TIMUN09

 

SECURITY COUNCIL CHAIR REPORT: 

THE HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN THE GAZA STRIP & THE WEST BANK 

 

 

    

1. OVERVIEW AND BACKGROUND INFORMATIONPART I THE HISTORY OF THE HEBREWS AND THE MAKING OF THE ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT The Early Jews

PART II THE BRITISH MANDATE, THE 1947 REBIRTH OF ISRAEL AND THE ROAD TO THE 1948 WAR The British Mandate WWII And The UN Partition The 1948 War For Independence The Formation of The Fatah The Six Days War of 1967 The Oslo Accords of 1993

PART III STONES THAT EDWARD SAID THREW: THE HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN PALESTINE....................................................................................................................................................

2. RELATED COUNTRIES Israel The PNA The Arab League (Egypt, Jordan, Syria) The United States of America The Soviet Union/Russian Federation

3. UN INVOLVEMENT United Nations Resolutions/Treaties/Interventions

4. POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS 5. WORKS CITED

 

 

Illustration 2: Alexander the Great

Illustration 1: A divided Kingdom of Israel

1. OVERVIEW AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION PART I: THE HISTORY OF THE HEBREWS AND THE MAKING OF THE ISRAELI PALESTINIAN CONFLICT  

The current conflict between Israel and Palestine, that most recently epitomized with the bombings in the Gaza Strip, is one of the most violent and horrific wars of our time, leading to many inhumane acts and crimes against humanity. However, if one is to resolve this conflict or even try to mitigate the violence on a platform such as the United Nations, one must take into account the vast history involving both sides because it is the events of the past that created deep religious and ideological scars, laying the groundwork for probably the longest lasting fight seen in history. The conflict in Palestine, causing the humanitarian crisis, is not only an intricate one but one that involves all nearby countries and their relations in an interwoven fashion. Below is the list of civilizations which have occupied the region of Israel/Judea/Palestine: 1800-1500 BC-The Israelis emerge 1000 BC- The Kingdom of Israel (KIO) is formed 950 BC- KIO is divided into the Kingdom of Judah & the Kingdom of Israel 722 BC - Assyrian conquest of Israel & the subsequent exile of Israelis 586 BC - Babylonian conquest of Judah & the subsequent exile of Israelis to Babylonia 333 BC - Alexander the Great conquers the region, Hellenistic Rule until 63 BC 63 BC- 313 AD The rule of The Roman Empire 313-636 – The rule of the Byzantine Empire 636- 1099 - The rule of The Arabs 1291-1516 – The rule of The Mamluks (Memluks) 1516-1918 – The rule of The Ottoman Empire 1917-1948 – British Mandate

The Early Jews and the Zionist Movement: It is assumed that the first Jewish population evolved from the Cana’anites who inhabited the region of Canaan between the years 1800 BC and 1500 BC. After leaving their homeland, Mesopotamia, the Jewish people subsequently started their own rule and subsequently, conquered the land of Israel under the reign of King David. This event led to the formation of an independent Israeli Kingdom, “the Kingdom of Israel”. However, approximately in 950 BC, the kingdom divided into two, forming the Kingdom of Israel and a new Kingdom of Judah. The years 722 BC and 586 BC saw major events that truly affected the Jews in a profound way: the fall of the Kingdom of

 

 

 Illustration 3: The Al-Aqsa Mosque

Israel to the Assyrians and the fall of the Kingdom of Judah to the Babylonian Empire. The invasions resulted in the complete destruction of the two kingdoms and the Babylonians exiled the Jews, constituting a milestone in the formation of Jewish diasporas. However, the Babylonian rule ended when the Persian Empire conquered the Babylonian Empire and drove the Babylonians out of Israel. The Persians took a different approach towards the Jews, allowing them to settle back in their homeland and rebuild Jerusalem. The Persian rule also came to an abrupt end as Alexander’s armies marched through the lands of Israel, creating a new Hellenic presence in the Middle East. (Isseroff) With the death of Alexander, his generals divided his empire among themselves. Israel was ruled shortly by the Ptolemaic Empire in Egypt; however it was eventually controlled by the Seleucid Empire whose empire in 167 BC, Antiochus IV, took steps to completely Hellenize the region and exile the Jews. In the light of these events the Jews revolted against the Seleucid rule, driving them out of their lands and forming a new kingdom, the Hasmonean Kingdom with Jerusalem as its capital. This new kingdom approached the Roman Empire and obtained its protection, after the Hasmonean King was rendered a “friend of the Roman senate and people” in 164 BC (Isseroff). These events are celebrated even today by Jews around the world as Hanukah. However Rome’s protection did not last long as in 61 BC, the Roman Empire, under the command of Pompei, conquered Judea and sacked Jerusalem (Isseroff). The Jews were exiled once more, but completely this time, forming the Jewish diasporas in many parts of the world. It was also during this time that the Romans, with the intention of stripping the land of its Hebrew identity, renamed it “Palestine.” In these times of exile the Jews returned in small groups in order to pay pilgrimage to the

