The Middle East: Conflict, Crisis and Change (Chapters 1 and 2)

Question 1

What was the McMahon-Hussen Agreement of 1915 and what did it result in?

Answer 1

• An agreement made at the start of WW1 between the British and the Arabs whereby the Arabs agreed to help defeat the Ottomans (who were allies of Germany) in return for support for arab independence after the war
• The Ottomon Empire was defeated with the Arabs help and the Arabs were freed from Ottoman opression, however they were unaware that the British troops occupying Palestine intended to stay and two other contradictory agreements had been made

Question 2

What was the Sykes-Picot Agreement of 1916 and what did it result in?

Answer 2

• An agreement made between Britain and France to divide up the Ottomon Empire after the war to ensure acess to oil supplies and the Suez Canal
• France was to be mandated Syria and Lebanon, while Britain was to be mandated Palestine
• This completely ignored the McMahon-Hussein agreement as the Arabs of Palestine were not free with Britain occupying their land

Question 3

What was the Balfour Declaration of 1917, why was it written and what did it result in?

Answer 3

• An agreement made between Britain and the Jewish community which said that Britain would support Zionist ambitions to establish a home for Jews in Palestine provided it did not harm the rights of Arabs living there
• It was made to improve relations with Jews internationally, particularily in the USA, so that they would pressure their governments into helping the war effort more, and be sympathetic with British interests in the Middle East going in to the future
• As a result, when Britain was given the mandate for Palestine, they allowed for Jewish immigration provided it did not cause Arab violence. This agreement completely undermined the McMahon-Hussain Agreement

It was a letter sent from Lord Arthur Balfour to Baron Rothschild, a leader of the British Jewish community

Question 4

What were the terms of the British Mandate to Palestine (1923) and what were the reactions from Arabs and Jews

Answer 4

• The League of Nations approved Britains mandate to Palestine provided they respected the rights of Palestinian Arabs and also endeavoured to establish a homeland for Jews and prepare the country for independence - an impossible balancing act
• Arabs were outraged, they had not been granted independence, not been consulted over the terms of the mandate - Ottoman oppression had simply been swapped out for British oppression
• However for the Jews, the Mandate enabled the Zionist dream to come true

Question 5

How did the number of Jews change between 1922 and 1936 and why?

Answer 5

• Due to the terms of the mandate and the Balfour Declaration, many Jews immigrated to Palestine, encouraged by the newly set up Jewish Agency which helped them immigrate, buy land and organise schools
• In 1922, Jews comprised about 11% of the total population, in 1931 this number rose to 17%, and in 1936, mostly due to Hitlers anti-Semetic policies, this number rose to 28%

The Haganah was set up at this point to protect the new settlements

Question 6

What were some initial Arab reactions to Jewish immigration?

Answer 6

• They felt Britain were favouring the Jews, and that the Jews were stealing their land and independence
• This disapprobation led to violence, the most pertinent example being on May Day 1921 when Arabs in the city of Jaffa attacked Jews after a rumour Jews were attacking Arabs, resulting in 47 Jewish and 48 Arab deaths
• Anger over ownership of holy sites in Jerusalem led to 4 days of riots, resulting in 133 Jewish and 116 Arab deaths

At this point the Jewish terroist organisation Irgun was estbalished as they felt the British were not protecting them enough

Question 7

What was the Arab Strike of 1936?

Answer 7

• A full blown Arab Strike where Arabs refused to work or paytaxes until Jewish immigration and land ownership was ended and the Arabs were given independence
• There was also violence against British infrastructure
• The British reacted harshly, with many Arabs being arrested and flogged. Finally in October, at the behest of neighbouring Arab states, the strike ended

Question 8

What were the causes and proposals of the Peel Commision (1936-37)?

