truly settle in another Arab State.
5) Never Allowed to Declare a State: Whether the Palestinians accepted UN Resolution 181 or not, they were never given an opportunity to Declare the Arab State which that Resolution gave them the right to do. After the Arab-Israeli War of 1948-9, Jordan and Egypt occupied the West Bank and Gaza Strip, effectively preventing the nascent Palestinian organizations from becoming a nation, even though they may have wanted to do so. In the present day, the United States has actively tried to prevent Palestinian access to the forums that would allow it to declare its Right to be a State because of its protection of Israel.
It is highly unlikely that Palestine will prevail against Israel through strength of arms. Arab armies far larger and better equipped have not been able to achieve this. Palestine can certainly fight a guerrilla war or an intifada that will have an affect on Israeli resolve, but the best bet for a free and independent Palestine is to choose to accept that Israel is a necessary partner for peace. Israel is not going anywhere.
What is the name of Israel's secret agency?
Shin Bet, also known as the Shabak (שב"כ, שירות בטחון כללי), which is a Hebrew acronym for "General Security Service."