“Promised Land” with hopes of a future messianic redemption. Basically the ideology of Zionism roots from this event, the Roman exile of the Jews. During the seventh century the region was conquered by the Arabs and the area was left to the control of the Muslims for the successive centuries, only to be changed in the early 1900’s. During this time most of the population became Muslims. The lands of Israel were captured by the Ottomans in 1517, after various Muslim kingdoms controlled the region following the fall of the Roman Empire (Isseroff). The

Ottomans had a much more amenable and understanding approach towards the Jews, even giving refuge to those fleeing the Spanish Inquisition in the late 15th century. Thus Jews were relatively satisfied with the Ottoman administration until Napoleon launched his campaign on the Egyptian lands of the Ottoman Empire in 1798. It is believed that during Napoleon’s campaign the Ottomans were put in a difficult position also because of the simultaneous revolts of the Palestinian Arabs and that such misadministration of Israel, left many Jews frustrated and spiked up their nationalism (Isseroff). It was after this that the Jews supported Zionist immigrants in setttling in the “Holy Land” increasing the population of Jews to reach approximately

 

 

24,000. In response to this, the Ottomans imposed heavy restrictions on Jewish immigration and invited Arabs and Muslims from all reaches of the empire to settle in Palestine. However the Jews kept immigrating in waves during the last century of the Ottoman Empire, utilizing means such as bribery to evade Ottomans’ pressure. The turn of the century saw the institutionalization of the Zionist movement since in 1897 the First Zionist Congress assembled in Basel and the Jews solidified their desire to establish Palestine as their homeland. People lişke Theodor Herzl believed that the discriminatory attitudes towards the Jewish people and their treatment as second-class citizens all around the word would only end when the Jews have their own state (Hunt 405). Contrary to all these trends, Palestine remained under Ottoman control until WWI, during which the area was conquered by the British Empire. (Isseroff)  PART II THE BRITISH MANDATE, THE 1947 REBIRTH OF ISRAEL AND THE ROAD TO THE 1948 WAR

Illustration 1: The Balfour Dec.

 

 Illustration 6: David Ben Gurion 

Illustration 5: The Map of the British Mandate

Under the control of the British, Palestine proved to be a liability as approximately 80.000 Jews and 500.000 Arabs had conflicting interests and the British were caught in the middle. In 1917, the British issued the Balfour Declaration (Fig.4), stating the British support for the creation of a “national home” for the Jews in the region of Palestine while promising not to “prejudice the civil and religious rights of the existing non-Jewish communities”. (Hunt 404)

In 1919, this dream set out to become a reality. At the Paris Peace Conference the leaders of the Zionist movement surprisingly agreed with the Arab, British and American ambassadors about setting a homeland in Palestine however this depended on the satisfaction of the Arab demands in Syria. Thus when the League of Nations issued Syria to the French Mandate, instead of making it an independent Arab state as previously agreed, the whole agreement fell apart and the Arabs started strongly refusing the idea of an independent Israel. (Isseroff)

This event was the spark that stimulated years of bloodshed. Arabs moved to lobby in the King-Crane commission in order to combat the mandate. During the proceedings representatives said: "Their history and their past [prove] that it is impossible to live with them. In all the countries where they are at present, they are not wanted...because they always arrive to suck the blood of everybody..." regarding the Israelis (Isseroff). The most avid supporter of the Zionist movement was David Ben Gurion, the man who would soon become the first prime minister of Israel. The mandate was ultimately accepted at the Paris Peace Conference and was given to the British provisionally in 1920. It stretched from the east of the River Jordan and to the west. In 1922, the mandate was formalized and the British began issuing

 

 

Illustration 7: The UN Partition Plan

independent governing bodies in the west of the river. However, they did not yet know what to do with the eastern area known as Transjordan. This “problem” was soon “resolved” in 1922 when King Abdullah marched into the region, initially claiming to invade Damascus and reinstate the Hashemite dynasty in Syria with 2000 men. However once in what was then called Transjordan, he stayed there and the British divided their mandate into two (as Palestine and Transjordan, please refer to Illustration 7 for more details) giving independence to Jordan which would later on officially become a Muslim nation at the same time Israel gained its independence.

