Arab-Israeli Conflict: The Issue of Nationalist Movement - Research Paper Example

The Middle East al Affiliation Due ARAB ISRAELI CONFLICTS The Arab Israel conflict occurred in 1948 after five Arab nations decided to attack territories that previously belonged to the Palestinians after announcement of independence of Israel in the year 1948. Various factors led to the rise of the conflicts among the two nations. The Arab nationalism began in the 19th century in the Arabic speaking nationals of the Ottoman Empire. It then developed with time to a revolutionary movement as a revolt against the Ottoman Empire. It as difficult to form unity because of the existing tension between Iraqi, Egyptian and the Syrian identities as they had different loyalties to tribe, sect, religion and region. Hence the Palestine had to be kept in the hands of Arabs as they hoped that the Arab unity would help forge war against common enemy. However the movement experienced a major setback in the defeat of Arabs in the Arab Israeli war of 1967 and death of Abdul Nasser in 1970. Jewish nationalism also caused the conflict due to the numerous persecutions and massacres they faced. They were also expelled in most European countries and hence had to look for their own land free from persecution that they believed was Israel. Another reason for this was the British decision to end mandate that made Arabs perceive it as breach of the agreement that made them furious as the British support for their independence was broken. The Arab treatment by the Israeli denied them basic political rights and freedom as they were seen as threat to Israeli. They imposed policies that hurt the Palestinians hence the revolt against the military administration that was set to govern their resident in the West Bank and Gaza. The rise of the Palestinian nationalist movement against state formation led to the 1948 Arab –Israeli war termed as the war for independence. The Arab resistance against giving part of their land to the Jewish without being informed was viewed as a threat to the independence of Palestinian nation. The Israeli also took better part of the land leaving them with worst lands and this angered them leading to conflicts and subsequent formation of the Palestinian Liberation Organization that used terrorism to frighten the Jews to return their land. Zionism was formed as a national movement with an aim or goal to create and support the Jews national state in Palestine that was the ancient home to the Jews. It originated from the eastern and central Europe in the late 19th century. The centre of this movement was established in Vienna. It therefore strived to create a home in Palestine for the Jewish that was secured by public law. The movement was established to foresee a new creation of the home for Jews that could be wel protected by national and international law. This was to be done through the influence of powerful leaders that were to petition and create a charter to create a homeland. They had another tough that the home could be created by the settlement and hence creation of Jewish community. They believed that agriculture would help form basis for the community. The Balfour Declaration This was a declaration that was made in November 1917 and was in letter form that came from the British Foreign Secretary known as Lord Arthur James. This was then delivered to Chaim Weizmann that was by then a Zionist activist. The letter expressed support by the British towards the “national home” for the Jewish in Palestine. Different explanations are offered towards the agreed support by British. Among the top theories was that the British were courting the Jews due to their money interests so as to float a loan for Britain and to bring USA into the war. In this they promised to use all their efforts to achieve the aim of building a national home for the Jewish and nothing shall happen to prejudice religious and civil right of those that were non Jewish in Palestine. Balfour openly declared his zeal and support in the establishment of the homeland in the area of Palestine. The Arab Israeli wars existed and were in four levels. The first war was that of 1948 that emphasized on the war for independence. The second one occurred in 1956 and was termed as the war of Sinai. The third and the fourth war occurred in 1967 and as six day war while the Yom Kippur war occurred in 1973. However in these wars, Israel was able to defend itself and hence won the fight. The consequence of each war was that after each of them there was withdrawal by the Israeli Army from the areas they had captured. They then helped fight for peace in these areas. The Intifada which means throwing off was the Palestinian rebellion grassroots against Israel that started in 1987.it spread quickly to Gaza and it immediately captured the world’s attention. This was used to steer the fight against Israeli against oppression and denial of human rights. The Arab Spring The Arab Spring was composed of protests and uprisings in the Middle East. In the year 2010, the unrest in Tunisia led to the beginning of the Arab spring that has continually spread to other parts of the Arab countries. The spring has led to the fall of many regimes in some Arab countries. This has been characterized by mass violence, protests and rebellion that some have managed