Midterm Flashcards
Hamas: an overview
Founded in late 1987 under Israeli military occupation in Gaza. Historically opposed to any negotiations with Israel, but willing to respect a cease-fore at various points. Administered Gaza with help of foreign aid, mainly from Qatar. Developed armed wing with help of Iran.
Hamas attack on southern Israel, 7 Oct. 2023
Hamas militants practiced maneuvers jointly with other Palestinian militant groups since 2020. Hamas used sophisticated surveillance of Israeli defences; Israeli defence establishment doubted Hamas would attack. On 7n Oct 3,000 militants from Hamas and allied groups breached Israel’s border fence and quickly overran military bases and civilian towns and settlement. Hamas rocket fire gave militants cover.
What were Hamas objectives on Oct 7?
Revenge: key leaders had spent time in Israeli prisons and lost family members.
Shock: crippling israeli national moral.
Wider War: Hamas apparently hoped to trigger wider war, including Palestinian uprising in West Bank and between Jewish and Arab citizens.
Israeli domestic divisions: unprecedented weakness
Late 2022: PM Netanyahu wins Israeli elections by forming coalition with extreme right-wing politicians. Introduces legislation to weaken authority of Israeli Supreme Court at a time when Netanyahu is under investigation for corruption charges. Anti-overhaul protests consume and divide Israel; soldiers refuse to report to duty; analysts warn domestic divisions increase vulnerability to external enemies.
Israel’s military response after Oct 7
8-9 Oct. 2023: Israel begins aerial bombing campaign on Gaza. Repeated bombing of Zones that Israel’s own military had designated for Palestinians as sanctuaries. 30 Oct. 2023: Israel begins ground invasion of Gaza, seeking to cut it in 2; orders civilians to evacuate northern Gaza.
Cease-fire and hostage deal
22 November: Israel and Hamas agree to four-day cease-fire, which is then extended. Hamas releases 105 hostages (women and children); Israel releases 3 imprisoned Palestinians for every hostage. 1 Dec: Cease-fire collapses; war resumes, even more destructive than before.
Charges of genocide against Israel by South Africa
Brought charges against Israel at the ICJ. January 2024: The ICJ reiterated that all parties to the conflict, including Hamas, remain bound by International humanitarian law, the ICJ called for the release of hostages. The ICJ’s order tilts the balance toward a global order based on justice and international law.
Regional dimensions after Oct 7
Oct 8: Hezbollah begins firing rockets at Israel in support of Hamas; cycle of strikes and counterstrikes begins. US aircraft carrier battlegroup deployed to East Mediterranean. 18 Oct: US Pres. Biden visits Israel. Houthi militants backed by Iran have targeted shipping bound for Israel. Iran as “reluctant escalator”. Netanyahu’s vast unpopularity and crippled credibility make him a dangerous decision maker.
Recent Escalation
31 July: Israel assassinates Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, top Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut. Iran, Hezbollah vow revenge. 25 August: Israel strikes thousands of Hezbollah rocket sites; Hezbollah fires hundreds of rockets at Israel; Israel strikes more launch positions in Lebanon.
A cease fire?
A cease-fire deal has been on the table since at least May. Israeli PM Netanyahu has refused successive deals, driving a border bargain. 1 Sept: Hamas killing of six hostages triggers widespread anti-government protests across Israel. Netanyahu knows peace may cost him is premiership. US Pres. Biden has pressured Israel to accept cease-fire but has not withheld weapon-shipments.
Early history
Some trace the conflict between Jews and Arabs to the Biblical rivalry between Isaac and Ishmael, sons of Abraham. Many of the Jewish Israeli settlers in the West Bank today see themselves as fulfilling a return to this land and regard the entire territory as theirs by divine right. Philistines (a seafaring people) settled along the coast in the 12th Century BC. They ruled the coastal plain along the Mediterranean Sea from 1150BC-586 AD, and fought frequently with the Hebrews. In 586 AD, the Babylonians conquered the entire region; the Hebrews and Philistines were exiled. Hebrews returned under Persian King Cyrus, who defeated the Babylonians. The area was then conquered by the Greeks, and then by the Romans.
