By Anne-Sophie de Groot
The region currently defined as Israel and Palestine, has had a history of differentiating rule and conflict. Considering the last outburst of violence and bombing, it may be interesting to have some more knowledge of the history of the region and background knowledge on the conflict.
Before starting there are three things that need to be stressed:
This article is a quick background trying to highlight main events in history, it doesn't reflect the extensiveness of a historical analysis.
Not all views expressed may align with Amnesty International.
I would like to clarify that in this post while referring to Israel, this refers to the Israeli government, not its citizens and it does in no way refer to the Jewish people. We condemn antisemitism and violence or hate speech against any religion or culture.
Let’s start at the beginning
As well as being the birthplace of two major religions (Christianity and Judaism), the region was one of the earliest civilised places on earth. Canaanites established the first independent city-states. Within this empire lived the Philistines since the 12th century BC. In the 10th or 9th century BC the Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Judah emerged, in which according to the Hebrew bible Judaism thrived. This was followed by Assyrians, Babylonian, Persians, Alexander the Great, Hasmonean kingdom and the Roman Empire. The latter turned the region into the centre of Christianity. During the 6th century the region was conquered by several Muslim dynasties in which the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque were built by the Umayyads. Crusaders re-established Christianity in 1099, but were conquered again by a Muslim dynasty less than 100 years later. This was followed by a short rule by the Mongols, and then the Egyptian Mamluks, who ruled the region for around 250 years. In 1516 the region was taken into the Ottoman empire, and remained part of this empire until 1832, when Egypt took over again. The United Kingdom intervened and returned it to the Ottomans in 1848, whereafter Britain captured it again, this time to keep it for itself. The region has thus always been of disputed ownership, not just between Jewish and Arab groups.
Andrew Shiva / Wikipedia - Temple Mount Jerusalem, Al-Aqsa Mosque
In the 19th century the ideology known as Zionism emerged. The Hebrew bible promises a land for Jews. Due to the expulsion of Jews – the Diaspora – Jews have scattered all over the world and by the 1800s the region of Jerusalem, the ancient homeland, counted fewer than 25,000 Jews. According to zionists Judaism is not only a religion, but also a nationality. They wish to return to Zion, a mountain of Jerusalem. In the 1880’s a combination of the rise of antisemitism in Europe and a revival of Jewish national pride sparked immigration to Palestine by forming agricultural colonies. Political Zionism also made an uprising, but remained small under Ottoman rule. The 1917 Balfour Declaration was seen as a big victory of Zionism. This declaration by the British government made a commitment to establish a Jewish homeland in the region of Palestine.
The UK held mandatory power over Palestine from 1923 onwards, which was granted by the League of Nations, the precursor of the United Nations. Britain held administrative control over the region, and the mandate included provisions to establish a national homeland for the Jews in Palestine, as committed to in the Balfour Declaration. The British Mandate covered more land than Modern Israel and Palestine, the League of Nations decided that the setting up of the Jewish national home could extend from the Mediterranean to the Jordan river. The rest of the Mandate region would later be part of Jordan. Britain later, while contradicting its commitment with the League, restricted immigration and acquisition of land by Jews. It held good relations with the Arabs and wanted to protect its political and economic interest. Due to the mass influx of Jewish migrants to the area violent clashes happened between Jews and Arabs in 1936 to 1939, later known as the Arab Revolt. This led the British to want to terminate the mandate in 1947, which took effect on the 15th of May 1948. The State of Israel was proclaimed one day earlier on May 14th.
Separate states
The United Nations came with the proposal to divide the region into two sections: an independent Arab state and an independent Jewish state. Jerusalem would receive a special status as international territory, as both groups claimed it as capital. This plan rose great opposition from the Palestinian Arabs. They were of the opinion that they had the right to more territory since they were a majority in certain regions. When in 1948 Israel declared itself an independent state after British withdrawal, the Arab-Israeli War unfolded, in which Jordan, Iraq, Syria, Egypt and Lebanon were involved. Israel managed to take control in more than 2/3 of the former British mandate, Jordan has managed to take control of the West Bank, and Egypt of Gaza. From the day of the independence of Israel around 750.000 Palestinians were expelled from the region. This day is commemorated as Nakba. The Zionist ideology centred on establishing a Jewish majority state. Approximately 150,000 Palestinians remained in Israeli territory, they received citizenship, but were made to live in ghettos under the military rule and segregation regime. At the same time from 1948 to 1960 nearly a million Jewish refugees and immigrants from Muslim-majority countries, and 250.000 Holocaust survivors settled in Israel.
