Arab- Israeli conflict Flashcards
(35 cards)
What happened in May 1948 regarding the state of Israel?
David Ben-Gurion proclaimed the birth of the new state of Israel.
Who invaded the day after the birth of the state of Israel?
Armed forces from Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Transjordan and Egypt invaded.
How many phases of fighting were there in Israel’s War of Independence?
Israel’s War of Independence consisted of three phases of fighting.
During the first phase of fighting 15 May to 10th of June, what happened in the south of Israel?
An Egyptian army of 10,000 men crossed the border near the coast and attacked some isolated Jewish settlements.
During the first phase of fighting 1948 war what happened in the North?
-Syrian, Iraqi and Lebanese troops crossed the border but were resisted by Jewish settlers and most of them were forced to withdraw.
-they lacked ammunition and were the least experienced Arab forces.
what did King Adullah do during the first phase of 1948 war?
-moved Transjordan troops, his Arab Legion to defend the Old City.
-they wanted to gain control of Jerusalem and were the best trained Arab army.
when was the ceasefire for the 1948 war?
-10 June 1948 the UN persuaded the warring parties to agree to a ceasefire.
-Jordan, Lebanon were open to peace talks but Egypt, Syria and Iraq were not.
-Egypt broke the truce and fighting broke out again
what did Israel do during the UN ceasefire?
-secured fresh supplies of weapons from eastern Europe mainly from the Czechs.
-recruited more men and reorganised troops.
what happened during the ceasefire which negatively effected the Arabs?
-Brits were unwilling to disobey the UN embargo on supplying weapons to the warring sides.
-before they had been the main supplies to Egypt, Jordan and Iraq.
what was Israel’s priority during the second phase of fighting?
- widen the corridor leading to Jerusalem
-successful but Arab Legion held the Old City
what happened in the South and the North during the second phase of fighting?
-South, Israelis resisted further Egyptian advances in the Negev
-North, gained control of the whole Galilee region including land that had been Arab
what happened during the second truce in September 1948?
-UN mediator Count Bernadotte from Sweden produced a peace plan gave more land to Israel in the North and land to Arab in the south and Jerusalem was an international city.
-was assassinated by the Stern Gang, which the Government then ordered the dissolution of the group.
what happened during the third phase of fighting 15 Oct 1948 to 7 January 1949?
-Israel broke the second ceasefire and concentrated on beating the Egyptians in the South and remained control of the Negev
-withdrew from Egyptian territory due to pressure from US
when was the final ceasefire arranged?
-January 1949.
what percentage of land did Israel win in its war of independence?
-79% rather than the 55% allocated by the UN.
how many refugees were there due to the Arab israeli 1948 war?
-over 700,000
-most ended up in Gaza or the West Bank.
what consisted of the 3 armistice agreements with the Arab countries?
-Egypt, confirmed pre-war borders whilst Gaza came under Egypt military rule.
-Jordan, kept control of the West Bank due to Israel wanting to make peace with the King.
-Syria, Syria withdrew from territory and was a demilitarised zone.
what did Israeli pass in 1950?
-passed a law of return which granted any Jew the right to become a citizen of Israel.
-within 4 years the population doubled
what is the Zionist interpretation as to how the 1948 war was won?
-was a struggle between tiny Israel and big Arab coalition.
-Israel was fighting for its own survival and the Arab forces that were united in their aim of destroying Israel.
-Israel had far fewer weapons, fewer soldiers and was poorly equipped and yet against all odds won through heroic efforts.
what was the revisionist interpretation as to how the 1948 war was won?
-Israel built up their army, they might have started small with 35,000 but they built it up to nearly 100,000 by December 1948.
-Israel were poorly equipped at the start but particularly during the first truce they gained access to much more equipment from Europe
-so the stronger side won.
-also had military advantages and about 25,000 Israelis had fought in the British Army in the second World War and gained experience.
-the only Arab force that was trained was the Arab Legion at 10,000 members
-Palestinian Arabs were not united in aims and tended to fight for their own interests little co-ordination and Egypt and Syria were suspicious of King Abdullah’s aims as he had a meeting with Palestine Jewish leader and led him to believe that he would not invade territory allocated to the new Jewish state.
-Abdullah made little effort to stop the Israelis seizing west Jerusalem and did not invade territory of the new Jewish state, and did not support Egyptian troops in the second and third phases of the war.
how did the Arab states feel about their 1948 loss to Israel?
-stung and humiliated they were bitterly Anti-Western.
-suspected that USA had bullied the UN into creating Israel and the western powers would use it as a base to keep a close eye on the Arab states
what was the relationship like between Israel and Syria?
-poor
-Israelis tried to force Arab out of villages in the demilitarised zone along their border and instead develop Jewish settlements.
-frequent incidents of shelling from both sides
what was the relationship like between Israel and Jordan?
-similar tension along the border.
-many refugees who were determined to return to Palestine and every time they crossed the border their were acts of retaliation from the Israelis and they targeted Arab villages
Oct 1953 after an Israeli women and 2 kids were killed the Israeli forces attacked the Jordan village Qibya blowing up 45 houses and killing more than 50 of the inhabitants most of which were women and children.
what was the relationship like between Israel and Egypt?
-most frequent killings occurred on the border.
-300,000 Palestinians in the narrow coastal area of Gaza and were set on returning to their homes so there were frequent raids into Israel some carried out by Palestinian fighters or Fedayeen but mainly by unarmed fighters who just wanted to visit relatives or reclaim items.
