THE ARAB POPULATION IN ISRAELCAI Ari and Tamar June 2013

Different Truths Alan Dershowitz and Noam Chomsky

debate Israeli-Palestinian conflict

The most important slide of this talk! This is not an academic research! We do not claim to know all the answers. Many of the following data is controversial and

there is no right or wrong answer. This is a very complicated matter. Even the specialist whom have dealt with this

matter most their lives do not agree on all the data.

Please take this into consideration. The clip.

First and second Aliya to Israel- until 1948

The Arabs were here first? Ethos on both sides Jews- we were here a long time

ago Arabs- de-facto- we are here

now.

Lul clip- the beginning

What’s in a name? Palestinian Arabs - all the Arabs living in non-independent

territory of Palestine. Palestina is a name given to Judea (which was referring to

Judea and Samaria territory) by Adrianus the emperor of Rome.

It was later adopted by the Ottomans and was broadened to the entire land they conquered. Later it was translated to Arabic- Palestine.

When the British started the mandate their decision was to call this territory “Palestine (Israel land)” the brackets are usually dropped for practical reasons.

We say this so that we know we are all on the same page when speaking about Palestinians.

The uprising of Nazi Germany and the Holocaust 1933-1945

Many fled before - some to Israel. Many Jewish refugees after the war. Unstable and traumatized - afraid to go

back to their country or choose to go back and discover they don’t have a home.

The Partition Plan- 1945 UN decides

on an issue brought to them by the British Mandate.

The problem

TerritoryArab and other population

 % Arab and other

Jewish population  % Jewish Total

population

Arab State 725,000 99% 10,000 1% 735,000

Jewish State 407,000 45% 498,000 55% 905,000

International 105,000 51% 100,000 49% 205,000

Total 1,237,000 67% 608,000 33% 1,845,000

The reaction the Partition Plan The Plan was accepted by the leaders of the Jewish

community in Palestine, through the Jewish Agency.  The Plan was rejected by leaders of the Arab

community, including the Arab Higher Committee, which was supported by the states of the Arab League.

The Arabs argued that it violated the rights of the majority of the people in Palestine, which at the time was 65% non-Jewish (1,200,000), and 35% Jewish (650,000), many of which were European in origin.

Thus began the first part of a long Independence war.

The end of the British Mandate 1948

The British decided not to cooperate with the U.N. committee dealing with Palestine. This committee's main goal was to ensure that the transfer of Palestine to the Jews and Arabs would go smoothly.

Even after the UN’s decision the British kept their strict policy against Jewish Aliya.

Both sides – Jewish and Arab, blamed the British for helping the other side. This caused disorder and resulted in the British having to protect themselves from both sides.

The British decided to end the mandate at midnight between 14th and 15th of May 1948.

The end of the British Mandate 1948

The declaration of the Jewish state 1948

That same day David Ben-Gurion declared the Jewish state in the land of Israel.

Now began the second part of the independence war.

The declaration of the Jewish state 1948

The independence war/ 1948 war/ the liberation war/ the Nakeba

How long: November 29th 1947- July 20th 1949 With who: first part- civil war between Arab Palestinians and Jews.

Second part- Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan. Casualties Israel: 6,000 Casualties Palestine Arabs: 3,000 Casualties Arabs from other countries: Egypt- 2,000 Syria- 1,000 Jordan- 1,000 Iraq- 500 Lebanon- 500 As a result of the war, the State of Israel kept nearly all the area that

had been recommended by the UN General Assembly and took control of almost 60% of the area allocated to the proposed Arab state.

Transjordan took control of the remainder of the West Bank and East-Jerusalem, and the Egyptian military took control of the Gaza Strip.

No Arab Palestinian state was created. Important demographic changes occurred in the country. Between

600,000 and 760,000 Palestinian Arabs fled or were expelled from the area that became Israel and they became Palestinian refugees.

The independence war/ 1948 war/ the liberation war/ the Nakeba

What is an ArabA person that his native language is

Arabic.

The Arabs in Israel 1948

Their name was given to them by non- Bedouin Arabs from the word ‘Badou’ which means desert.

70,000 mainly lived in the Negev. Most of them fled or drifted to Gaza after the independence war started – some say from fear of the Jews and some say from fear of being drafted to the Arab armies.