to contain through the promise of reforms while others have failed. In Tunisia, the birth place of the uprising, Mohammed Bouazizi who was a local vendor was so much grieved by the injustices he experienced at the hands of local police which then sparked a countrywide protest in December 2010. This was to fight against repressive policies and corruption of president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali which forced him to flee the country in 2011 after the forces refused to suppress the protests. This led to a political transition where elections were held and Islamists won and merged with smaller secular parties. In Egypt it led to the downfall of its president Hosni Mubarak who had ruled since 1980. It was characterized by mass protests that were persistent until Mubarak was forced to resign on February 11, after the military refused to suppress the rebellion in the Tahrir Square in Cairo. This led to elections where Islamists won and relation with secular parties became bad. In Yemen, a leader by the name Ali Abdullah Saleh became a victim of the Arab spring. Protestors poured in the streets. People in hundreds died in the clashes as those affiliated to the government organized rival rallies and hence the army began to divide into two political camps. In Bahrain the protest began on February the 15th exactly a day after Mubarak resigned. There existed tension between the ruling Sunni royal family and the Shiite population that was majority in the demand for greater political as well as economic rights. The Shiite came out in large numbers to the streets protesting angst use of live fire by the security forces. A military intervention by neighboring countries led by Saudi Arabia helped save the royal family and activists were arrested. In Syria, the protest began in March 2011 in the provincial towns and with time spread to the urban areas. The opposition was annoyed by the brutality of the regime and hence by mid 2011 there were army defectors who created the Free Syrian Army. In Jordan, protests took a centre stage in the late January where youth activists and leftist groups joined hands to protest against the living conditions and grand corruption in the country. The citizens wanted reforms rather than to abolish the monarchy hence was not tough on King Abdullah II. As result, he made changes to the political system and reshuffled his government. . HISTORY OF KUWAIT Kuwait is a country located west and north of Iraq; south and west of Saudi Arabia on the eastern side of the Gulf of Persia. It experiences summer and winter seasons where its extremely hot and dry. During the winter, temperatures range from 50 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit and experiences small amounts of rain in the winter months. The nation of Kuwait started to develop in the 18th century where there existed a town called Kuwait founded by the Arabs. There existed a ruling dynasty called Sabah abu Abdullah that ruled between 1756 to 1772. It was colonized by the British until June 1961 when they got their independence and it became an independent emirate under the leadership of Emir Abdullah al-Salim al- Sabah as its ruler. The new nation was constantly attacked by Iraq that led them to ask Britain for assistance until 1963 when Iraq officially recognized Kuwait as a nation. It held its first election in 1962 for the National Assembly where most representatives who won the seats emanated from the merchant families. They had a cabinet change three times in two years. In 1976 cabinet resigned citing hindrance by the assembly to freely run the day to day governance of the state. The constitution was then suspended and the assembly dissolved. Later in 1990 series of demonstrations led to the restoration of the 1962 constitution and subsequent reconvening of the parliament. Its government is considered to be a constitutional monarchy and have rights to vote and vie for sets in the government. For one to become an Emir he at least has to be a descendant of the Mubarak al Sabah who was the founder of Kuwait. The country is rich in oil making it among the founding members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). The revenues coming from the oil wells help in the provision. Due to this oil factor, it was engaged in several fights and wars that it finally overcame. The terrain of the country is flat desert with many small hills and has a land area measuring 6,880 sq miles. There existed an island called Failaka which served as a trading post for the country. It has natural resources like oil and natural gas with oil being the main resource for wealth. It owns 10 percent of the world’s oil reserves. It also has investments in United States, United Kingdom, Asia and Germany that boost its wealth. With the good oil rich economy, the nation provides its citizens with housing, education and free medical care and other human benefits hence citizens depend on the government for support. It uses dinar currency which is one of the strongest currencies to the US dollars. Any country in need to trade with Kuwait must obtain Kuwait Free Trade Zone license. References Bleaney, C.H. (2010). “Official Publications on the Middle East: A selective guide to Middle East. Middle East Libraries committee research guides, Durham, UK: Durham University . Read More