While the British were trying to form self-governing institutions for the Jewish community in the Mandate of Palestine, the period between 1920 and 1929 saw many Arab riots and revolts that protested the Balfour Declaration, which fully supported the Zionist cause. The Arabs tried to assert their presence and prevent Palestine from being dispossessed. During this time, much blood was spilt and many Jewish settlements were destroyed. These events led to the British issue of the Passfield White Paper, curtailing Jewish Immigration.

However, the 1930’s saw a large influx of Jewish immigrants escaping from the rising Nazis and discrimination in Europe. This influx triggered a huge revolt, known also as the Great Arab Revolt in 1936, one of the most violent events in the region’s history, during which thousands of people were killed and many settlements were destroyed. This revolt was presumably financed by the Nazis and Fascist Italy and it led the Jewish community to apply self-defense measures and random bombings in Arab civilian targets, heating up the conflict even further. “The Jews expected Arab resistance and saw no choice but to overcome it” (Hunt 404)

In 1937, the British Peel Commission suggested that the region of Palestine be divided into two separate Jewish and Arab nations. While the Jews approached this idea positively, the Arabs did not, strongly condemning Britain’s actions. Together with the increasing violence this event led the British to issue the 1939 White Paper which imposed severe restrictions on Jewish immigration, restrictions which would lead to millions dying at the hands of the Nazi’s, along with cruel methods to curtail rioting. (Isseroff) WWII and the UN Partition The following years saw many Jews coming in by means of illegal immigration. Events such as the Holocaust and the assassination of the White Papers enforcer and anti-Zionist politician, Lord Moyne increased this impetus. The Jews were getting organized underground to repudiate the British and administer the illegal immigration. Jewish leaders, encouraged by the central position of the logic of military force in Zionist thinking, were determined to make Palestinian Arabs accept Zionists’ prevalence (Hunt 405).

The growing tension finally led to the intervention of other nations, primarily the US, where the Jewish lobby was very vocal, and the issue was finally addressed in the United Nations which decided for partition. On

 

 

November 29th 1947, The UN officially partitioned the British Mandate of Palestine and created two regions with the GA Resolution 181. The resolution intended to divide the land into two, create open borders and internationalize Jerusalem and its surroundings, while keeping the area in an economic union (Isseroff). The US, USSR and Palestinian Jews were all in favor of this plan however the Arabs facing the loss of their homelands adamantly started attacking Jewish settlements (Hunt 405). After this point the fact that neither nation could tolerate the other and that the level of aggression would in no way allow peaceful co-existence proved that the Partition Plan would not be able to achieve peace and stability. At that time, Jordan was hoping to annex parts of eastern Palestine while Syria was looking to do the same for the north. It was in those times that the Arab League began whispering a great war against the Jews. The 1948 War For Independence   The 1948 War or as it is also called, the Israeli War for independence, was a turning point in the history of the conflict. After the Partition Plan in 1947, violence broke out almost immediately. No full scale Arab invasion was yet to commence however, underground Arab and Israeli irregular forces started fighting in virtually every part of what was then the British Mandate of Palestine. It was the Arab irregular troops who started the bloodshed but the Zionists were soon to counter them with more violence. In the aftermath of these many pre-independence conflicts, it were the Israelis who prevailed and proved to be more dominant. Following these underground fights, on May 14th 1948, the Israeli government officially declared its independence, a move which prompted the joint invasion campaign of the Arab nations Jordan, Syria, Egypt and Palestine. Jordan only claimed to take the West Bank and refrained from attacking territories assigned to Israel by the Partition Plan; however Syria and Egypt did not have such constrains. The conflict went on until 1949 (with two brief truces) and did nothing but elevate the amount of brutality and violence in the region. The 1948 War saw the temporary successes of the Arabs in the beginning and the ultimate triumph of the Israelis at the end because the Jews were better organized and made better use of the truces in terms of arranging clandestine arms shipments.

With this war, Israel expanded its borders much farther than the borders designated by the Partition Plan, making Jerusalem a city divided between Israel and Jordan instead of an internationalized city as foreseen by the Partition Plan and nearly 700.000 Arabs were driven out of what became Israel, creating the touchstone for the refugee problem that still exists today (Hunt 405). The Armistice Agreement that ended the war, assigned the Gaza Strip to Egypt and the West Bank - including East Jerusalem- to Jordan, only to be changed by the Six Day War in 1967, rendering the Partition Plan that envisioned the foundation of an Arab state in Israel ineffective. In short, the British Mandate of Palestine was now divided between Israel, Jordan and Egypt. Contrary to the fact that these parties reached a diplomatic agreement to end the war with an armistice, the Arab nations still did not recognize or accept the legitimacy of the existence of Israel. (Isseroff) The aftermath of the war also saw the USSR pulling back its support –both in terms of military and diplomatic aid- for the Zionist movement and instead giving it to the Arab nations. The United States on the other hand continued to support Israel and re-armed Israeli forces, building up Israel’s defense against future Arab attacks. Hence the Israel-Palestine conflict was also fit into the Cold War framework.