Answer 8

• It was a commision drawn up by William Peel to investigate the causes of unrest in Palestine
• They surmised that the Mandate could never succeed as there was no common ground between Jews and Arabs, and that the only sustainable solution was to introduce a partition
• Therefore, the south was to belong to the Arabs, the north to the Jews, and the central part including Jerusalem to remain British, with all Jewish immigration to the Arab part being banned

Question 9

What were the reactions and effects of the Peel Commision (including Arab Revolt)?

Answer 9

• Despite disliking the details such as not controlling Jerusalem, most Jews approved the plan
• However Arabs were furious at giving land to Jews at all, especially because it included lots of fertile land and meant 300000 Arabs would have to live in the Jewish state unless they moved
• This resentment turned to action at attacks against British troops increased, known as the Arab Revolt of 1937-1939
• The British and the Haganah responsed harshly, arresting and killing thousands of Arabs without trial, potential rebels persecuted and prisoners tortured
• When the revolt ended in 1939, the Palestinian Arabs were in a very weak position, with 5000 of them dead and all of the leaders arrested or exiled, though with much resentment for the British and the Jews

Question 10

How did the Second World War affect British attitudes towards Palestine and what was the Jewish reaction?

Answer 10

• Due to the need for reliable oil supply routes during the war, Arab co-operation was necessary, so the proposals of the Peel Commision were shelved and never put into action, much of the oppression ended, and Jewish immigration limited to 10000 a year for 5 years
• Jews were outraged as Nazi persecution in Europe was now at its peak, and many protests broke out
• However, at least for the duration of the war Jews and Arabs agreed a truce with Britain was necessary until the Nazis were defeated, though a branch of Irgun disagreed with this and formed the group Lehi who continued attacking British infrastructure and troops

Question 11

How did the Holocaust affect British and international attitudes towards Palestine?

Answer 11

• As allied troops liberated concentration camps, the full horrors of the Nazis were uncovered
• This greatly increased sympathy internationally and from the British, and many Zionists were demanding a creation of a Jewish state, though they still needed to balance the demands of the Arabs
• After the war, Ernest Blevin, the British foreign secretary, said a maximum of 1500 Jews could immigrate a month, an increase from the start of the war, but still not very high as he wanted to prevent a civil war between Arabs and Jews and still valued the importance of good relations with neighbouring Arab states on the basis of oil

Question 12

What were the causes of the Jewish insugency in Palestine of 1945-47

Answer 12

Jews were angered by Britains policy of restricting Jewish immigration and not creating a fully independent Jewish state, especially in light of the holocaust

Question 13

What was done and by who in the Jewish insurgency in Palestine of 1945-47?

Answer 13

• Extremist groups like Irgun and Lehi waged a campgain of violence against the British to force them to remove their troops by making occupation unfeasible and change policies, and horrify the British public into campaigning for withdrawal, by doing things such as blowing up British trains and bridges, and even killing British troops
• The worst of their violent acts was the bombing of the King David Hotel where the British Mandate administration were located in 1946, where Irgun members infiltrated the basement and then placed and detonated explosives there, killing 91 people including 28 Britons, 31 Arabs and 17 Jews
• Moderate groups like the Haganah only wanted to encourage Jewish immigration and increase international sympathy for Jews

Question 14

What were the effects of Jewish terrorism on Britain and their stances in Palestine?

Answer 14

• It caused outrage, with the Haganah publicly criticising the Irgun and Britain cracking down on Jewish groups, including random searches and curfers of Jews
• It also made their occuptation increasingly costly for money and lives, especially in the recovering post WW2 Britain, meaning their was pressure from the British public
• However, British policy on immigration remained unchanged for as long as they had the Mandate

Question 15

What was the British naval blockade around Palestine and what impact did it have on Jewish immigration and attitudes towards Jewish immigration (mention SS Exodus)?

Answer 15

• Since Britain had imposed restrictions on the number of Jewish immigrants allowed into Palestine, they maintained a naval blockade to prevent the entry of illegal immigrant ships
• Very few ships did get through, but everytime a ship was turned away or the refugees sent to Cyprus, international sympathy and sympathy from the British public increased
• A significant example is when the Haganah organised a ship full of 4500 Jewish immigrations to be sailed from France to Palestine only to be denied by the Royal Navy - the immigrations then proceeded to refuse the ship and go on a hunger strike
• When Britain then forced the immigrants to go back to refugee camps, this caused global outrage and increased sympathy for the Jewish cause

Question 16

How did the USA make Britain’s occupation of Palestine more unfeasible?

