Iran’s Attack on Israel
6 min read
Because you cannot comprehend the current situation without understanding the broader context.
After spending time speaking with young liberal Jews about their views on the situation in Israel, I found that while many have strong opinions on the current situation, very few have a sense of the history of Israel, the Middle East, and how we got to this point.
Many young liberal Jews are shocked by what happened on October 7th. But they also feel that the terror attack on Israel didn’t happen in a vacuum. While not necessarily justifying the horrible massacre that happened, they do feel that Israel is the oppressor of the Palestinians, stealing and occupying their land. If Israel would just allow the Palestinians to have their freedom and independence, then there would be no conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.
You cannot comprehend the current situation without understanding the broader context. Here are 10 historical facts that every young Jew should know about Israel.
Many believe that Israel is a foreign, colonialist power that has come and taken the land from the indigenous Palestinian population. In fact, the Jews are the indigenous population. There has been a continued presence of Jews in the Land of Israel for over 3800 years. While other people also have a connection to the Land, the Jews have been connected to Israel for millennia before Islam or Christianity were even started.
Even when most Jews were exiled from their homeland by the Romans, there remained a population of Jews in the Land of Israel until today. A few episodes in history that demonstrate this include: after the Roman exile, Jews in Israel wrote the Mishna, a codification of Jewish law in the 3rd century; at the time of the Arab conquest in the 7th century, the majority of the population was Jewish with an estimated number between 300,000 and 400,000; when the Crusaders arrived in Jerusalem in 1099, Jews were the majority population; in the 1500's, great Jewish mystics and scholars lived in Tzfat, leading a population of over 10,000 Jews.
Jews dreamt and prayed to return to their homeland, including liturgy about returning in their daily prayers. And many did in fact return. Throughout the Middle Ages, Jewish leaders and communities from throughout Europe attempted to settle in Israel – some successfully and some not. As an example, in 1211, a group headed by over 300 rabbis from France and England arrived in Israel.
As Jews entered the land of Israel, they purchased the land that they settled in, mainly from Turkish or Arab land owners. They did not steal or usurp the land from anyone – they purchased it. Additionally, the land that they purchased was mainly uninhabited. Photos of Israel from the early 1900's shows a land filled with sand dunes and swampland.
When Jews were returning in the late 1800's and early 1900's, the Ottoman Empire controlled the Land of Israel. Both Arabs and Jews lived in the Land under Ottoman rule. After World War I, the British took over control. Again, the Jews and Arabs were two communities living in this land controlled by an outside power.
In 1947 after the British decided to leave, the United Nations suggested a Partition Plan to divide the Land of Israel into 2 countries – a Jewish state and an Arab state. This would have created an independent “Palestinian” state. The Jewish establishment agreed to the partition, though it was a small piece of land. The Arab leadership refused the Partition, stopping the creation of this Arab state in the Land of Israel.
After the Partition Plan failed, Israel declared its independence in May 1948. It was immediately attacked by neighboring Arab countries Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq. The stated goal of these Arab countries was to destroy Israel. During this war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled from their homes. Some fled because the Arab armies told them to, and some were forced to flee by the Israeli army. Refugees are a sad product of almost every war. Sadly, these Arab refugees occurred because of a war that did not need to happen and Israel did not want.
In 1967, Israel was attacked again by Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. In defending itself, Israel took control of the Gaza Strip from Egypt and the West Bank from Jordan, which is where the vast majority of Palestinians live today. Israel did not instigate the war to conquer these lands and occupy its inhabitants – it was attacked and took control of these areas in a defensive war. Soon after the war Israel made it clear it was open to negotiate to return these lands in exchange for peace. At an Arab League summit soon after, a response to Israel was proclaimed which became known as the “Three Nos”: no recognition of Israel, no negotiations with Israel and no peace with Israel.
