Abstract This research paper evaluates the evolution of the PLO and how it has cultivated political change in the Middle East. Subtitles includes: the how and why of the PLO, the PLO, a displaced Palestinian State, PLO leadership and changing ideologies.
From the Paper "In the historical arena of time, the roots of the Palestine Liberation Organization are shallow. Time has witnessed the birth of Israel bringing political changes that affect the plight of the Palestinians. The evolution of the PLO in the Middle East has also cultivated political change. Many of these changes are currently being addressed in the international community. The Middle East, since World War II, has been a political hot bed of transformation implanted in the cultural and religious ideologies of Jews against Arabs drawn into the political field of Palestinians against Israelis."
This in-depth paper analyzes Israel's security policies as well as the ongoing controversial debate regarding the building of the security fence which would separate Israel from the Palestinians.
Abstract This well-researched paper examines the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, while focusing on the various events that led to the decision to construct a security wall that would separate the two nations. This paper discusses Israel's implementation of "Operation Defensive Wall", which came about in 2002 in response to a suicide bombing in which 28 Israelis were killed by Palestinian terrorists that infiltrated Israel's borders. This in-depth paper analyzes Israel's history from its birth as a state in 1948 to the present as well as the country's continuous battle to survive amidst hostile Arab neighbors such as Syria. The writer of this paper contends that there are various options to maintaining a lasting peace between Israel and the Palestinians which do not include the security fence. One option would be to offer financial incentives to the Palestinians while another would be for Israel to withdraw to the pre-1967 borders. This paper discusses the pros and cons involved in Israel returning occupied land to the Palestinians in hopes for peace and lasting security.
From the Paper "Since the end of formal hostilities in 1973, the attacks on Israel from its hostile neighbors have been replaced by shadowy groups that rely more on terror tactics than infantry and tanks. First the PLO, which led to Israel's invasion of Southern Lebenon in 1982 and subsequently Hizbollah, which was formed in 1983, and Hamas in 1988. Both of these groups had, as their stated intention, the murder of every Jew and the destruction of the state of Israel and its allies. It was after twenty years of these terrorist tactics, and the lives of hundreds of innocent Israelis, that Israel began to consider building a fence around its borders. It would be almost another ten years before it finally implemented this tactic. Israel's decision to build a wall separating itself from external threats has become a controversial one. Seen within Israel as the best chance to reduce or eliminate terrorism, and solidify the border between the Jewish state and the Palestinian state, it is viewed by much of the outside world as a symbol of oppression."
Tags: middle, east, security, wall, plo, arab, jews, conflict, government, political, palestinian, terror
Abstract The Arabs in Israel belong to the larger Palestinian/Arab community, but instrumentally, they belong to Israel as their state of citizenship where they must have their daily needs met. While they enjoy a range of rights, they do not have equal rights with Jews since Israel is a state of the Jewish people. Discrimination against the Palestinian citizens has been reconciled with Israeli democracy on the basis that the Palestinians are a potential threat to the security of the state.
This paper analyzes the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict while focusing primarily on the issue of who is rightfully entitled to the parcel of land known as the Gaza Strip.
Abstract This paper details the history of both the Palestinian and the Israeli nations and their ongoing battle for land ownership, which dates back to the Christian era and the reign of King Herod of Nazareth. This paper examines the various reasons behind the years of unrest between Israel and its Arab neighbors. This paper discusses the events that led to the 2005 Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. The writer of this paper discusses the current situation in Israel amidst the constant unrest between its own citizens and the Palestinians. This paper touches on both the Palestinian and Israeli political parties presently leading both nations while supplying an abundance of historical facts and dates relevant to this particular topic. This paper also analyzes the views and opinions of several Middle East experts regarding a possible long-lasting and real peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis.
