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Israel-Palestine Conflict Chairs: Annie Lubin ‘19 and Thomas Teunissen ‘19 Rapporteurs: RJ Schechner ‘20 and Elizabeth Mulgrew De Laire ‘19

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Israel-Palestine Conflict Chairs: Annie Lubin ‘19 and Thomas Teunissen ‘19 Rapporteurs: RJ Schechner ‘20 and Elizabeth Mulgrew De Laire ‘19 Joint Crisis: Israel-Palestine Conflict Chairs: Annie Lubin ‘19 and Thomas Teunissen ‘19 Rapporteurs: RJ Schechner ‘20 and Elizabeth Mulgrew De Laire ‘19 CAMUN 2018: Joint Crisis Page 1 of 13 Dear Delegates, Welcome to the Joint Crisis committees of CAMUN 2018! We are Thomas Teunissen and Annie Lubin and we will be your chairs in simulating the current day Israeli-Palestinian situation. We are both junior boarders here at CA and have been involved in Model UN since freshman year. We are really looking forward to meeting all of you, and seeing what you create over the course of our short yet meaningful committee sessions. The topic of Israel and Palestine is often discussed at Model UN conferences, but it's for good reason. The complex dual history, combined with the unending points of contention converge to create a seemingly impossible situation. However, we do believe that this is a crisis worth tackling, and who better to do so than all of you. We have prepared this topic guide to give you an overview of the history of the issue, and, due to the fact that this is a crisis, a summary of the current day situation and the political figures you will be representing in committee. Although we have given you this resource, do not let it be your only one. Succeeding in committee requires, first and foremost, an understanding of the topic and your character. Therefore, so that we can see the depth of your thinking as to make committee as enjoyable as possible, we require position papers from all delegates before we convene on March 31st. If you send them early enough we will try to give feedback, so sending them in as early as possible would be advantageous. So, go forth and research, research, research. Finally, remember to have fun! Model UN is an amazing opportunity to explore the world of international politics, diplomacy, and delve deeply into a current day topic. It is also a chance to meet new people and learn from them. So, don’t hesitate to put yourself out there, think deeply and participate. You will not regret it! Should you have any questions, feel free to email us at these addresses: Israel: ​[email protected] Palestine: ​[email protected] Position papers should be sent to the relevant chair. Much luck and we look forward to meeting you on March 31st! Sincerely, Annie Lubin ‘19 and Thomas Teunissen ‘19 CAMUN 2018: Joint Crisis Page 2 of 13 History Balfour Declaration and British Mandate Following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire at the hands of the allied forces in 1918, the League of Nations redistributed land, formerly part of the Ottoman Empire, to countries such as Russia, Greece and Britain1. The parcel of land previously known as Palestine was created by a League of Nations’ mandate, with its governance entrusted to Britain. Before the creation of Mandatory Palestine however, the British foreign secretary, Arthur James Balfour, composed a letter to Baron Rothschild of the British Jewry. In this letter, written in 1917 and later named the Balfour Declaration, Balfour voiced the British Government’s support for “​the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people”. Although this declaration was not the resounding approval that many zionists wanted, it did garner support from the the principal allied forces and was included in the Palestinian Mandate that was formed one year later. However, the promise of a new Jewish homeland was later altered, recommending a cap on the number of immigrants allowed into Palestine.2 Partition of Palestine3 Following the end of World War II, the number of zionists and Jewish sympathizers was at an all time high. One result of this newfound support was the introduction of the Palestine issue to the newly founded United Nations. Within the UN, the old Palestinian Mandate was abolished and a new partition plan was created. This new plan, enacted in 1947, designated three regions of the previous Palestinian Mandate to be Jewish and four to be Arab, as well as placing the city of Jerusalem under international administration. Of course, this decision was embraced by zionists and heavily opposed by many Arab states. Following this partition, on May 14, 1948, ​David Ben-Gurion along with other Jewish leaders proclaimed the establishment of the State of Israel. The same day Harry S. Truman, then president of the United States, recognized the newly formed Israel as a state.4 Arab-Israeli War​ (Al-Nakba, War of Independence) Immediately following Israel’s declaration of statehood in 1948, Arab forces from neighboring countries including Egypt, Transjordan, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon moved into territory alloted by the UN as Jewish territory in an attempt