Answer 16

• With over 5 million Jews in the USA and much sympathy for them, the USA helped to smuggle Jews into Palestine, donated money to the Zionist cause and encouraged Jewish terroism
• Due to pressure from US Zionists and his own personal sympathies, Harry Truman told Britain to admit 100000 Jews into Palestine
• When Ernest Blevin refused, the US applied economic pressure saying they would cut aid, which was something the UK could not afford at this stage (think Martial Aid)

Question 17

What did Britain do in 1947 after their occuptation of Palestine had become unfeasible and why?

Answer 17

• They handed over the authority of decision making to the UN, though they did not fully withdraw until 1948
• They did this as it was impossible for them to end Jewish terroism and appease the mounting International pressures, particularily from the US which were economic, while not causing another Arab revolt or civil war
• It also lacked money after WW2, and there was little public support for the occupation

Question 18

What did UNSCOP propose in 1947?

The UNSCOP was a committee set up by the UN after they had been handed over control of Palestine to try and find a solution

Answer 18

• They decided to partition Palestine into seperate Jewish and Arab states
• The states would have economic unity, but still be seperate
• Jerusalem and Bethlehem would remain under international control as it had mutual religious significance for Jews and Arabs

Question 19

What were the Jewish reaction to the proposed plan?

Answer 19

• Most Jews accepted the plan, though they were unhappy that Jerusalem wa not only under international control, but also within Arab territory
• They also disliked how many Arabs would be living in the proposed Jewish sate and own much of the land, and that a large portion of their land was the Negev desert
• Nevertheless, most felt the plan at least recognized the Jewish right to a state, though extremist Jews rejected it for not including Jerusalem/the whole of Palestine

Question 20

What was the Arab reaction to the proposed plan?

Answer 20

• They completely rejected it as they believed they had land being taken away from them
• They felt they were being held responsible for the holocaust
• Additionally, they were angry that the Jews had been given a disproportionate amount of land for their population, including lots of fertile land

Question 21

What was the UN resolution 181?

Answer 21

• The Partition Plan made by UNSCOP was put to vote, and finalised by 33 nations voting in favour, 13 voting against and 10 abstaining in November 1947
• The USA, western Europe (pressured by USA), the USSR and eastern Europe (pressured by USSR) were all in favour
• It was therefore decided that Britain would fully withdraw by August 1948

The USSR believed the new Jewish state could become a cold war ally though this ended up being the opposite of what happened

Question 22

What happened in Palestine following the passing of UN resolution 181?

Answer 22

• Though the British troops withdrew in May 1948, they immeadiately stepped aside as Palestine descended into chaos in November
• There was alot of conflict between Jewish forces trying to hold onto their granted land and angry Arabs which saw 100,000 richer Palestinians emmigrating
• The Haganah introduced Plan Dalet in March 1948, which meant violently assuming military control of all Arab towns or villages in close proximity to the proposed Jewish territory to ensure security
• Part of Plan Dalet was to obtain access to Jerusalem where many Jews lived but was completely surrounded by Arab territory
• In April 1948 in a village near a road into Jerusalem called Deir Yassin, 100 Irgun and Lehi fighters massacred innocent Arabs, claiming Arab fighters were using it as a base
• The effects included an increase in Arab anger, reprisals against Jews, and 250,000 Palestinians escaping deep into Arab territories to avoid the same fate

This was known as the Civil War in Palestine

Question 23

What were the causes of the first Arab-Israeli war of 1948-49?