Israel tried multiple times to make peace with the Palestinians which would have resulted in an independent Palestinian state. The main effort towards this was the Oslo Accords of the 1990’s. Israel agreed to hand over control of land in Gaza and the West Bank slowly as the Palestinians proved their peaceful intentions. But after numerous terrorist attacks by Hamas, the process failed. In 2000, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak offered the Palestinians 100% of the Gaza Strip and 97% of the West Bank to create an independent State. The Palestinians, led by Yassir Arafat, did not accept this offer. US President Bill Clinton, who oversaw the negotiations at Camp David, stated that the failure of this peace deal laid squarely on Yassir Arafat and the Palestinians. Again, the Palestinians refused the offer of a Palestinian state.
In 2005, Israel unilaterally left the Gaza Strip – removing its entire military presence, as well as over 7000 Israeli civilians who were living in Gaza. The Palestinians had another opportunity to create an independent State. Instead, they continued to attack Israel through rockets and terror attacks in Israeli cities. Eventually Israel enforced a blockade around Gaza to prevent further attacks and isolate Hamas.
excellent review
the problem is most of the people who continue to attack the Jews have little knowledge of our history. they would probably deny it anyway. but we must continue to try. and never give up on our homeland.
An excellent article. Many Jews do not care about this history or background. Talk about seeing everything in a vacuum.
How is it that such a tiny people that has done nothing but bless all of humanity, recieve so much hate? Antisemitism is Hashems way of uniting Israel when they think they can assimilate into the nations and give up their mission of becoming a light unto the nations. I love you Israel, and I have your back
God Bless Israel and
God Bless Jerusalem,
God Bless The USA
World History 101
Middle East !
If democrats in the US would actually leave our education system Alone and quit putting ideology into let teachers teach real
History kids who graduate would know world history and know how to read and speak ! Todays little kids won’t know any of this ! Todays government determined to rewrite history remove all monuments , take out God ./ put nothing but Ideology in schools and in everyone mouths ! Leaves such a bad taste in my mouth ! We have to educate our children like the old days ! At home! God bless Israel ! To all the Jewish communities Globally and Christians everywhere !
Thank you for that clear and concise overview.
For those interested in the Jewish history, read I, Claudius and Claudius the G-d written by Robert Graves also Wanderings, The History of the Jews written by Chaim Potok. Islam was started in the 6th Century after the fall of the Roman Empire. There are plenty of good historical books on the Jewish History.
Those are good historical fiction, but my recommendation is Max Dimmot's "Jews, God & History" - well written and nonfictional. There is also Josephus Flaveous, a contemporary historian (ie, he lived during Roman times) who wrote about "Jewish Wars" and "History of the Jews" in his time.
This is an excellent narrative on how we arrive at the status quo.
I like this short and sweet summary.
I wondered if anything of substance would happen after your last article.It's going to take a lot more to get through to the liberal/woke amongst us.If only there was more positive connection between us-the woke and the...never-been-asleep-in-the-first place Jews, it would help! Lol. Am Yisrael Chai ❤️ 🇮🇱 ✌️
A couple of issues are not covered in your 10 points:
You offer no explanation WHY the Arabs have opposed the Jewish State from the beginning. That would go a long way in explaining why it is false to hope: "If Israel would just allow the Palestinians to have their freedom and independence, then there would be no conflict between Israel and the Palestinians."
You mention that 7000 Israeli civilians were unilaterally removed from Gaza in 2005, yet, otherwise, you make no mention of the history of the settlements in the territories occupied by Israel in 1967. It is THIS issue that might lead some to "feel that Israel is the oppressor of the Palestinians, stealing and occupying their land."
This was land won in the war of 1967, which is legal under international law.
You claim "the history of the settlements in the territories occupied by Israel".
Please explain who the land belonged to prior to 1967. Please explain where these "palestinians" came from. What was boundaries of their territory, who was/were the leaders, what monetary system did they have. Please explain why of all the archeological finds - none point to a "palestinian" people - unless you are referring to the Jews who were the original people of the land.