Government Press Office (Israel), - Israeli tanks advancing on the Golan Heights CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
In June 1967 the Six-Day War erupted, involving Syria, Israel, Soviet Union (giving false information to Egypt) and Egypt (acting upon the false information). This resulted in major land gains for Israel, including Gaza, West Bank, Sinai Peninsula (now Egypt) and the Golan Heights. This war has left continuing tension in the region for the future. From this year forward the Palestinian territories, Gaza and the West Bank, including East-Jerusalem, are occupied territory. The United Nations refers to the territories as Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT).
In 1987 the first intifada, uprising, broke out among frustrated Palestinians. Israel tried to contain the demonstrations, riots and strikes. Many Palestinians were killed, injured and detained. Mid 1988 Arafat, later President, declared independence of Palestine.
Vince Musi / The White House Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons- Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, U.S. president Bill Clinton, and PLO chairman Yasser Arafat during the signing of the Oslo Accords 1993
During the 1990’s Israel and OPT tried to make amends in the Oslo Peace Accords. Israel withdrew its troops from Gaza and West Bank, and an interim government was established for those areas. However in 2000 the Palestinians were offended by Jewish Israeli’s visiting the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, sparking the already underlying tensions. The second intifada broke out with strong violence. This lasted until 2005 when Israeli troops left Gaza again. The Peace Accords failed to achieve their peace goal. There have been decades of negotiations between Israel and the PA, starting from the Oslo Accords, but these have stagnated during the premiership of Netanyahu.
Government of Palestine
The Palestinian Liberation Organisation was established in 1964. It embodies the national liberation movement of Palestine and is the legitimate representative of Palestinian people all over the world. The chairman of the PLO is Mahmoud Abbas, who is also elected by the PLO as the President of the State of Palestine. The PLO negotiated with the Israeli government the Oslo accords, in which it established the Palestine National Authority (PA). This was to be an interim administrative organisation, governing the Palestinian Territories, West Bank and Gaza. It’s role would be to implement the Oslo Accords, which laid down the mutual recognition of the governance of the regions being handed to a Palestinian Council. In short, the PLO takes broad decisions on the status of OPT and Palestinians worldwide, the PA is subordinate to the PLO but holds the legal authority over internal local governance over the affairs of Palestinians in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
Within the PA the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) was established. It held its first elections in 1996. It has a multiple party system with the Fatah (President Abbas’s party) and Hamas. When in 2006 Hamas won the elections of the PLC by 44% but with 56% of the seats, Abbas reactivated the PLO to assert legitimacy and regain power. Although Hamas and Fatah managed to form a coalition, violence erupted between their forces which led to escalations in the Gaza Strip. The Fatah forces were defeated and Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip. Since then there haven’t been legislative elections in the OPT. With Hamas controlling Gaza and the PA controlling West Bank, two parallel governance systems emerged in the OPT. Israel has raised a blockade of Gaza on land, water and air, leaving it secluded from the West Bank.
Hamas, short for Harakat al-Muqawamah al-Islamiyyah stands for Islamic Resistance Movement. Its roots come from the the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood that had spread all over the Arab world since 1928, as well as Palestine in 1935. During the Israeli occupation from 1967 onwards, the Brotherhood focussed on the establishment of an Islamic generation in the regions, through social clubs and religious schools, but it was also an act of goodwill as part of the Islamic duties. Its resistance to the Israeli occupation started in 1987 during the first Intifada. To fight Israel, Hamas has often used terrorist attacks to have an impact on the relatively larger military power of Israel. Although Israel, the US and the EU have labelled Hamas as a terrorist organisation, not all countries have done so, and some countries make the distinction between the political branch and the militant branch. Hamas does not accept the peace accord between the PA and Israel, and does not recognise Israel’s right to exist.
New elections for the PLC were planned to be held May 2021, but were delayed by Abbas, blaming Israel for uncertainty on whether it would allow for elections in East-Jerusalem. These elections were to be the first elections in 15 years, and they could be leading to a reshaping of the political landscape. Abbas was elected in 2005 for a four-year term and he may not rely on the support to be re-elected.
