The British Mandate, 1920-48
Palestine was a British quasi-colony after receiving a mandate from the League of Nations. The League expected Britain to train Palestinians for government before the mandate ended in 1948. The plan was for transition to self-governing status.
The objective of the mandates over former territories of Ottoman Empire was to provide “administrative advice and assistance by a Mandatory until such time as they are able to stand alone”.1
The inter-war period transformed Palestine. Mass migration, by European Jews, turned it into an inter-communal battlefield, which the British abandoned in despair.
The foundation of Israel, 1948
After years of terrorism during the 1930s and 40s, Britain left Palestine. Zionists declared Palestine to be a Jewish ‘Homeland’. A short war created Israel as an independent country. It didn’t include the Gaza Strip. Gaza was populated by displaced Palestinians and ruled by Egypt. The displacement, called Nabka (Catastrophe) by Palestinians, is a major grievance and motivator of terrorism.
The Palestinian national narrative views the Nakba as a collective trauma that defines their national identity and political aspirations, whereas the Israeli national narrative views the same events in terms of the war of independence that established their aspirations for statehood and sovereignty.2
The Israeli Occupation of Gaza, 1967-2005
The Six Day War, 1967, was a triumph for the Israeli Defence Force (IDF). They took control of Gaza after Egypt’s defeat. An unforeseen consequence was that Gaza was included in the 1979 peace negotiations. The treaty brought recognition of Israel as a country with a ‘right to exist’. Egypt was the first Arab country to agree this political reality. Gaza’s Palestinians were recognised as being the ‘same’ people as those living in the Occupied West Bank. The two-state solution was formulated, which has been central negotiating policy ever since.
The implementation of a two-state solution would involve the establishment of an independent State of Palestine alongside the State of Israel.4
Disengagement from Gaza, 2005
The Israeli government believed that thousands of settlers in the Gaza strip prevented peace. They decided to evict them. This was fiercely resisted and the IDF enforced the eviction. Gaza came under Palestinian control with borders that were militarised. This made Gaza a virtual prison.5
The eviction of all residents [settlers], demolition of the residential buildings and evacuation of associated security personnel from the Gaza Strip was completed by September 12, 2005.6
Gaza Strip, 2005-14
An extremist group, Hamas, were elected7 and asymmetric warfare began. The Gaza-Egyptian border walls were by-passed by tunneling. This led to massive smuggling from Egypt. The Israeli border was penetrated by tunnels built for hit-and-run incursions. Gilad Shalit was taken hostage in 2006 using those tunnels. Five years later he was released;
On 18 October 2011, Shalit was eventually released in a negotiated agreement, securing his freedom after more than five years in isolation and captivity. In exchange, 1,027 Palestinian prisoners were released, some of whom were convicted of multiple murders and carrying out attacks against Israeli civilians.8
The Shalit case taught Hamas that Palestinians in Israeli jails were actually hostages available for exchange. It also set the tariff which Israel would ‘pay’. This was 1 Israeli to1027 Palestinians. A disastrous decision, which incentivised Hamas’s hostage taking.
IDF strengthened their grip on the Israeli government with generals transitioning into politicians. The 2014 Gaza-Israeli war resulted in massive casualties for Hamas.9 The casualities were insufficient for ‘victory’ but good enough as a punishment.
Conclusion
The current war in Gaza should be cathartic. It’s possible that ‘peaceful coexistence’10 can emerge. The leadership of Hamas and the IDF have had their reputations shredded and new policies are urgently needed to replace failed institutional politics.
Notes
1 Mandate for Palestine – Wikipedia
3 Gaza Strip – Wikipedia and see also Occupation of the Gaza Strip by the United Arab Republic – Wikipedia
4 two state solution – Search (bing.com) see also Assassination of Anwar Sadat – Wikipedia The president of Egypt was assassinated two years after the recognition of Israel, which was a factor in the attack.
5 David Cameron describes blockaded Gaza as a ‘prison’ – BBC News
6 Israeli disengagement from Gaza – Wikipedia
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