First, let me say, Mike, that your argument isn't with me. If the State of Israel is to survive, it needs the support of powerful international allies. You need to meet them on their terms.
As someone who lives in North America, I find your attitude appalling. On the one hand, you would be denying the existence of the Native American people who didn't have the boundaries, historical leaders, and monetary systems that you require of them to exist as a people. On the other hand, you are challenging the status of more recently arrived citizens. In principle, we are all equal citizens in spite of the fact that there are groups who seem unable to accept this principle. We are a diverse people and, for the most part, we strive to live together in harmony. It's not perfect.
Ah, but the Native Americans did have such systems, even if theirs was a migratory culture. Each tribe had its defined territories and in fact the different tribes often warred over who could hunt where. And yes, they had a well-defined political system of "chiefs" who acted similarly to our Secretaries and Ministers - ie, each was responsible for a different aspect of the lifestyle. There was also a system of barter and pledges similar to that used in ancient Egypt. And from the earliest interactions with European "invaders" all of this is documented.
But the so-called "Palestinian People" were invented on paper in 1964 via the Palestinian Chater, which calls for the replacement of Israel with a Moslim Palestinian state, including the elimination of most of the Jewish inhabitants...TBC
Continued: took a moment to open my copy of the Charter and check again: from its wording one can conclude that any Jew born in Israel of Jews who arrived there starting from the 1st Aliyah (late 1800's) will NOT be allowed to remain, and from subsequent wording one can understand this to mean "remain alive". Certainly the actions of all the Arab states until after 1973, and most of them hereafter, have upheld that interpretation.
Re the people themselves, they came from the surrounding area most after the 2nd Aliyah (early 1900's) because of job opportunities created by the Jewish development of the land. They came from different countries and directions and were dubbed a "people" only to create the illusion of an indigenous Arab population. TBC
Continued: There was and is of course a true indigenous Arab population - mostly Beduin. But these are excluded from the defined "Palestinian People".
The fact of the matter is that the "Palestinian People" were created as a weapon against Israel and the people themselves are the victims of one of the worst fraud and manipulation schemes ever perpetrated on a people - by their own leaders, who even now continue to exploit them. And this is what the world should be protesting.
I agree with you totally that the political exploitation of these people by their leaders and by the Arab leaders is horrible and this is what the world should be protesting. However, can't we have a name for these people so that we can talk about their plight? All of the lines on the map, mostly drawn by Europeans after wars, do not reflect the diversity of the populations in these "countries".
The underlying reality is that people move around. I believe this to be a fundamental right. We are tribal by nature and we are competitive by nature, but also we need to cooperate and help each other.
You are describing me: "They came ... after the ... early 1900's ... because of job opportunities created by the [British] development of the land."
We are here. This is our homeland. We are a nation. We are not "going back to where we came from".
Something else that is notable about the 1964 Charter is that the "Palestine" to be "liberated" did not include the territory that was occupied by Jordan and Egypt at that time. I have often pointed out to people that had the Arabs supported a Palestinian State separate from Israel, it could have been established before 1967. The Arabs have never supported a "two-state solution". I also point out that the calls for the elimination of the Jewish population precede the establishment of the State of Israel.
Because of the radical Muslim belief that once a place has been in Muslim hands, it must belong forever after to Muslims - and Israel is not a Muslim state.
Re "settlement", at first this was forbidden by the Israeli government as it was hoped to return the land to Jorden and Egypt, respectively. During the 1970s the Israeli government built a number of modern housing estates for the Palestinians, intending to provide better living conditions that was found in the refugee camps. Arafat issued a pamphlet - I have seen it - in which he threatened to kill not only any individual or family who moved to the new housing estates but also all their extended family: siblings, cousins, any and all connections and not only those living in the "West Bank". Naturally, no one moved.