From the Paper "A number of suggestions have been made on how to turn the tide and move forward on a positive note. Rabbi Michael Lerner, co-founder and editor of "Tikkun Magazine" and co-chair of the Tikkun Community, an international organization committed to reconciliation, sees the Geneva Accord as a ray of hope. Yet the implementation cannot follow models of the past where the emphasis was placed on politics rather than "a real contribution to healing our planet" (127). He notes that peace is a spiritual process that requires not only formal agreements but a change in consciousness where human beings see themselves as fundamentally interconnected. Such an approach is critical for Jews, Christians and Muslims to understand, since religious beliefs and cultural identities have long divided them."
Abstract This paper argues that to understand the suggested two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians, one must first understand the origins of the conflict. An overview of the history is presented from the Palestinian viewpoint. Conditions that the Palestinians side deems necessary for a two-state solution are presented in a list format. The author concludes that the greatest impediment to the two-state solution, however, is trust on both sides.
From the Paper " In essence the various political events in the region over the past century have created two separate and opposing realities or "narratives". The first is the Israeli narrative of the horror of the Holocaust, coupled with claims to the Holy lands which are seen as being ordained by God to the Jewish people. This has resulted in the occupation of Palestine and the violence, demolition of houses etc. More importantly it leads to what is perceived as the denial of Palestinian autonomy and a reduction of a sense of dignity and the very right to their narrative or political history."
Abstract This paper is highly critical of the existence of Israel, claiming it has destroyed the Middle East. The author traces the early Zionist movement and the history of the Israel, while consistently denying the legitimacy of a Jewish homeland. The paper invokes well-known anti-Israel sources to support its thesis. The paper also challenges what he describes as myths about the development and existence of Israel. For instance, the author claims it is disingenuous to refer to Israel's War of Independence, when she was attacked by the entire Arab world, as a David and Goliath battle. He states that Israel "knew what they were up against and it was not much..." After critiquing Israel's actions in various wars against Arab countries, the author turns to international support for Israel. He is critical, in particular, of the United States' "blind" support for the Jewish state. The paper concludes by examining Israel's treatment of the Palestinian people, asking why a nation that had suffered in the Holocaust would 'turn around and do the same thing to someone else.'
From the Paper ""The Zionist argument to justify Israel's present occupation of Arab-Palestine has no intelligent or legal basis in history" (Shabazz 1). Omowale 'Malcolm X' Shabazz, an activist for Arab-Palestine, gave that statement in one of his articles arguing the Zionist movement. Malcolm X argued the basis of Israeli occupation is on the religious claim there forefathers lived there a thousand years ago. But he goes on to say that the Moors occupied Spain a thousand years ago, would this then give them a legal right to invade the Iberian Peninsula? The Zionist movement consisted of a revival of a Jewish nation state in an area known as Palestine. The Israeli invasion, however, has brought upon more turmoil and unrest than good. The development of an Israeli state has had an ill-fated effect on the inhabitants of all races and religions in the Middle East."
Tags: Israelis, Jews, Palestine, Palestinian, Arab, occupation
Abstract The paper discusses the Israeli - Palestinian conflict and the idea that Israel took the Palestinians land and made them into second class citizens.
From the Paper "The conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is decades old. It can be traced to two wars that were fought in 1948 and 1967. According to Harald Frederiksen, At the end of the 1948-49 war, 750,000 Arabs were driven from the urban areas and the lands within Israel that they owned, a majority of the land comprising Israel (Frederiksen 73). This meant that many Arabs that had been living in the area now known as Israel were forcibly driven out of their cities. In the 1967 war the Israelis made the situation worse by taking over resources."
Abstract This paper explains that Israel's decision to build a security wall is controversial: Israel sees it as its best chance to reduce or eliminate terrorism and to solidify the border between the Jewish state and the Palestinian state; however, it is viewed by much of the outside world as a symbol of oppression against the Palestinians. The author lists alternative policies as (1) military incursions, which have not ended the terror in the past, (2) financial incentives similar to trade relations with Egypt, Jordan and Syria but there is enough money in the world to buy-off the terrorists, (3) withdrawal to the pre-1967 border and abandon the Jewish settlements on the West Bank, which meanings relocating massive numbers of Jewish settlers, and (4) end all military action, remove the fence and attempt to negotiate, which has proven to be very difficult even after the death of Yasser Arafat. The paper concludes that none of the alternatives presented have much chance to succeed; therefore, the building of the wall appears to be the best political choice especially since every nation has a right to protect its borders: The question is will the wall stop terrorism.