Yourway-to-israel - The Western Wall and Dome of the rock in the old city of Jerusalem. CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Government of Israel
Israel is a democratic republic with proportional representation in the Knesset, the assembly. The Knesset is the lawmaking body of Israel and is formed by numerous political parties. Since 2001 the governing coalition’s leader sits as prime minister, this is currently Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been in office since 2009. Israel has had its last elections in March 2021, but these have been the forth in two years time. So far Netanyahu has not succeeded in forming a coalition, leaving his opponent to make his move. This appears to have been successful, Naftali Bennett (far-right) and Yair Lapid (opposition, centre) have agreed to form a coalition. Netanyahu is currently also facing charges in a trial on bribery, fraud and breach of trust. He may remain in office as long as he is not convicted. He has claimed he will only leave office through the ballot box and pleaded not guilty.
Israel has 65 laws in place that are discriminatory against Palestinian citizens in Israel. These laws include limiting the growth of the Palestinian population and towns. In 2018 the ‘Jewish nation-state’ law passed that has been condemned as racist, as it provides the right to self-determination exclusively to Jews. During the establishment of the Jewish home state, many Palestinians have been forced from their homes and have been prevented from returning. This land has been confiscated under law, to now be used by Jewish Israelis. This process is known as settlement, and is conducted both by the Israeli government and by individuals outside of this known as settlers. The combination of confiscating land, preventing the growth of Palestinian towns and exclusion from Jewish towns have left Palestinians in densely populated areas. These practices are still continuing. Both Amnesty and Human Rights Watch have concluded that the Israeli government has a discriminatory approach towards Palestinian citizens.
Recent violence
During April this year there were multiple reports of violence in the Old City in Jerusalem. It concerned confrontations between Extreme-right Jewish protesters,the Israeli police and Palestinians. It seems that there were two instigators of the violence. The first being covid-restrictions which allow for a far smaller number of people to pray on the Temple Mount, this is usually a very important meeting place for Palestinians during Ramadan. The second being a video going round on social media where a Palestinian randomly hit and harassed Jews. Turmoil rose further during May. On the 10th of May Israelis celebrate Jerusalem day, in which they celebrate the capture of Jerusalem during the Arab-Israeli war in 1967. The march was planned to pass the Muslim quarter and Damascus gate. While the police had rerouted, many religious nationalist Israeli Jews were already on their way. The Israeli police stormed the Al Aqsa Mosque, the third most sacred place for Muslims. The police used stun grenades, rubber bullets and tear gas, leading to more than 300 injured Palestinians and 21 police officers. Hamas set an ultimatum for Israel to withdraw its troops from both the al-Aqsa mosque area and the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood. As soon as the deadline passed, Hamas fired rockets into Israel. Netanyahu has now approved of the march of May 10 to be held again on June 15 under the condition that the police and the organisers reach an agreement on the route.
Sheikh Jarrah and onward
By Doenja van der Veen
The occupation of Palestine has been ongoing since the state of Israel was first founded and commenced with the Zionist project that we have outlined in this piece. However, what brought the situation back into headlines across the world are the recent developments in the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah. Early in May, dozens of families were evicted from their homes, some of which had lived there for generations. The Jerusalem District Court ruled that they have to leave, in order to be replaced by settlers, alleging that it originally belonged to them, despite evidence to the contrary. Furthermore, this court does not actually have jurisdiction over the population in these occupied territories under international law. They are also part of the Israeli state apparatus and according to commentators cannot be counted on to deliver unbiased justice. This eviction is part of the larger settlement project in East Jerusalem, which is illegal under international law. Protests erupted as a response to this most recent displacement, with violent responses by the Israeli police. This also led to rockets being fired by both Hamas and Israel. On the Palestinian side there were a great deal of casualties as a result of these attacks. Israel, especially it’s civilians were not harmed to the same extent because Israel’s military equipment is much more sophisticated. Israel also targeted civilian buildings with the presumption that these harbored Hamas operations. This includes the AP offices, an international press organization. As of this moment, a ceasefire has been reached, but many Palestinians argue this does not address the asymmetric damage to their country. As one twitter user pointed out, you can see the difference through the popular app Snapchat, which allows you to look at images from different locations. In Tel Aviv people are going to beach days, brunch and the sun is shining. In Gaza the pictures mostly show rubble and grey skies.
