Session 25|1948-2008: Two Generations of Israeli-Palestinian Conflicts
#101-105
#101 (Introduction)
This lecture and the following readings will focus upon the Land during the mid-20th century, a turbulent time wherein Arabs and Jews fought for control of the region. It was also an era wherein Palestinians and Jews both proclaimed independence (cf. Numerous Maps on the Arab-Jewish Conflict). The questions for the primary sources will be presented at the culmination of the final primary source.
#102 (Israeli Declaration of Independence)
The British Mandate ended at 9 am on the morning of May 14th when the British flag was removed from its position over Government House in Jerusalem and the British high commissioner and military commander left the city. Later that day (4 pm), David Ben-Gurion, head of the Jewish Agency Executive, announced the following proclamation from Tel Aviv. It was broadcasted via radio [C.L. Geddes (ed.), A Documentary History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict, New York 1991, p. 280, 287].
#103 (Arab League Statement)
In response to the above proclamation, the bordering Arab states mobilized against the newly declared State of Israel. Soon thereafter the Arab League responded with the following announcement.
#104 (Palestinian Declaration of Independence)
On October 1, 1948, the Palestinian National Council produced their own proclamation of independence. This day also saw the establishment of a short-term statute by which a Palestinian government would conduct the business of the state. Both texts are presented below.
Question
Based upon the preceding sources, what did the Israelis and Palestinians/Arabs claim were their rights concerning statehood? How does each group show dependence upon international bodies, such as the U.N.? What objectives are the Israelis and Palestinians seeking to fulfill by establishing their own states? To what extent would you hold Britain responsible for the Arab-Israeli war which began soon after the British departed? Do any of the above-mentioned parties appear to hold them accountable? Explain the reasons for your conclusions.
During the conflict between the Arab states and Israel following Israel’s proclamation of independence, many residents of Palestine were displaced as a result of the fighting. The next two sources reconstruct certain of the events that led to the loss of homes among many Arabs. Seek to detect the variance in ideology among the two authors – the first source was taken from The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs [1] and the second from Israel Studies. [2] The footnotes will assist you in analyzing their perspectives.
[1] “The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs is published by the American Educational Trust (AET), a non-profit foundation incorporated in Washington, DC by a group of retired U.S. foreign service officers to provide the American public with balanced and accurate information concerning U.S. relations with Middle Eastern states. AET’s Foreign Policy Committee has included former U.S. ambassadors, government officials, and members of Congress, including the late Democratic Sen. J. William Fulbright, and Republican Sen. Charles Percy, both former chairmen of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs does not take partisan domestic political positions. As a solution to the Palestinian-Israeli dispute, it endorses UN Security Council Resolution 242’s “land for peace” formula. In general, it supports Middle East solutions which it judges to be consistent with the charter of the UN and traditional American support for human rights, self-determination, and fair play. The Washington Report’s presentation of all viewpoints on U.S. Middle East policy has made it the largest and most widely-read Middle East-related magazine in North America.”
https://www.wrmea.org/1994-july-august/middle-east-history-expulsion-of-the-palestinians%E2%80%94lydda-and-ramleh-in-1948.html
[2] “‘Israel Studies’ is sponsored by the Ben-Gurion Research Center (Sede-Boker, Israel) and the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies (Oxford, England) in affiliation with the Association for Israel Studies. It encourages multidisciplinary scholarship on the development of Israeli society and culture and includes essays on Israeli history, literature, political science, economics, sociology, anthropology, and historical geography. Temporal boundaries include the prestate period, although emphasis is on the State of Israel. Attention is given to the study of the different groups although due recognition is also given to events and phenomena in Israel’s diaspora communities as they affect the State. Each issue of the journal, which is published twice a year, includes eight to ten essays and selected documents, which are edited and introduced. It also regularly features current academic discourse on significant issues in understanding Israeli history and society, and review essays of recent scholarly research on Israel in English and Hebrew.”
http://weblaw.haifa.ac.il/he/Faculty/Kedar/lecdb/landregime/15.pdf
Question
Describe the process of Arab displacement and Jewish settlement in the wake of the first Arab-Israeli War in two-three sentences. Of the two authors, which one appears to be making an attempt to present an article relatively free of bias? Is such a thing possible in your opinion? Support your answers from the articles.