Table of Contents
Definition of Problem
Factual Background
Alternative Policies
Policy Evaluation
Policy Prescription
Maps
From the Paper "The current structure being erected is not the first attempt to protect Israel from attacks by building fences. On May 29, 1938, the British under the leadership of Sir Charles Taggert began building a wall along the Lebanese border that was designed to protect Jewish settlers and British soldiers from attacks by Arab bands. This wall was called the Taggert Wall after the British counter terrorism expert who had gained his experience as a member of the British police force in India. He came to Palestine to coordinate the various security services, and erected a security fence along the northern border to prevent the infiltrations of terrorists. The structure managed to anger both the Jewish and Arab settlers, as it crossed pasture land and private property. After the threat from outlaw bands was over, the wall was dismantled. Later, in 1983, after the Israeli Defense Forces occupation in southern Lebenon was ended, a wall was built on the same border."
Abstract This paper examines Israel and its making by taking a close look at the historical events leading up to the nation's independence and then examines those same historical events thereby explaining the reasons Palestinians were "left behind".
From the Paper "In its most immediate manifestation, there may be a great deal of support for the idea that the Jewish state of Israel, established in 1948, was sparked by a newfound international sympathy for the Jewish situation. The Holocaust, that resulted in the slaughter of some six million Jews, and the torture and degradation of countless others, appeared to be the culmination to millennia of Semitic discrimination, deportation and murder. And as concentration camp liberation throughout Eastern Europe exposed the abhorrent realities executed upon the Jews to the rest of the world, President Truman and imperially inclined British authorities alike were corralled into a position of necessary empathy. But it was certainly not by way of global ingratiation alone that the Jews were able to gain a foothold on their fate as a proposed nation. The seeds for 1948's declaration of Israeli independence were planted and fertilized many years prior and, likewise, a tendency toward Palestinian disenfranchisement finds it roots in an approach adopted in the early part of the twentieth century."
Abstract This paper attempts to understand the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from the perspective of cultural similarities and differences between the two peoples. The author begins by providing a definition of culture, and then offers a thorough analysis of the various cultural attributes of both groups -- from religion to power to territorialism. The paper concludes with a section entitled "Is Peace Possible?", which looks at this perennial question from the unusual perspective of the cultural impediments to peace, rather than the political ones.
Introduction: What is Culture?
Why Israel and Palestine are Like Each Other and Dislike Each Other
Territorialism
Religious Differences
Influence of United States and Europe
Dissimilar Values
Money
Power
Different Governments - Different People
Is Peace Possible?
From the Paper "Traditionally the word culture is used to define people who share a certain set of values. These values may include similar national character, a particular geo-political heritage, or a state sanctioned religion. The article, "The Man in the Baghdad Cafe" goes on to say that in many cases people define themselves by a very small number of shared values rather than the cultural larger set that are said to be shared by Europeans or Asians or residents of the Middle East. In Europe, more people identify with their geographical territory such as Germany or France or England than they do either with national character or religion (Protestant work ethic)."
This paper critically reviews Laetitia Bucaille's book "Growing Up Palestinian", which focuses on the complexity of social change among the Palestinian population.
Abstract The paper critically analyzes Bucaille's text "Growing Up Palestinian", which explores the social fault lines within Palestinian society. Using Bucaille's book as a basis, the paper argues that these fault lines have not only been exacerbated but, to a great extent, created by the instrumentality of the Israeli occupation; a process that has been reinforced by the inadequacies of the emerging Palestinian governance since the 1990s. The paper shows how these fault lines have not only fragmented Palestinian society, but critically weakened it in the face of a range of challenges over the past decade.