CREDITS Doenja van der Veen, 14 May 2020 ,demonstration in Utrecht
International Support
Thus the Israel-Palestine issue entered the global consciousness again. The hashtag #SaveSheikhJarrah was trending across social media, and videos of activist Mohammed el-Kurd’s (who’s family also faces removal) statements on the topic went viral. Activists used the developments as a jumping off point to spread further awareness of the region’s history. Most of this has been in support of Palestine. Solidarity protests were also held in numerous counties, including the Netherlands in Amsterdam, Nijmegen and of course Utrecht. There were also smaller, counter protests which supported Israel. Notably, the Free Palestine protest in Utrecht was shut down early. The turnout was too large and people were breaking with the COVID-19 regulations. A great number of officers in riot gear, with police horses showed up. The police continued to patrol the area as protesters moved to the nearby neighborhood of Lombok, profiling passersby based on whether they appeared to have been at the protest. This eventually led to around a 100 arrests in front of the Ulu Mosque.
CREDITS Doenja van der Veen, 14 May 2021, demonstration in Utrecht
Online education has also followed, with Palestinians detailing their struggles and explaining terms like Nakba, which they consider the events in Sheikh Jarrah a continuation of. Additionally they have called awareness to the larger issue of police and military brutality, arrests and general mistreatment of Palestinians. Significantly this also includes major celebrities like model Bella Hadid who herself is Palestinian. Activists as well as NGOs like Human Rights Watch name the system in which Palestinians are treated as lesser citizens an “Apartheid state”. We have seen a significant shift in the public discourse, which previously was afraid to criticize Israel, now embracing terms like the apartheid state in reference to it. There have been isolated events of antisemitism, from people claiming the cause to advocate their own agendas. However, as the majority of the movement advocates, critics of Israel are not critics of Judaism. Not all Jewish people support the Zionist cause and the human rights abuses that are associated with the state of Israel. This issue has long escaped the boundaries of only religion, as the neo-colonial project of Israel continues to swallow Palestinian land. Critics of Israel have nevertheless been accused of bias, even leading to the firing of an AP journalist due to her past activism.
Other States’ reactions
The popularity of these critiques does not extend to political leaders however. While solidarity protests were organized across the Netherlands, Mark Rutte took to twitter to defend “het recht van Israel op zelfverdediging” (Israel’s right to self-defense), while neglecting to mention the massive amount of casualties in Palestine. A number of left wing parties did endorse the Palestinian cause, including Sylvana Simons from BIJ1 who wore the flag as a pin. Several motions were rejected by parliament however, to acknowledge the apartheid state of Israel, or to stop the cooperation of the Dutch military with the Israeli Defence Force. Specifically these motions mentioned the Human Rights Watch report and other evidence suggesting Israel’s disproportionate role in this conflict. Israel enjoys the support of a number of Western leaders, significantly also the U.S. who fund a great proportion of Israel’s military equipment. The US has historically supported the establishment and expansion of Israel. In December 2017 US President Trump recognised the city Jerusalem as capital of the State of Israel. The US preceded by moving its embassy to Jerusalem. In 2019 the US also declared that it considers the settlements of Israeli citizens on the West Bank to not be illegal anymore. In the face of the information detailed in this article, and considering what Palestinian’s face every day at the hands of this military it is really questionable that political leaders are eager to cooperate with Benjamin Netanyahu’s regime, while overwhelmingly advocating to cut ties with Palestine.
CREDITS Tweet 14 May 2021 of Demisionary Prime-Minister of the Netherlands Mark Rutte
Conclusion
While the situation in Palestine has now largely left the headlines of major news organizations, not enough has changed as a result of the ceasefire. While perhaps the major attacks through rockets have stopped, the everyday oppression of Palestinian citizens at the hands of the police, scarcity of resources and displacement still continues. Amnesty among other human rights organizations call on the world to recognize this issue. Oftentimes it is argued that we can’t have an opinion about this issue because it is so “complex”. Granted, it is a region with a long and complex history, however that should not make it so that we shy away from addressing human rights abuses. Sheikh Jarrah and the events arising from this are another reminder that we need to pay attention to what is happening in Palestine and stand in solidarity with those that have suffered as a result of this conflict.