They are a drifter people who don’t see themselves attached to the land or the government at any time.

They don’t give loyalty to the rulers- no matter who they are. They are Muslims. Today there are 200,00 Bedouins living in the Negev mainly in

the 7 Bedouin cities. Relationship towards Israel- some join the army but some don’t.

today we see more and more bedouins who see themselves as Palestinians and not as Israelis. They have an Israeli ID and have equal rights (for example to vote).

Bedouin

Bedouin

Druze 14,000 in the north of the land of Israel. The Druze  are a monotheistic ethno religious community, found

primarily in Syria, Lebanon,  Israel and Jordan, which emerged during the 11th century from the Ismailis school of Shia Islam. Druze beliefs incorporate several elements from Abrahamic religions.

Their religion is closed (you can only be born a Druze) and secret. In the war of 1948 they took a neutral stand. One of the main values of the Druze is to be loyal to the current

government which they are under- for this reason most of them see themselves as Israelis although they are Arab just the same as the other Muslim and Christian Arabs living in Israel- many of whom see themselves as Palestinians.

In 1957 they were recognized as a separate faith is Israel (they haven't been recognized as such in no other place). From that year all Druze are drafted to the Israeli army

Today the Druze in Israel are 122,000 people. They all have an Israeli ID.

Druze

The other Arabs or Palestinian-Israeli Arabs 1948-1967

The estimated number of Arabs in 1948 is 1,300,000. Christians and Muslims. 400,000 were in territories that were seized by Jordan. 150,000 were in Gaza strip seized by Egypt. 150,000 were in the land of Israel The estimated number of Arabs who found shelter in Jordan,

Syria and Lebanon are between 600,000 to 750,000- refugees? The Palestinians that were in the west bank or in Jordan received

Jordanian citizenship. All other Palestinians did not receive citizenship from any the

countries they fled to. Israel received a small number of Palestinian who fled and came

back and gave them to citizenship, but refused to let all the Palestinians to come back.

The other Arabs or Palestinian-Israeli Arabs 1948-1967

War with Egypt 1956/ Kadesh operation/ Sinai operation

Israel is driven into war by France and Britain after Nasser the prime minister of Egypt took over the Suez canal.

The result for Israel: Annexation of Sinai and Gaza

Israel gives the territories back very shortly after.

War with Egypt 1956/ Kadesh operation/ Saini operation

The 1967 war/ 6 day war How long: 6 days in June 1967 With who :Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Iraq Supported by: Saudi Arabia, Pakistan,

Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Kuwait, Tunisia, Sudan, PLO.

Result: Israel captures the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt, the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) from Jordan, and the Golan Heights from Syria.

Peace with Egypt- 1979 After Camp David decisions. Israel leaves Sinai destroying all Israeli

settlements beyond the Rafiach line (the historical border in the days of British mandate).

Leaving Gaza is not part of the agreement.

The First Intifada A violent Palestinian uprising against Israel. It lasted from December 1987 until1993,

with the signing of the Oslo Accords. The uprising began on December 9, in

the Jabalia refugee camp after an army truck ploughed into a car killing four Palestinians, and quickly spread throughout Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. 

The First Intifada

Oslo A’- the agreement on principals between Israel and PLO- 1993

The agreement of acknowledgment on both sides, and an interim agreement towards the establishment of a independent Palestinian government in Gaza and Jericho.

Peace with Jordan - 1994 The agreement is to go back to the British

mandates’ historical border with Jordan leaving out the territory of Judea and Samaria.

The decision was that the border with Judea and Samaria should be decided with the PLO.

Taba agreement- Oslo B’-1995

The second temporary agreement between Israel and the PLO towards a final agreement.

The agreement dealt with: security issues, elections in PLO, authority transfer, legal issues, economical issues and cooperation between the two sides.

It also determined three categories of territories in the west bank:

A territories - the PLO has municipal and internal security and order responsibility. It includes all the big cities excluding Hebron.B territories - the PLO has municipal responsibility but Israel has security responsibility. It includes the smaller cities and villages.C territories - Israel has complete authority and responsibility.

Taba agreement- Oslo B’-1995

Hebron protocol - 1997 The agreement dealing with Hebron

territory due to it being a delicate matter.