Answer 23

• In May 1948, David Ben Gurion announced the birth of the state of Israel with him as its first prime-minister
• By the following day, the last British soldier had left
• While the USA and USSR recognised Israel, other Arab states immeadiately denounced it
• That same day, 5 Arab states, Egypt, Syria, Transjordan, Lebanon and Iraq invaded determined to destroy the new state

• At this point the UN had stopped interfering though the Partition Plan was still in force
• Motivations for invading include dislike of the influx of Palestinian refugees (from Plan Dalet ect.), held anti-semetic views, and felt threatened by Israel and contempt for their atrocities, as well as the belief that they had no right to existence

Question 24

What initially happened at the start of the first Arab-Israeli war?

Answer 24

• The Israelis, heavily underarmed and outnumbered, suffered heavy losses
• The Arab Legion (the army of Transjordan), occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem
• Iraqi and Syrian forces invaded Golan heights
• Egyptians attacked from the south, which included occupying Gaza

Question 25

What happened in the first Arab-Israel war after Israel’s initial losses up to and including the end of the war?

Answer 25

• The UN intervened with a truce, which gave Israel time to coordinate themselves and buy arms from Czechoslovakia
• They then went on the offensive, breaking the truce early, fighting fiercely into a 3 month truce was instated
• They once again broke the truce early, retaking all of the occupied land in the proposed Jewish territory as well as gaining more land
• Finally, a ceasefire was agreed with all 5 Arab states and the war moved to a close

Question 26

Who owned what land and where following the first Arab-Israeli war?

Answer 26

• Jordan occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem (which was the part of Jerusalem with the most significant holy sites)
• Egypt occupied Gaza
• Israel occupied the rest of the land, meaning they had made huge gains into Palestinian proposed land which included much fertile land and West Jerusalem
• This was terrible for the Palestinians as not only had they lost land and were being forced into Gaza and the West Bank, but these areas were also now under control by Arab states

• The Golan Heights had been part of Syria until now so was not given to anybody in the Partition Plan and remained in Syrian control until the 6 day war

Question 27

What were the Arab weaknesses and Israeli strengths/good fortunes which allowed Israel to win the first Arab-Israeli war?

Despite the fact that it was 5 countries with a population of 41 million vs 1 with a population of 650000

Answer 27

• The Arab states did not send their entire armies at once - they were over confident - this meant they did not heavily outnumber the Israelis
• The Israelis were far more experienced having trained with the British troops and exceptionally determined compared to the Arab armies
• The first truce allowed Israel to regroup, and they then used the element of suprise to their advantage
• Israel was far more co-ordinated and centrally controlled, compared to the Arabs who were attacking from different locations with different commanders

Question 28

What was the situation with Palestinian Arab refugees following the first Arab-Israeli war?

Answer 28

• Around 700,000 of the 900,000 Arabs that lived in the now Jewish-controlled region fled, becoming landless refugees
• They did not really have anywhere to go as the proposed Palestinian areas were now controlled by other Arab countries, but still fled to these places such as the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria ect. making them very densely populated
• They felt and still feel that they had a right to return home, with many of the Arab countries denying them citizenship so they would still be motivated to return, meaning many had to live in terrible conditions in refugee camps

Question 29

In what way did Palestinian resistance begin to take shape following the refugee crisis?

Answer 29

• Infiltrations into Israel began to try and return to their homes or to simply commit violent acts against Israel, with each of them being met with harsh reprisals
• Most of these were from Gaza and the West Bank - Jordan tried to prevent these as they were always met with reprisals but the ones from Gaza prevailed
• They were known as Fedayeen raids

Question 30

What was the Law of Return 1950 and what were its consequences?

Answer 30

• A law passed allowing any Jew internationally to settle in Istael
• For the next 3 years after the first Arab-Israeli war, the population of Israel doubled to 1.5 million
• Most were escaping anti-semetism and persecution, including many holocaust survivors
• Many came from the Soviet Union, and many from Arab states where anti-semetism was increasing
• There were assimilation issues and unemployment rose
• Divisions and inequalities also arose, with the ‘old Jews’ tending to be richer and hold more important positions, though much was done to try and solve this inequality

Question 31

What were Israel’s relations with Egypt like shortly after the first Arab-Israeli war?