Genesis of Palestine
After crushing a 2nd Century AD Jewish revolt, the Roman occupiers re-named the Land of Israel “Palestine,” derived from Philistia, do de-Judaize it. Diaspora Judaism begins. The area was conquered by the Prophet Muhammad and his Caliphs in the 7th Century; Muslims formed the majority until the 20th Century. Palestine was part of the Ottoman Empire, 1517-1917. Under the rule of the British Mandate, 1920-1948.
Pre-Modern Muslim-Jewish Relations
As the Prophet Muhammad began first wave of conquest in 7th Century, Jewish tribes in Mecca and Medina refused to submit to Islam, and were conquered. Islamic rule extended outward across most of the Middle East and North Africa. Jews living under
Islamic rule, from the Prophet’s time until the fall of the Ottoman Empire, were denied full rights but, with Christians, enjoyed certain protections. Under the Ottoman Empire (1517-1917), Jewish and Christian communities were granted some local autonomy under the millet system.
The emergence of Zionism
Zionists believe in and support the quest by Jews to ‘return to Zion’; in the modern period, this implied also support for the creation of a Jewish state in that area.
Zionism’s emergence in historical context
Context: Modern nationalism surged across 19th century Europe after the French Revolution of 1789. Politically oppressed communities embraced this idea as emancipatory.
Nationalism
Groups should unite around a common identity and seek territorial sovereignty and political independence within a nation-state.
Issues in early Zionism
The basic premise of Zionism was the same as for other nationalisms: territorial sovereignty and political independence. Zionism tends to view Judaism as an ethnic identity as well as a religion.
Article 20 of the Palestine National Charter of he PLO declares
Claims of historical ties of Jews with Palestine are incompatible with the facts of history and the true conception of what constitutes statehood. Judaism, being a religion, is not an independent nationality. Nor do Jews constitute a single nation with an identity of its own; they are citizens of the states to which they belong.
Judaism - religion, nationality, race?
Judaism in its texts, prayers and traditions preserved a connection to the biblical Land of Israel. Jewish communities, especially in Europe, faced systematic discrimination which often turned deadly - full citizenship was impossible.
Early Jewish Emigration and birth of Zionsim
In small numbers, Jews had been emigrating to Palestine from Europe and the Middle East for centuries for religious reasons. The four “holy cities,” Hebron, Safed, Tiberias, and Jerusalem, had Jewish populations dating back to antiquity. Jews in Palestine were about 7% of total population. By 1880s, Jewish emigrants fleeing programs in Eastern Europe established settlements and sought to buy land from Arab neighbours.
Theodor Herzl, Early Zionist
An Austrian journalist who covered the 1894 trial of French Army officer Alfred Drefys, wrongly convicted of spying for Germany. French mobs chanted “Death to the Jew!”. Antisemitism in a modern Europe democracy convinced Herzl that jews would never live free of oppression in Europe. In 1896 he wrote “The Jews’ State”, envisioning the creation of a Jewish homeland. Early Zionists considered various options, but Palestine resonated the most.
First Zionist Congress in Basle, Switzerland (8/1897) resolved:
Zionism seeks to establish a home for the Jewish people in Palestine secured under public law. The congress contemplates the following means to the attainment of this end:
1. The promotion by appropriate means of the settlement in Palestine of Hewish farmers, artisans, and manufacturers.
2. The organization and uniting of the whole Jewry by means of appropriate institutions, both local and international, in accordance with the laws of each country.
3. The strengthening and fostering of Jewish national sentiment and national consciousness.
Labour Zionism
Emphasized a secular Jewish nationalism, tending to promote coexistence with Palestine Arabs. Rooted in more leftist, trade unionist, sometimes even communist.
Revisionist Zionism
Emphasized a militaristic approach to the conquest of Palestine; did not value or seek coexistence with Palestinians. Much more right wing.