to curtail the creation of a Israeli state. Fighting ensued between the Arab and Israeli forces with the two sides winning and losing different territories, while losing troops on both sides. The war ended in 1949 with armistice agreements signed by all 1 http://www.history.com/topics/ottoman-empire 2 https://www.britannica.com/event/Balfour-Declaration 3https://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/11/29/nov-29-1947-united-nations-partitions-palestine-allowi ng-for-creation-of-israel/ 4 https://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/us-israel ​ CAMUN 2018: Joint Crisis Page 3 of 13 parties.5 Some consequences of the war included, a 21% increase in Israeli territory and the subsequent exodus of over 700,000 Palestinians from those lands as well as the the granting of the territory of Gaza to Egypt.6 Another important factor to note with this event is how it emphasizes the trend of a split history between Israel and Palestine. This will be important in committee, as this is one event of many that will be referred to differently depending on which committee you are in. In the Israeli side, this will be referred to as the War of Independence but on the Palestinian side it will be referred to as Al-Nakba which translates to “the disaster”. Further Fighting Although an armistice was signed, the Arab-Israeli war was just the beginning of years of fighting between Israel and Palestine. The ideological fighting worsened as well, with other nations supporting one side or another. Following the first Arab-Israeli War was the Suez Crisis in 1956 (also known to Palestinians as the Tripartite Aggression, or to Israelis as the Sinai War)7, in which Israel attempted to claim the Suez canal, but Egypt eventually repelled them from the territory and regained control. In 1957 Israel embarked upon a new mission to gain as much territory as they could in what came to be known as the Six Day War. During this period, in response to the apparent mobilization of Arab forces, Israel conducted a preemptive strike on Egypt’s Air Force. Within the ensuing six days Israel was able to capture the Sinai Peninsula, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, the Old City of Jerusalem and the Golan Heights. These territories subsequently became some of the most contested regions within the Israel-Palestine conflict. The Six Day War put more than one million Palestinians under Israeli jurisdiction and created hundreds of thousands of refugees.8 Later there was the 1973 Arab-Israeli War, also known as the Ramadan War to Palestinians or the Yom Kippur War to Israelis. Conflicting sources have different reasons as to why this war started, but what can be agreed upon is that forces from Arab countries (Egypt, Syria, Jordan etc.) began to advance into previously-won Israeli territory. The attack was strategically staged on Yom Kippur, a day of atonement for practicing Jews, and therefore much of the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) was not prepared to defend against an attack. However, with help from the United States they were able to secure an Israeli victory at a heavy cost. The end of the war was also accompanied by a UN ceasefire which was eventually accepted by Israel.9 Camp David Accords The 1978 Camp David Accords were a momentous agreement in the course of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that began the process of peace talks between Israel, its allies and surrounding Arab nations. In September of 1978, the Egyptian president, ​Anwar el-Sadat, following earlier attempts at direct peace talks with Israel, traveled to Camp David in the USA to 5 https://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/arab-israeli-war 6 https://www.vox.com/cards/israel-palestine/nakba 7 http://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/suez-crisis 8 https://www.britannica.com/event/Six-Day-War 9 https://history.state.gov/milestones/1969-1976/arab-israeli-war-1973 CAMUN 2018: Joint Crisis Page 4 of 13 meet with Israeli Prime Minister Menachem, United States President Carter and other diplomats to barter a peace agreement between Egypt and Israel. The final agreement outlined the path to peace within the Middle East as well as providing more tangible incentives to reach peace. Among these was the agreement that Israel would return the contested Sinai territory back to Egypt, the United States would provide aid to Egypt, and Egypt would recognize Israel as a state, legitimizing it as country in the eyes of the Arab League. However, this plan backfired as Egypt was expelled from the Arab League in 1979. First Palestinian Intifada The First Palestinian Intifada (or uprising) started on December 9th, 1987 when an Israeli Defense Force (IDF) truck collided with a civilian car, killing four Palestinians. This incident sparked a series of uprisings, mainly targeting the Israeli army and its infrastructure. Israel responded by deploying over 80,000 troops armed with live ammunition and with orders to restore peace to the West Bank and Gaza.
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