 

 

 Illustration 8: Israeli Forces At The Western Wall

1950’s and the 1960’s (the Formation of the Fatah and PLO)

In the aftermath of the war, the ensuing decade saw a new war between the Egyptian army and the British, French and Israeli armies in 1956 because of the nationalization of the Suez Canal. The war remained rather irrelevant to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, except for the increased antagonism towards Israel in the Arab world. This era also saw the emergence of a new figure. This figure was Yasser Arafat, an Egyptian Palestinian who lived in the Gaza Strip. Yasser was a member of both the Ikhwan (Muslim Brothers) and the Futtuwah, an organization that was officially called Nazi Scouts according to some authorities (Isseroff). He was later recruited by the Egyptian intelligence and in 1957, moved to Egypt forming the Palestinian Liberation Committee, later renamed to Fatah (reverse acronym for “Harakat Tahrir Filastin” - the Palestine Liberation Movement). (Isseroff)

In 1964, the Palestinian Liberation Organization was founded by Egypt, as a “tame” alternative to the radical Fatah and was later ratified by the Arab League. The AL summit that ratified this formation also called for the deployment of a Palestine Liberation Army. In 1965, the Syrian government, diverting from Nasserism, began to openly support the Fatah and support its military actions within Israeli borders. The Six Day War of 1967 The continous border violations were a sign of how vulnerable the Israeli nation was. Syria on the Golan Heights, strategically critical areas with log distance bombing capabilities, overlooked northern Israel and the country's main water source. The fact that the entire nation was

surrounded by enemies who had pledged to wipe Israel off the face of the earth and that Egypt was as close as 30 miles from Tel-Aviv in the Gaza Strip made life a nightmare for the Israelis. The Six Day War took place in 1967 on three separate fronts. The war was waged between Israel and its neighboring Arab states, fueled with a sense of vengeance for their defeat 19 years ago. Furthermore the Palestinian Division held the first line in the Gaza Strip, along with three Egyptian divisions. The war officially began when Egypt, the largest of the Arab nations with a population of 31 million, blockaded critical Israeli ports, a move which is regarded universally as an act of war. Faced with a dire situation in which the very

Illustration 9: An Israeli Air Strike

 

 

existence of the Israeli people was threatened, the Israeli government launched a preemptive air strike on critical Egyptian air bases, crippling their forces with well organized attack along with ground troops in only four days. Encouraged by false reports of Egyptian success, the Jordanian forces launched an attack against Israeli forces from eastern Jerusalem and the West Bank. Israeli forces responded by attacking Jordanian military positions. The fighting continued for three more days mostly in and around Jerusalem and ended when the Israelis drove Jordanian forces out, claiming control of the West Bank and all of Jerusalem. Following an air attack by the Syrians on the first day of the war, Israel launched a shattering attack on the Syrian air force. Hostilities continued in the days that ensued, and on fifth day of the war, the Israelis gathered enough strength to remove all enemy forces from the Golan Heights. This operation resulted in the invasion of the Golan Heights and the Sheba Farms (Lebanon) by the Israelis, a strategic act which would play a great role in the involvement of Lebanon and the Hezbollah into the conflict in future times. 1970’s and 1980’s The aftermath of the war saw huge changes. Israel had acquired the Sinai Peninsula (from Egypt), Golan Heights (from Syria) and West Bank (from Jordan) (Hunt 405), enlarging Israel’s original territory by several times and increasing the Arab Palestinian population within Israel’s borders by approximately one million (Isseroff). This perception also harmed Israel’s image since it was now coming across as an “occupying power” who insisted on settling its own people in the “conquered territories.” The Jewish settlers in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, no matter how strenuously they were endorsed, could not keep up with the natural birth rate of the Palestinians and would accounted for only 10 percent of the population even in 2002 (Hunt 405).

