The Israel-Palestine conflict – often referred to as the ‘world’s most intractable conflict’. As the world recognises November 29 as International Day of Solidarity with Palestine people, Let us analyse the situation in Palestine.
Though Israel has media clout it has failed and the world recognises the wrongs and oppression of the Palestinian people.
The conflict has its root paving back to 1880 when the Zionist movement was launched by Theodore Hertzel- A Jew, with the declared objective of capturing Palestine and building Soloman Temple there due to the Jewish emotional appeal for the land. There were continuous efforts for this purpose since then and finally the objective was fulfilled during the first world war.
After World War I was won, in 1917 Dr Weisman was able to obtain from British government the famous document, which is known as the Balfour Declaration (named after Lord Balfour, the foreign Minister of Britain) as a token of gift to make Palestine the homeland of Jews for their support for the war effort of England and France against Germany. America too supported this establishment on September 21, 1922 by passing the Lodge-Fish resolution. The same day, the Mandate of Palestine was approved by the Council of the League of Nations. Since then the Jewish settlement in the land is going on till date – not in a peaceful manner but with the persecution and expulsion of the Arabs residing in the land for around past 2000 years. Arabs revolted against this barbaric act in 1936-39. The British Government, then, in 1947 decided to partition Palestine with a share of 55% to Jews who were migrants and 45% to Arabs who were the inhabitants of the land based on votes which were maneuvered.
While the discussion on Palestine issue was still on in General Assembly of UN, the Jewish Agency formally declared founding of the Israeli state on May 14, 1948. America and Russia were first to recognise this declaration. During the civil war of 1969 remaining Palestine, Jerusalem (Baitul Maqdis), the entire of Sinai Peninsula and Golan Heights on Syrian border were also occupied. Israel immediately began constructing Jewish-only settlements in the newly-occupied territories. The UN has condemned settlements in the Occupied Palestinian
To liberate the occupied lands, Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) was formed in 1964 under Ahmad Al-Shuqairi. But all the peace processes and efforts to end the occupation of lands as well as liberation of occupied lands were shattered by Israel.
The Oslo Accord signed by Yasser Arafat with Israel in 1993 to regain at least the remaining 22 per cent of the Palestinian territories which were occupied by Israel in 1969 but the accord collapsed in 2000 without being implemented.
The stubborn, Israelis have always delayed peacemaking in Palestine and made it more elusive to find a solution to its problem. The way adopted by the Jews in achieving this land is illegal. Each day a new piece of land is occupied by the Israelis in most brutal manner without any concern tohumanity nor human life.
Hence the duty rests with the civilised world to provide a just, equitable and lasting solution of the Palestine problem in order not only to establish peace in the region but also to uphold the ideals of humanity and human values.
