World Spring 17.5

Palestine in Period E:

From Ottoman Decline to Independence/Disaster

In 1948, Israel became one of the many nations declaring and winning their independence in the wake of the Second World War. Unlike many other new nations, though, they did so by defeating not only a colonial power, but also invasion forces from Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Iraq, along with forces of the native Palestinian Arab population. By studying the background to this war as well as subsequent events in the region, we hope to develop a fuller understanding of the conflicts that continue to flare up in the Middle East.

Key Questions:

How did the collapse of Ottoman rule in Palestine lay the groundwork for conflict in Palestine?

How did competing promises made by the British government create confusion and tension in Palestine?

Why did the UN takeover of Palestine end in war?

Homework:

Beginning on page 41 in your World Civ reader is a document we will be using as one resource for understanding the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. For today's assignment, you should read and annotate the first two section (The introduction and "The Land and the People"), then answer the following questions on the next two sections (The British Mandate and The UN Partition Plan).

Stop on page 45 before reading the section on Palestinian Refugees.

Questions on the British Mandate In Palestine

1. Explain the "competing promises" the British made concerning Palestine during WWI and how those resulted in the mandates that followed the war.

2. How did tensions escalate between Arabs and Jews in Palestine during the 1920s?

3. How did the relationship between Zionists and the British change fundamentally in the 1930s?

Questions on the UN Partition Plan

4. Why did the UN take charge of Palestine following WWII, and how did the UN attempt to partition the land there?

5. Why did the Palestinian Arabs reject the UN plan?

6. Why did the Arab nations invade the new state of Israel, and what were the results of their actions?

7. Israelis refer to the war of 1948-49 and the “War for Independence,” while Palestinian Arabs refer to it as “al-Naqba,” or “the Catastrophe.” In what sense are both characterizations accurate?