However most importantly since the Arab patrons who favored PLO over Fatah -due to the fact that Fatah posed a threat by also operating terroristic attacks in parts of Palestine controlled by Egypt and Jordan- were defeated Arafat became the chairman of the PLO in 1969 (Hunt 407). PLO’s actions were thereafter intemperate because their actions no longer threatened other Arab regimes and both because of this and because of the fact that Fatah and PLO practically merged (Arafat became PLO’s head and Fatah became a faction of PLO), the PLO became the most commonly recognized representative of the Palestinian people. Meanwhile Israel’s territorial enlargement and the increase in Arab population within Israel raised new administrative questions, leading to ideas like giving the West Bank autonomy or holding onto these territories by expanding Jewish settlements as early as in 1967. (Isseroff)

The region was shaken once again in 1973 with another war. Except for a brief period in 1970, known as the War of Attrition, the region had been relatively tranquil

Illustration 10: The Map of the British Mandate

 

 

for 6 years, but in 1973 Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack on Israel whose people happened to be celebrating Yom Kippur, a Jewish holiday (hence the name Yom Kippur War). Egypt was initially shockingly successful but was later forced to stop by the Israeli forces that were backed by the US. This event also led to an oil embargo imposed by the Arab states targeting the US and the Netherlands, who were aiding Israel. (Isseroff)

The late 1970’s saw Sadat’s rapprochement towards the west, at the expense of the Soviet Union, in the aftermath of the Yom Kippur War. This amenity culminated in 1978 with the Camp David Accords that made Egypt the first Arab country to sign a peace treaty with Israel and led Israel to withdraw from the invaded parts of the Sinai Peninsula.

Also during the 1970’s civil disorder and tension had been culminating in Lebanon where Maronite Christians felt uneasy after their once-privileged positions were threatened by the advance of the Muslim population. The PLO had been kicked out of Jordan in 1970 because of having revolted against Jordan, and had reestablished itself in Lebanon. PLO’s presence and involvement in the civil war also complicated the situation as PLO attacks on Christian villages triggered Syria’s intervention and PLO attacks threatening Israel, led to Israel’s intervention, causing Israel to invade Lebanon in 1982. This event once again epitomized the contingent nature of instability and conflict in the Middle East. The aftermath of Israel’s gradual withdrawal caused chaos in most parts of Lebanon, contributing to the turmoil that has been troubling Lebanon in the last three decades (Isseroff). Furthermore the Syrian pressure caused Arafat and his followers to abandon Lebanon for Tunisia in 1982 (Hunt 408). The Oslo Accords of 1993 and the Intifadas

After the turbulence of the 1970’s and early 1980’s began the First Intifada with which Palestinian Arabs in the Palestinian Territories (West Bank and Gaza Strip) revolted against Israeli control. Although this event wasn’t organized by the PLO –which had been suffering blows in the past two decades-, the PLO soon found a way to be seen in the forefront as the legit representative of the Palestinian people; however figures loyal to but not formally a part of the PLO also emerged like Hamas.

This atmosphere lead to the declaraction of independence by PLO in 1988, forming the “State of Palestine”. Thus with this declaration and Arafat’s proclamations (about how the PLO would abide by Resolution 242 and thus recognize Israel’s right to exist) PLO, who hitherto claimed to recover all of “Palestine”, gave up its claim and agreed to the framework that was based upon a “two state solution.” It was also with this set of events that the UN started recognizing the Palestinian entity as the non-member state “Palestine” instead of the non-member state “PLO”, which was how it was recognized until 1988.

The uprisings (i.e. the First İntifada) continued until the Oslo Accords were signed on August 20th 1993. The Oslo Accords were the first face-to-face agreement between the Israelis and the Palestinians, with which they mutually recognized each other and created the groundwork for further negotiations. The accords also called for the creation of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA). According to the agreements there would be three types of areas within the Palestinian Territories which are ideally supposed to be administered by the PNA: Area A with complete Israeli withdrawal and complete Palestinian control, Area B with Palestinian civil control only and with limited Israeli presence and Area C with complete Israeli control. However, the terms

 

 

agreed to during the accords have not been upheld by Hamas. There has been a lot of criticism directed at the accords and it has been stated that “it gave Israel an excuse and forgiveness for the occupation and everything else” (Said, xvii).

In 2000 the Second Intifada began, with no academic consensus as to when it exactly ended (many commentators claim it to be some time around 2004 and 2005). It was the result of the discontent of the hardliners who felt that the agreement that Arafat concluded wasn’t fruitful since the Jewish settlements didn’t stop and since no clear timetable for the creation of an independent and legit Palestinian state was presented (Hunt 410).

