Easy News: the history of the conflict between Israel and Palestine

1. 

   The country we know today as Israel was called Palestine until 1948. After the end of World War 1 in 1918, it was controlled by Britain. It was mainly Arab people living there alongside some Jewish people.

2. 

   The Arab and Jewish people were in disagreement when the UK was given the job of creating a state within Palestine for Jewish people.

3. 

   Each of the Jewish and Arab people believed this area was the home of their ancestors. This made it difficult to agree on a two state solution, where there would be two separate states there instead of one.

4. 

   Between the 1920s and 1940s, more Jewish people arrived in Palestine. This was mainly because of the rise of the Nazis in Germany, and their dislike for Jewish people.

5. 

   After the end of World War 2, violence between Jews and Arabs increased in Palestine. There was also violence against the British ownership of the area.

6. 

   In 1947, the United Nations voted for Palestine to be split up into separate Jewish and Arab states after all.

7. 

   This plan was accepted by Jewish leaders but was rejected by the Arab leaders. This meant that the plan did not go ahead.

8. 

   In 1948, the UK could still not solve the disagreements between the Jewish and Arab leaders. This led to conflict and the UK facing an Israeli War of independence. The UK gave up its control of Palestine and left the country.

9. 

   After the UK left Palestine, there was still conflict between Arabs and Jews. Jewish leaders said they had created the State of Israel but the Arab leaders never agreed to it.

10. 

    Many Palestinian people did not want this and there was a war. Soldiers from other Arab countries invaded the new State of Israel.

11. 

    Many Palestinians left Israel or were forced to leave. They called this ‘The Catastrophe’.

12. 

    By the time the war ended in 1949, Israel controlled most of the land which became theirs in 1948. Jordan occupied the land to the east of Israel called the West Bank, and Egypt occupied the land to the west of Israel. This was called Gaza.

13. 

    Jerusalem was divided between Israeli forces in the west, and Jordanian forces in the east.

14. 

    For some time there was less war and fighting. But because there was never a peace agreement, there is sometimes conflict and both sides blame each other.

15. 

    In 1967, the ‘Six Day War’ happened. This was where Israel occupied the Palestinian areas of East Jerusalem and the West Bank.

16. 

    Most Palestinian refugees and their families live in Gaza and the West Bank, as well as in Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. Many have not been allowed by Israel to return to their homes as Israel say this would be too many people in what was meant to be a Jewish state.

17. 

    Israel still occupies the West Bank. It did leave Gaza, but the United Nations says that Gaza is still occupied by Israel.

18. 

    It is a very complicated situation for many reasons and it is not likely to be resolved any time soon.

19. 

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