The decision was to divide Hebron into two:

H1- similar to A in Taba agreement of 1995.H2- similar to C.

Wye River Memorandum- 1998

An agreement negotiated between Israel and the Palestinian Authority to implement the earlier Interim Agreement of September 28, 1995 (Oslo B’).

On the final day of the negotiations, the agreement almost fell through. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu had asked President Clinton to release Jonathan Pollard, an American naval intelligence officer who has been serving a life sentence since 1985 for giving classified information to Israel. A bitter disagreement arose, with Netanyahu claiming that Clinton had promised to release Pollard, and Clinton saying he had only promised to "review" the case.

On November 17, 1998, Israel's 120 member parliament, the Knesset, approved the Wye River Memorandum by a vote of 75–19.

Both sides only implemented the first phase of the Memorandum. Israel withdrew from all territory it was required to transfer to the Palestinian

Authority within the timetable. Israel did not see reciprocal steps being taken by the Palestinian Authority.

Thus, Israel believed that the Palestinian Authority's promises to implement its share of responsibilities under the Wye River Memorandum were not serious, and the agreement's understandings and goals were un-implemented.

Wye River Memorandum- 1998

The Second Intifada- 2000-2005

Also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada and the Oslo War. This was the second Palestinian uprising – a period of

intensified Palestinian–Israeli violence.  B'Tselem's figures indicate that through April 30, 2008, 35.2%

of the Palestinians who were killed directly took part in the hostilities, 46.4% "did not take part in the hostilities", and 18.5% where it was not known if they were taking part in hostilities. Of the Israeli casualties, B'Tselem reports that 31.7% were security force personnel and 68.3% were civilians.

 A 2005 study conducted by Israel's International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT) concluded that Palestinian fatalities have consisted of more combatants than noncombatants. Up to 2005, the ICT puts Israeli combatant casualties at 22% and civilian at 78%. 

The Second Intifada- 2000-2005

Israel's unilateral disengagement plan- 2005

Also known as the "Disengagement plan", "Gaza expulsion plan", and "Hitnatkut", was a proposal by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, adopted by the government on June 6, 2004 and enacted in August 2005.

The plan was to resettle all Israelis from the Gaza Strip and from four settlements in the northern West Bank.

Those Israeli citizens who refused to accept government compensation packages and voluntarily vacate their homes prior to the August 15, 2005 deadline, were evicted by Israeli security forces over a period of several days. 

The eviction of all residents, demolition of the residential buildings and evacuation of associated security personnel from the Gaza Strip was completed by September 12, 2005. 

The eviction and dismantlement of the four settlements in the northern West Bank was completed ten days later.

Israel's unilateral disengagement plan- 2005

The Annapolis Conference-2007 was a Middle East peace conference.  The conference marked the first time

a two-state solution was articulated as the mutually agreed-upon outline for addressing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The conference ended with the issuing of a joint statement from all parties.

The Annapolis Conference-2007

What is the current situation Arab representation in The government

Palestinian Statehood Here is a brief summary of the relevant section of the

1933 "Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States".

The state, according to international law should possess the following qualifications: (a) a permanent population; (b) a defined territory; (c) government; and (d) capacity to enter into relations with the other states.

Nov 29, 2012 -

Google recognizes Palestinian state

“We’re changing the name ‘Palestinian territories’ to ‘Palestine’ across our products,” Google spokesman Nathan Tyler told the BBC on Friday. “We consult a number of sources and authorities when naming countries. In this case, we are following the lead of the UN, Icann [the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers], ISO [International Organization for Standardization] and other international organizations.”

PUBLIC INITIATIVESDead Sea, Jordan, 26 May 2013 - Nearly 200 leading Israeli and Palestinian business people and executives of some of the largest companies called today for their respective governments to urgently move towards a two-state solution to end the conflict between their two peoples.

Members of the Breaking the Impasse Initiative (BTI), meeting at the World Economic Forum on the Middle East and North Africa at the Dead Sea, Jordan, said they would leverage their collective business experience and influence to convince leaders on both sides to begin serious negotiations with the goal of reaching a peace agreement.

http://www.weforum.org/news/israeli-and-palestinian-business-leaders-urge-two-state-solution