Jew on this
(Some basic facts on the Issue of Palestine and the Israel-Arab Conflict as embodied in key UN Documents)
The recent Gaza conflict reminds us once again of the saga that is Israel vs. the Arabs. If the root of the problem seems to have been buried like a brick underneath the Gaza rubble, let’s tackle a few UN Resolutions to help us remember how it all began … sort of.
You see, all the mayhem may have started with the plan to create a Jewish state leading to the abrupt and unnatural division of Palestine – one side Jewish, the other Arab. One group permitted a homeland while another is displaced. One group allowed to create a state in a portion of land the other is forced to leave.
Or perhaps it started long before that, when anti-semitism in Europe forced the Jewish diaspora to dream of a homeland where they can be safe and secure in their ways and beliefs. The same anti-semitism may be cited as affording the anti-semites the vigor to create a Jewish homeland so the Jews may leave Europe asap.
Both these perspectives are real and well-founded but would entail a very long discussion … on history and religion (not to mention geopolitics) which we are not prepared to undertake.
Focusing on the law, a good backgrounder on the conflict would be the UN resolutions. There are a good number of them (the conflict has been going on forever it seems) but we shall touch on those that reveal significant reality involving the occupied territories (rarely discussed in mainstream media by the way).
Occupied Territories
First, a quick history: towards the end of World War I, the Turkish Ottoman rule over Palestine (including Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip) ended and Palestine was placed under British rule (called the British Mandate). During the British Mandate (1922-1947), a large number of Jews slowly migrated to Palestine (mostly fleeing from persecution in Europe). Resentment towards the immigrants led to clashes between them and the existing Arab population.
The British could not solve the Arab-Israeli conflict and turned the Palestine issue to the UN. To end the British Mandate, the UN in 1947 came up with a Partition Plan for Palestine to divide it into a Jewish State, an Arab State and creating a “Special International Regime for the City of Jerusalem”. The plan gave 53% of Palestine to the Jews who numbered less than half of the Arab population who in turn were to get only 46% of Palestine. That the Arabs were livid is the understatement of a lifetime. And so a civil war between Jews and Arabs ensued (from 1947-1948).
On the day the British Mandate expired in 1948, the Jews established the State of Israel prompting her Arab neighbors to attack the new state. This war (from 1948-1949) resulted in Israel enlarging her territory by capturing 77% of Palestine. And so the already thickened plot coagulated some more.
Next came the Six Day War (in June 1967) which was fought by Israel (and, some say, with US and British military support) on one side and Egypt, Jordan and Syria on the other. The end of the war resulted in Israel taking some more land: East Jerusalem and the West Bank (from Jordan), the Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula (from Egypt), and the Golan Heights (from Syria).
Israel may have captured only 77% of Palestine after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War but the 1967 Six Day War ended with Israel seizing 100% of Palestine. You’d think we were still back in the Old Testament. Warring tribes. Land Conquests. Then again, this is Israel. Still waiting for the Messiah. But, that’s another story.
Anyway, the Sinai Peninsula was completely turned over by Israel to Egypt in 1992. The rest are still under Israeli control. We’ll let the UN resolutions hereon declare the status of things under international law. Don’t be discouraged to read them. They are in simple, concise terms and are quite enlightening.
Read the rest on The Legally Inclined Blog.xxx


Reply With Quote
