Chapter 32: Regional Conflicts
Section 3: Conflicts in the Middle East
Arabs and Israelis fight over land
HOWEVER....
- Israel responded in 2005 by releasing hundreds of Palestinian prisoners
- In 2000, radical Palestinian groups stepped up its terror attacks, vowing to destroy Israel
- These events brought new hope, yet serious obstacles still remained
- The U.S. planned the "road map" to peace
- Yasir died in 2004, and Muhmoud Abbas stepped into power promising to stop Palestinian terrorist attacks
- Modern Israel was established in 1948 in agreement with United Nations Partition Plan
- Conflicting claims over the Palestinian Arabs' land led to repeated violence
- The United States, United Nations, and many other countries wanted to bring peace
- Golda Meir, Israel's first female prime minister, was in the process of trying to arrange a peace treaty when the 1973 war struck
- Israel and Egypt later signed a peace accord in 1979
- In 1993, Yasir and the Israeli Prime mInister, Yitzhak Rabin, signed the Oslo Accord
- Three more wars occurred from 1956-1973
- Israel defeated the Arabs gaining more land
- United States tried bringing peace repeatedly
- In the 1960's, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was leading the struggle against Israel
- This was headed by Yasir Arafat
- In the 1967 war, Israeli forces took control of the West Bank, Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip
- In 1973, these nations attacked Israel on Yom Kippur
- Yom Kippur is one of the holiest days of the Jewish year
- In the 1973 war, Arabs failed to regain the land they just lost from Israel
- This land was called occupied territories by the Palestinians
- For years, the PLO launched attacks against Israelis at home and abroad
- Israel reacted forcefully, killing many Palestinians