The most recent years “-both the Second Intifada and its aftermath- saw the increased bloodshed between the Israelis and the Palestinians. The most important recent event was the practical split of the Palestinian Territories as Hamas, a wing of the Muslim Brotherhood created in 1987 during the First Intifada, won the election held for seats in the Palestinian Legislative Council (of the PNA- which should not be confused with the PLO). In 2007 as PNA President Mahmoud Abbas declared a state of emergency and dismissed the Prime Minister İsmail Haniyeh, from Hamas, Hamas rejected this and declared itself to be the legitimate government. In the meanwhile Hamas gained control of the Gaza Strip and Fatah (Arafat’s and Abbas’ faction that dominates the PLO) retained control of the West Bank, thus resulting in two different governments within the PNA. PART III STONES THAT EDWARD SAID THREW: THE HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN PALESTINE Before his death Edward W. Said, a prominent academic, artist, professor and activist who supported the Palestinian movement traveled to Lebanon after the exodus of Israeli troops. As a symbolic gesture, he, one of the strongest defenders of the Palestinian cause, threw stones across the Israeli border. The international community condemned this action and labeled him as a promoter of violence. While they saw it this way, what Edward Said did was a symbolic gesture against the dire humanitarian crisis in Palestine. The stones he threw represented both the joy that the Palestinians felt when they obtained their freedom, and their frustration from the oppressive Israeli presence.

Illustration 11

 

 

Illustration 12

One of the most horrific events that occurred this year, in 2009, were the bombings in the Gaza Strip conducted by the Israeli military. The inhabitants of the Gaza strip (approximately 1.5 million people) have endured a major humanitarian crisis which had been brought on by two weeks of Israeli military operations and severe restrictions combined with aid refusals. The Israeli government however does insist that no crisis of any sort exists and yet, data from international human rights organizations and those which are located in the Gaza Strip refute their claim. Many civilians with most of them being children had died and been injured or incapacitated.

The main problem roots from Hamas’ taking control in Gaza Strip two years ago. Because of Hamas’ extremist approach and because of the terroristic threat it constitutes, as perceived by the Israelis, Israel sees in itself the right to conduct military operations in the Gaza Strip. More problematically even before Israel’s campaign in 2009 both Egypt and Israel had been blockading the Gaza Strip since 2007 because Hamas took control (emergency response facilities had been crippled and all aid had been cut off). Thus both the blockade itself and Israel’s attacks deprive people resources and as the paucity of resources combine with the active bombings, recovery is rendered impossible.

Currently, Gaza's civilians are facing dire shortages of food, water, cooking gas, fuel and medical care due to insecurity, the enforced closure of all of Gaza's borders, and alleged serious violations of international humanitarian law. Electricity is sharply down, and in some places open sewage is spilling into the streets. Children, who make up 56 percent of Gaza's residents, are especially vulnerable. (Human Rights Watch) What Israel and Egypt have done by refusing to provide aid for the Palestinians of the Gaza Strip is a blatant violation of international humanitarian laws. Before the attacks and the blockade, nearly 80% of the population had relied on aid from outside to keep on living and became absolutely crippled when everything was cut off. Egypt was doing this to prevent Hamas style militancy to jump over to its side of the border and Israel was doing this to thwart the terrorists.

 

 

The victims of the attacks are in the worst situation. The Gaza Strip lacks the proper medical facilities to be able to treat all of the wounded and many of them had already been destroyed during bombings. Egypt and Israel both have refused to take in patients and even though nations like Turkey have pledged aid, it has not been enough for the Palestinian people. The water, sewage and electricity infrastructure - already severely incapacitated by the blockade - is now stretched to a breaking point. The World Bank and the World Health Organization have warned the involved parties about the dire consequences of epidemics from the discontinuation of vaccinations, lack of garbage collection and contaminated water. Even though Israel has taken some steps in humanitarian aid such as having brief 3 hour ceasefire sessions for the wounded to be helped, They have not been enough to address the dire humanitarian concerns. According to the UN, the humanitarian pause was "totally insufficient" to aid the population living in "increasingly appalling" conditions. Israeli forces have only made the situation worse by preventing the access of humanitarian organizations ad international emergency response groups. 2. RELATED COUNTRIES  Israel:

Israel was formed in 1947 with the Partition Plan. Its existence is based on the thousands of years of the Jews’ sufferings in their quest to form an independent state based on Zionist and Jewish principles. Since 1947 they have been in constant combat with the surrounding Arab nations and the Palestinians who to this day, predominantly deny the right of existence of an independent Israel. Israel has engaged in all out wars in 1948 and in 1967 with the Arab League.

Israel’s most recent military operation took place in the Gaza Strip where bombings and strategic attacks on Hamas went on for nearly a week, resulting in many civilian deaths and a high amount of infrastructure destruction, raising questions about the violation of humanitarian principles, especially when the international laws about laws state that civilians must be protected according to the understanding of “jus in bello” (rules concerning acceptable/just conducts in war). Israel are also the main target of Middle-Eastern terrorist organizations such as the Hezbollah which have stated many times that they whish to destroy the state of Israel. The current Prime Minister of Israel is Benjamin Netanyahu, the leader of the Likud Party. Netanyahu takes a more unco-operative approach towards the Arab nations and has shown reluctance in engaging in diplomatic peace.