Continued: For about 15 years the housing estates remained empty, then in 1986 a new Israeli government opened them for purchase by Israeli citizens. That is the origin of the "settlements" and that is why they are so close to the refugee camps.
A word re refugee camps. The PA, an elected Palestinian government, has been in power in the West Bank for about 30 years, yet the towns and villages are still referred to as "refugee camps". This is the only instance I know of where people living under their own government are considered "refugees".
Yes, I'm aware of what the refugee camps are and have had to correct a number of people about them. You are right that anti-Israeli spokespersons are being deliberately misleading.
I'm no expert in international law so I'm in no position to act as judge, however, I've seen little support for the expansion of the settlements from any of Israel's allies. This has created a "just cause" for the Palestinians, whether you agree with it or not. I think that there are times when it is better to concede than to provoke violent conflict.
However, that is water under the bridge, now. How does Israel move forward?
Hi Dvirah. Thank you for your lengthy response. I agree with much of what you say. I'll take each block one-by-one.
Muslims have lost land in wars, namely the Balkan states, and have not always been aggressive in attempting to recapture it. Israel is different. Israel is Jewish. They say (Quran) that it was Allah's will that the Jewish nation and its temple were destroyed. They deduce that it is Satanic forces which are attempting to rebuild the Jewish nation. The rules of engagement against Satan supersede any international laws. Also, any Muslim who dies in Allah's cause is immediately rewarded in the Hereafter. This is the immovable object that Israelis have come up against.
You are correct, but the Quran has passages supporting eternal possession of the land promised to Abraham (Ibrahim) by Jews and also passages calling for the complete destruction of all Jews. A Muslim can pick and chose which to accept.
There are a lot of positive points that should be added. Especially freedom of religion to all.
One point u should check, number 8, 1967 was, Israel struck first because we had no choice. It was the only was that we preempted, we really had no choice. So maybe u should word number 8 more carefully, liberalists will question u.
The truth doesn’t matter to the fake ‘palestinians’ or their Marxist sycophants. They want the Jews dead. Period.
What you say is sadly so, but this article was addressed to young Jewish liberals whose primary source of "knowledge" about Israel is based on the vicious lies of so-called Palestinian students on their college campuses (or their brainless cohorts), whose people's contribution to society has been overwhelmingly negative (think barbarism and just about any other form of evil).
One thing they do excel at, however, is propaganda, and this is what the writer wants to counteract with facts for Jews who should know better.
Jewish Israelis are busy contributing to society positively (consider all the ongoing Israeli innovations in science, hi-tech, etc.). While Arabs devote themselves to destruction (Hamas' havoc in Gaza, for example), we strive to build.
Jews must realize this!
All this evidence of Israel’s existence and it’s willingness to benefit the Palestinians should be the primary focus of anyone’s solidarity with Israel, not just mere claims of anti-Semitism.
At some point, it would be good to mention Israel's enfranchisement of Arabs who chose to remain as full citizens.
This article serves as a good, simple summary for those lacking knowledge, but it would be sensible to mention, at point 5, that during the Ottoman and British periods the mandated land was commonly known as 'Palestine', but was not a country with any hallmarks of nationhood for Palestinians and was by no means occupied solely by Muslims. I see this as a very important issue, because the historic name 'Palestine' has led to spectacular confusion among those lacking knowledge (as well as anti-Zionists) and has often been the cause of the misplaced idea that Israel stole a country from the Palestinians.
How about mentioning that Israel is central to the Jewish religion? How many 100s of times is Israel and Jerusalem mentioned in our Holy books? In the Talmud, in our prayers? There is no other group or religion in the world that a land is so crucial to it's existence. There are hundreds of halachas that apply just to living in Israel. We cry over the destruction of the Temple. It's in our kishkes. This should be point number 1.
Schema YISRAEL!
You bring out such proofs of our relationship to the Land of Israel Thanks for remembering that fact.