Answer 31

• Poor as Egypt did not recognise Israel’s right to exist, was anti-semetic, felt threatened by Israel after they had just been at war and disliked the influx of Palestinian refugees due to Israel
• From the Egyptian controlled region of Gaza, there were many Fedayeen raids always met with harsh reprisals from Israel which Egypt were funding
• This resulted in them boycotting trade, siezing Israeli items in the Suez canal and blocking the Strait of Tiran

Question 32

After Nasser took over in 1954, what were his main ambitions for Egypt and how did try to achieve them?

Answer 32

• Free Egypt from British occupation - He instantly achieved this as they withdrew upon his request
• Improve Egypt domestically - He redistributed land to peasants, built schools, hospitals, made plans to build the Aswan Dam which would provide electricity and water (which he got the funding for from the USA eager to gain an ally against the USSR)
• Unite Arab pride - He championed Arab nationalism which concerned the USA as they worried for Israel’s safety

Question 33

What was the impact on Israel’s attacks on Gaza in 1955 and the consequent Egypt-Czech arms deal?

Answer 33

• In reprisal to fedayeen raids, Israel carried out attacks on Gaza such as one which killed 38 Egyptian Soldiers
• This made Nasser look weak, so to maintain his new reputation as the leader of the Arab world, he bought $300 million dollars worth of Czechoslovakian weapons
• The USA, hearing about this Soviet arms deal, decided to withdraw their funding for the Aswan Dam as they wanted Egypt to rethink its alliance with the USSR

Question 34

What were the causes of Nasser’s nationalisation of the Suez Canal in 1955?

Answer 34

• Since the West had withdrawn funding for the Aswan Dam, he needed to get the money from somewhere and hoped the tolls and taxes of the canal would provide it
• He wanted to show his independence from the West and further establish himself as the leader of the Arab world
• Since the dam had been under semi-British control, doing this showed that they had truly broken free from colonialism

Question 35

What were the effects of the nationalisation of the Suez Canal?

Answer 35

• Britain and France considered the action illegal, so were now united with Israel in their anger against Egypt
• They now needed to regain access of the canal and overthrow Nasser for his unsustainable ambitions
• As a result, in 1956, David Ben Gurion made the Sevres Agreement with Britain and France, which made plans for what was to become the Suez Crisis

Question 36

What were the events of the Suez Crisis of 1956?

Answer 36

• As planned, on October 29, Israel invaded Gaza and Sinai, focusing on Sharm el Sheikh which they eventually took
• Britain and France then sent (fake) orders to stop Israel fighting and for Egypt to withdraw troops from the Suez Canal
• As hoped, Nasser rejected so Britain and France sent troops into retake the canal
• However, the UN and USA demanded a ceasefire, and they were forced to withdraw while UN peacekeeping forces were sent in, leaving Egypt in control of the canal

Question 37

What were the effects of the Suez Crisis on Israel?

Answer 37

• While it had gained no land, it regained access to the Strait of Tiran and trade
• Egypt’s military strength had also been wrecked and many Fedayeen bases in Gaza destroyed, so they were more secure (especially as UN troops were in Sinai)

Question 38

What were the effects of the Suez Crisis on Egypt?

Answer 38

• Nasser maintained his control of the Suez canal
• The USSR, Egypt’s new ally, agreed to help finance the Aswan Dam and rebuild its military
• Nasser also gained great reputation in the Arab world, with Syria in 1958 even offering to make Egypt the leader of a new state, the UAR (though this idea was scrapped after Syria withdrew, it showed he was a true leader)

Question 39

What were the attitudes of the superpowers to the Suez Crisis?

Answer 39

• The USA disapproved of and called on the UN to condemn Britain and France’s attack, though they themselves did not lose face
• The USSR, as mentioned, was now more interested than ever in aiding Egypt to keep them as a strong cold war ally