Although Israel most recent policy has been rather adamant (especially with the Likud party in power) and fierce with its approach towards “terrorists” (which means Hamas according to Israel) it should be noted that there are various tendencies within the political framework of Israel. To given an example from two of the main political parties, one can say that, the Labor Party that initiated the foundation of the state, historically found peace essential for Israel’s development and thus favored a mild approach by trading lands for peace whereas the Likud Part that became popular in the 1970’s and preserved its popularity since then (it is still in power today), traditionally desire a “Greater Israel” and thus even further endorse Jewish Settlements within the Palestinian Territories. (Hunt 406)

 

 

The PNA: The Palestinian National Authority is a temporary government set up with the

Oslo Accords for the sole purpose of decreasing the role of the Israeli military presence in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank and establish Palestinian civil administration instead. Their power is very limited due to the fact that Israel still controls the majority of all resources, checkpoints, roads, communications and has great power over domestic affairs. They currently have a disputed presidency and prime-minister seat, because of the break-up in 2007 where Hamas retained control of the Gaza Strip which constitutes the questions whereas Fatah remained in control of the West Bank. It must also be stated that the PNA has no international power and that the representative of the Palestinian people in the United Nations is the PLO (referred to as “Palestine” since 1988) which only controls the West Bank. Thus the very identity of the PNA appears to be rather dysfunctional in the resolution of this conflict because to this day the dispute between Hamas and Fatah hasn’t been resolved. As for Hamas and Fatah, the former favors a more radical approach knowing that the sufferings caused by Israel would boost their support whereas the latter has a milder policy with regards to the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip. The Major Arab Countries Influencing the Region (Egypt, Jordan, Syria):

Egypt, Jordan and Syria are the most powerful Arab nations in the region and they all, to this day deny the existence of Israel and have made it their priority to make this a reality. They have engaged in both open and underground conflicts with Israel and twice in all out war. They were defeated in both attempts in 1948 and in 1967. With regards to the humanitarian crisis none were able to sufficiently provide aid or take measures to resolve the crisis. Egypt, the only country bordering the Gaza Strip among these three Arab countries, has even denied people who tried to access its hospitals (despite Turkey and Qatar’s pledges for it to at least allow Palestinians from Gaza to be treated in third countries). As for the relationship between Hamas and Fatah, whereas many countries directly continued to support Abbas and his new unity government formed in 2007 (discluding Hamas), Egypt and Saudi Arabia has been pushing for a reconciliatory coalition government that includes both parties. (Human Rights Watch) The United States of America:

The United States of America is one of the strongest supporters of Israel and has been so since before its formation (Oren, 359). The US has provided Israel with military and financial aid for a very long time especially in during the Clinton Administration. The US still supports Israel’s position in the Middle East and has always done so whether it was doing so in order to use Israel as a front against The Soviet Union or in order to promote American Interests in the Middle East. With regards to the humanitarian crisis Obama has stated that the US wants the Israeli-Egyptian blockade to be lifted and aid be brought (Sharp). The Soviet Union/Russian Federation:

The Soviet Union was a supporter of the Zionist cause in its early form however, dropped their stance once it no longer served their interests. After that they provided militaristic and financial support for the Arab nations especially during the two major wars of ’48 and ’67. “ Short of destroying Israel, the Soviet Union endorsed all means of realizing Arab rights in Palestine (Oren, Six Days of War, 8)

 

 

Today, the Russian Federation takes a similar stance towards Israel, criticizing its actions and policies. 3. UNITED NATIONS INVOLVEMENT

UN’s involvement in the question includes numerous aspects and ambivalent evaluations. Below are some of the important resolutions that constitute the milestones of the conflict. You should look at many resolutions (many not listed here) on your own to fully comprehend the issue and UN’s involvement. You will notice that many UN resolutions follow a similar pattern and in many resolutions Israel’s aggressive actions are deplored; however to this day USA’s veto in the SC has prevented Israel from being imposed serious sanctions for noncompliance with GA and/or SC resolutions (Hunt 409). GA Resolutions: 181- Dividing the British Mandate (The Partition Plan) 194- Conditional right of return for refugees 273- Admission of Israel into UN Security Council Resolutions (there are approximately 220): 242- One of the most commonly referred resolutions, as it provided a touchstone in the aftermath of the 1967 Six Day War 1860- The cessation of hostilities with Hamas 1701- Cessation of hostilities with the Hezbollah 726- Condemns Israeli deportation of Palestinians 673- Deplores Israel’s lack of co-operation with the UN For a detailed compliation of UN resolutions concerning Palestine you can visit http://www.un.int/palestine/unresolutions.shtml, a website of the Permanent Observer Mission of Palestine to the United Nations. In addition to that, you can find more reports about the human rights situation in the Gaza Strip if you have a look at the website of the Human Rights Council. 4. POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS Having studied all of this information what should be the work of the Security Council in December 2009? Firstly it should be kept in mind that the predominant task of the Council is to address the humanitarian aspect of the conflict not the political one, although there is an overwhelming correlation between the two. Here are some predominant guidelines and objectives you should be considering, bearing in mind that the question as to “how to accomplish these” depends on your approach as the delegates of the SC who are expected to compromise to solve this problem.

