Israel 13 Recent Developments

In July 2014 Israel again has taken military action against the former occupied territory of Gaza in retaliation for ongoing terrorist attacks. The development has made peace efforts in the region as illusive as ever.

There has been no recent progress in resolving this ongoing dispute despite renewed efforts by the United States to mediate the dispute in the Spring of 2011. The recent Israeli actions to expand settlements and occupy further areas of Jerusalem has caused some international condemnation. The principal international ally of Israel remains the United States. In June 2010, a ship with peace activists headed for Gaza with humanitarian supplies was intercepted by the Israeli navy for inspection. Nine passengers were killed by Israeli soldiers. Several dozen passengers and seven Israeli soldiers were injured. The sequence of events is disputed. Passengers say that the Israelis opened fire before boarding, while Israelis say that the firing occurred after soldiers were ambushed by passengers. Whatever version is correct, the resulting international furor has been primarily directed at Israel.

In December 2008, Israel launched a massive attack against the formerly occupied territory of Gaza and its Hamas-led regime. Following the expiration of a cease fire agreement on December 19, Hamas resumed its rocket and mortar attacks on Israel. On December 27, Israel launched its military operation with the stated objective of defending itself from Hamas rocket fire. Since the beginning of the conflict, 13 Israelis have been killed during this conflict, including three civilians. On the Palestinian side, it is estimated that 1,314 individuals have been killed, including 700 civilians. The UN Security Council passed a resolution calling for a cease fire and Israel unilaterally ceased hostilities on January 19. Israel's actions were generally condemned internationally and even in the U.S. there was more sympathy with the Palestinian situation. In September 2009, a UN special mission, headed by Justice Richard Goldstone, produced a report accusing both Palestinian militants and Israeli Defense Forces of war crimes and possible crimes against humanity, and recommended bringing those responsible to justice. The UN Human Rights Council endorsed the report, criticizing Israel but not Hamas.

In 2006, a year of fledging progress in resolving the Israel-Palestine dispute was suddenly reversed by a flare-up of hostilities between Israel and the Hezbollah-controlled southern portion of Lebanon. The kidnapping and murder of Israeli soldiers escalated into all out warfare which at this writing has been halted by an internationally-negotiated ceasefire.

This conflict has less to do with the present Palestinian situation in Gaza and the West Bank but is rather illustrative of the problems Israel faces with its northern neighbors many of whom have Palestinian origins. Following its expulsion from Jordan in 1982, much of the PLO moved to southern Lebanon where they established de facto control of the region. Their presence in that region contributed to a civil war which plagued Lebanon for over a decade during which time Israeli forces invaded Lebanon on multiple occasions in response to PLO attacks. In 1985, Israel withdrew its forces from much of Lebanon but maintained a security strip in the south. This occupation lasted until 2000. Since then Hezbollah, the successor to the PLO in the region, put considerable effort into fortifying the former security zone and establishing new firing positions. Hezbollah has been supported in these efforts by Syria and Iran. There have been several skirmishes leading to the current full-out conflict.

In December 2005, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a massive stroke and has been in a coma since. The Israeli leadership picture is unclear in his absence nor is it clear whether the development will improve the relationship with the Palestinian authority. In the meantime, elections were held in Palestine in January 2006 and the militant organization Hamas scored a resounding victory. Observers credited the defeat of the moderate Fateh party of Mahmud Abbas to poorly run campaign strategies and to voter dismay over the long history of corruption within Palestinian Authority leadership. Like Arab extremist organizations elsewhere, Hamas advocates a governmental system based on Islamic religious principles. The degree to which the Hamas victory will impede progress toward a peaceful resolution of the Israel/Palestine dispute is unclear. A long term Islamic Palestinian government would not seem to bode well for future cooperative endeavors between the Palestinian Authority and Israel. Such cooperation will be necessary for economic progress in the region.

In September 2005, Israel completed a unilateral withdrawal from the Gaza strip ending its 38 year occupation of the region. The Israeli settlements were dismantled. The withdrawal and Palestinian assumption of power has gone relatively smoothly.

In November 2004 Yasser Arafat died from a sudden mysterious ailment. In January 2005 an election was conducted and the moderate Mahmud Abbas was elected. Abbas had briefly assumed the presidency of the Palestinian Authority in 2003 before disagreements with Arafat caused him to resign. Since the election there have been significant developments in the path toward a peaceful resolution of the problem. For the first time in four years, Israeli and Palestinian officials met to mutually discuss peace possibilities. Sporadic violence from Palestinian extremists does continue however.

The Gaza pullout has coincided with a significant reduction in hostilities. The Palestinian "intifada" began in September 2000 and has consisted of periodic terrorist incidents and subsequent Israeli reprisals. These incidents resulted in the deaths of over 6000 persons; the majority of them Palestinians. (Click to see chart) A major reprisal occurred in March 2004 with the Israeli assassination of Hamas leader Ahmed Yassin. The U.S. role as major broker in the peace effort has been significantly hampered by ill will throughout the Arab world in response to the Iraq invasion and occupation and by the Bush Administration's recent indication that it would support Israel's claim to certain West Bank settlements. This is a fundamental shift in U.S. policy regarding the dispute.

In 2003, a "road map" peace plan developed by the U.S, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations was presented to Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The plan calls for the immediate cessation of hostilities and Israeli withdrawal from areas that it has occupied since September 2000 as a condition for further negotiations regarding the nature of a Palestinian state. In response to this initiative, there was some conciliatory rhetoric from both sides and actual peace negotiations but there has been little bilateral progress.

Against significant opposition from within his party and from the settlers, Ariel Sharon accomplished a unilateral removal of the Israeli settlements in Gaza, although he continues to take a very hard line on other issues, including the West Bank settlements. Under the Gaza withdrawal plan, full administration of the Gaza strip was turned over to the Palestinian Authority which had previously controlled 80% of the area. Israel would maintain control of Gaza's borders, coastline and airspace. While welcoming any withdrawal by Israel from lands it has occupied since the 1967 war, the Palestinians have reacted to Sharon's initiative with suspicion and insist on a return to the "roadmap", which calls for a negotiated step-by-step plan.

Another controversial development has been Israel's unilateral decision to construct a "security barrier" in the West Bank. (Click to see map) Construction on this prison-type fence began in June 2002 and its planned length will extend approximately 440 miles. It is only partially constructed. The actual and proposed route of the wall does significantly separate areas dominated by each population and thus offers a "de facto" basis for a negotiated settlement. But Israel insists that the barrier does not constitute a proposed border but rather has been erected for security purposes only - to prevent suicide bombers from entering Israeli occupied areas. The construction of the barrier is controversial among Israelis as well as Palestinians. Right wing Israelis are concerned that the wall isolates Israeli West Bank settlements and is a signal that they will eventually not be supported. They are pressuring the government to construct additional walls which encircle such settlements. Palestinians object that the wall is another unilateral undertaking by the Israeli government in occupied territory and that it is a violation of international law. In an advisory opinion, the International Court of Justice ruled against the barrier in July 2004, and stated that it should be dismantled. The Israel Supreme Court rejected this opinion in September 2005. The U.S. would certainly block any attempt by the Security Council to implement the opinion.

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