From the Paper "In her book Growing Up Palestinian, French journalist and academic Laetitia Bucaille describes the impact of the Israeli Occupation, the two Intifadas, and the emerging Palestinian governance structures in the 1990s upon a generation of young Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. Given the nature of her subject, this text cannot truly be considered a general analysis of Palestinian society as a whole. For example, one significant gap in her text is its lack of direct treatment of young Islamists and members of Hamas; an increasingly influential portion of the Palestinian population. This being said, even with the text's focus upon more secular young Palestinians we can understand the complexity of social change among the Palestinian population over the past two decades."
Tags: Gaza, West, Bank, Hamas, Intifada, suicide, bombers, Palestinian, Authority, Israel
Abstract This paper deals with the illegal consequences of Israel's separation barrier/wall, as they were articulated and evaluated by the ICJ. After explicating precisely what this wall involves, arguing its illegality, the paper highlights the illegal consequences that arise from this construction and, while referring to the ICJ's opinion, emphasizing the fact that the wall and its identified consequences are nothing more than a continuation of a policy already firmly in place and which, due to the United States' persistent backing of Israel, international law, the United Nations, and the collective international community have been powerless to bring to a halt.
From the Paper "The controversy surrounding Israel's security fence is not over whether or not Israel has the right to defend itself through such a construction but over the construction site itself. Nobody has argued that Israel does not have the right to construct a separation wall and, in fact, it "has the legal right to build a wall on its own land." However, it does not have the right to construct on land which does not belong to it and, this is precisely the nature of the controversy. This fact, however, has often been obscured by Israel's continued insistence, in face of all critiques of the wall, that it has "the right to defend herself." This response is constantly echoed by the United States, both on the congressional and senate levels. Needless to say, this obscures the issue at stake insofar as it gives the impression that objections revolve around the construction itself, implying a denial of Israel's sovereign right to self-defense while the objections revolve around the place of construction. Consequently, the "right to self-defense" argument is inapplicable here as it does not address the core of the objections to the wall."
Abstract This paper explains the concepts of political identity. The author relates the history of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and Islamic political identity. The paper examines the likelihood of resolution.
From the Paper "Political identity is a difficult concept to grasp because it inherently juxtaposes many different concepts. On the one hand, there is political affiliation, which can depend on economic factors social factors and moral factors. On the other hand, there is the no ..."
Tags: political identity, middle east, arab, jew, israel, palestine, intifada
A discussion on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, from a Palestinian perspective, focusing on a string of historical events leading up to the current political situation.
Abstract The following paper examines several issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, such as the Suez Canal crises, the Balfour Declaration, the Yom Kippur War and the Six Day War. The writer discusses the events that lead to the major unresolved issues that remain today in Israel, namely the status of Jerusalem; the future of Israeli settlements; and the rights of Palestine refugees. This paper is written by a pro-Palestinian supporter.
From the Paper "In 1994, Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip and Jericho, ending 27 years of occupation. A Palestinian police force replaced them. In 1995, then a Jewish extremist assassinated Israeli Prime Minister, Yitzhak Rabin, who had been involved in the latest peace processes.
In April 1996, Israeli forces bombed Lebanon for 17 days, with Hezbollah retaliating by firing upon populated areas of Northern Israel. Israel also bombed a UN shelter, killing about 100 out of 800 civilians sheltering there. The UN claimed it was intentional. In 1998, the Wye River Memorandum planned Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank but Israel suspended it in 1999 due to internal disagreements on its implementation."
Abstract This paper examines the future of the Palestinian refugees. It looks at Middle Eastern political issues surrounding the future of these people and the right of return and the founding of a Palestinian state. The paper give an historical overview of the Palestinian struggle.
From the Paper "A forceful argument is finally under way regarding the future of the millions of Palestinian refugees fading away in congested camps. The Israelis have overlooked the refugee problem for decades; the brawl of revisits also seemed to fade away from Palestinian political dialogue and after the endorsement of the Oslo agreements (even as it remained of fundamental worry for the refugees themselves)."
Tags: palestine, middle, east, israel, jordan, syria, lebanon, gaza, strip, human, rights, israeli, 1948, west, bank, immigrant, olso, arab