1. Israel and Egypt should be encouraged to :

 

 

o Show full co-operation towards international humanitarian organizations.

o Open all border crossings not to inhibit medical aid and the withdrawal of the wounded from the Gaza Strip.

o Initiate longer, more frequent “humanitarian pauses”. o Increase humanitarian effort by increasing the influx of fuel, wheat,

spare parts, petrol and cooking gas o Co-operate with the UN on every matter pertaining to the humanitarian

crisis. o Cease all attacks on the critical Infrastructure of the Gaza Strip. (water,

communications, transportation…) o Allow free and timely media coverage of the events in the Gaza strip

by free observers and human rights organizations. (Human Rights Watch) In the meanwhile our Security Council should also consider, although we are not the Human Rights Committee, applying pressure on Hamas and Israel to respect all human rights laws and provide their full effort for those suffering in Gaza. Lastly, although it doesn’t concern the humanitarian question as the most important factor (when compared to the urgency of bringing in aid)  5. WORKS CITED el-Sadat, Anwar. In Search of Identity: An Autobiography. New York: Harper & Row,

1978.

Human Rights Watch. “Deprived and Endangered: A Humanitarian Crisis In Gaza” . <http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/01/12/deprived-and-endangered-humanitarian-

crisis-gaza-strip>. Hunt, Michael H.. The World Transformed: 1945 to the Present. Boston:

Bedford/St.Martin's, 2004.

Illustration 1. Map. 24 Aug. 2009. <http://www.rapturechrist.com/prophecy_of_ jeremiah.htm >.

Illustration 2. Picture. 24 Aug. 2009. < http://www.ancient-bulgaria.com/images/

alexander_the_great.jpg>. Illustration 3. Picture. 24 Aug. 2009. <http://persia1.files.wordpress.com/ 2008/09/bxk9360_mesquita-al-aqsa-jerusalem800.jpg>. Illustration 4. Picture. 24 Aug. 2009. <http://zioneocon.blogspot.com/balfour.jpg>. Illustration 5. Map. 24 Aug. 2009. <http://focusonjerusalem.com/britishmandate

1923.gif >.

 

 

Illustration 6. Picture. 24 Aug. 2009. <http://yallaguy.files.wordpress.com/ 2009/06/102_prime_minister_david_ben_gurion2.jpg >.

Illustration 7. Picture. 24 Aug. 2009. <http://www.unitedjerusalem.org

/Graphics/Maps/UN47PartitionPlan.jpg Illustration 8. Picture. 24 Aug. 2009. <http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_RaIEXF8c1Q8/

SVgsbHzzhvI/AAAAAAAAFbw/G0i05aPS6sg/s400/ds-6day_war-41.jpg >. Illustration 9. Picture. 24 Aug. 2009. < http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_RaIEXF8c1Q8/

SVgsbHzzhvI/AAAAAAAAFbw/G0i05aPS6sg >. Illustration 10. Map. 24 Aug. 2009. <http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/meast/

9909/14/israel.syria/golan.heights.jordan.map.lg.jpg>. Illustration 11. Picture. 24 Aug. 2009. < http://www.israpundit.com/2008/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/edward_said_throwing_stone.jpg>. Isseroff, Ami. “A Brief History of the Middle-East”. 10 June 2009 ‹http://www.mideastweb.org/briefhistory.htm› Oren, Michael B. Six Days Of War: June 1967 And The Making of The Modern

Middle East. New York: Oxford, 2002 Oren, Michael B. Power, Faith and Fantasy: America in the Middle East 1776 to The

Present. New York: Norton, 2007 Said, Edward W. From Oslo to Iraq and the Roadmap. Great Britain: Bloomsbury,

2004 Sharp, Heather. "Scant movement on Gaza blockade." BBC - Homepage. BBC News,

16 June 2009. Web. 14 Aug. 2009. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8101002.stm>.

Wolf, Richard, and Andrea Stone. "Amid Gaza violence, a new task for Obama." USA

TODAY. USA TODAY, 29 Dec. 2008. Web. 15 July 2009. <http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-12-27-israel-palestine_N.htm>.