Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 07:50, 30 July 2007

Some of this article's listed sources may not be reliable. Please help improve this article by looking for better, more reliable sources. Unreliable citations may be challenged and removed. (July 2007) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

This article is currently under extended confirmed protection. Extended confirmed protection prevents edits from all unregistered editors and registered users with fewer than 30 days tenure and 500 edits. The policy on community use specifies that extended confirmed protection can be applied to combat disruption, if semi-protection has proven to be ineffective. Extended confirmed protection may also be applied to enforce arbitration sanctions. Please discuss any changes on the talk page; you may submit an edit request to ask for uncontroversial changes supported by consensus.

Palestine (from Template:Lang-la; Template:Lang-he Eretz-Yisra'el, formerly also פלשתינה Palestina; Template:Lang-ar Filasṭīn, Falasṭīn, Filisṭīn) is one of several names for the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River and various adjoining lands.

Different geographic definitions of Palestine have been used over the millennia, and these definitions themselves are politically contentious. In recent times, the broadest definition of Palestine has been that adopted by the British Mandate, and the narrowest is that used in contemporary politics today, called the Palestinian territories, which are the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Other English names for this region include: Canaan, Land of Israel, and Holy Land.

Boundaries and name

Ancient Egyptian texts called the entire Levantine coastal area along the Mediterranean Sea between modern Egypt and Turkey R-t-n-u (conventionally Retjenu). Retjenu was subdivided into three regions and the southern region, Djahy, shared approximately the same boundaries as Canaan, or modern-day Israel and the Palestinian territories.

During the Iron Age, the Kingdom of Israel of the United Monarchy may have reigned from Jerusalem over an area approximating modern-day Israel and the Palestinian territories, extending farther westward and northward to cover much (but not all) of the greater Land of Israel, although archaeological evidence for this period is very rare and disputed.

The term "Palestine" derives from the word Philistine, the word in Hebrew is פְּלְשְׁתִּים Pelishtim, this word is derived from the word פְּלִישָׁה Pelisha, meaning invasion or incursion.

The name was given to the non-Semitic ethnic group, originating from Southern Greece, closely related to early Mycenaean civilization. Inhabiting a smaller area on the southern coast called Philistia, whose borders approximate the modern Gaza Strip, Philistia encompassed the five cities of Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron, and Gath.

Egyptian texts of the temple at Medinet Habu, record a people called the P-r-s-t (conventionally Peleset), one of the Sea Peoples who invaded Egypt in Ramesses III's reign. This is considered very likely to be a reference to the Philistines. The Hebrew name Peleshet (Template:Lang-he Pəléshseth), usually translated as Philistia in English, is used in the Bible to denote their southern coastal region.

The Assyrian emperor Sargon II called the region the Palashtu in his Annals. By the time of Assyrian rule in 722 BCE, the Philistines had become "part and parcel of the local population." In 586 BCE, when Chaldean troops commanded by the Babylonian empire carried off significant numbers of the population into slavery, the distinctly Philistine character of the coastal cities ceased to exist.

In the 5th century BCE, Herodotus wrote in Greek of a "district of Syria, called Palaistinêi" (whence Template:Lang-la, whence Template:Lang-en). The boundaries of the area he referred to were not explicitly stated, but Josephus used the name only for the smaller coastal area, Philistia. Ptolemy also used the term. In Latin, Pliny mentions a region of Syria that was "formerly called Palaestina" among the areas of the Eastern Mediterranean.

During the Roman period, the Iudaea Province (including Samaria) covered most of Israel and the Palestinian territories. But following the Bar Kokhba rebellion in the 2nd century, as part of a dual program of cooptation and forced migration, the Romans tried to erase the Jewish connection to the land of Judea, renaming it Syria Palaestina (Template:Lang-la) (including Judea) and Samaria.

During the Byzantine Period, this entire region (including Syria Palestine, Samaria, and Galilee) was renamed Palaestina and then subdivided into Diocese I and II. The Byzantines also renamed an area of land including the Negev, Sinai, and the west coast of the Arabian Peninsula as Palaestina Salutoris, sometimes called Palaestina III. Since the Byzantine Period, the Byzantine borders of Palaestina (I and II) have served as a name for the geographic area between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.

19th Century sources define Palestine as lying between the sea and the caravan route, presumably the Hejaz-Damascus route east of the Jordan River valley. Others describe it as being between the sea and the desert.

Holy texts

The Hebrew Bible calls the region Canaan (Template:Lang-he) when referring to the pre-Israelite period and thereafter Israel (Yisrael). The name "Land of the Hebrews" (Template:Lang-he, Eretz Ha-Ivrim) is also found, as well as several poetical names: "land flowing with milk and honey", "land that swore to your fathers to assign to you", "Holy Land", "Land of the Lord", and the "Promised Land".

The Land of Canaan is given a precise description in (34:1 Numbers 34:1–12) as including all of Lebanon, as well (13:5 Joshua 13:5). The wide area appears to have been the home of several small nations such as the Canaanites, Hebrews, Hittites, Amorrhites, Pherezites, Hevites and Jebusites.

According to Hebrew tradition, the land of Canaan is part of the land given to the descendants of Abraham, which extends from the Nile to the Euphrates River (15:18 Genesis 15:18). This land is said to include an area called Aram Naharaim, which includes Haran in modern Turkey, from where Abraham the ancestor of the Israelites departed.

The events of the Four Gospels of the Christian Bible take place entirely in the Holy Land.

In the Qur'an, the term الأرض المقدسة ("Holy Land", Al-Ard Al-Muqaddasah) is mentioned at least seven times, once when Moses proclaims to the Children of Israel: "O my people! Enter the holy land which Allah hath assigned unto you, and turn not back ignominiously, for then will ye be overthrown, to your own ruin." (Surah 5:21)

History

Main articles: History of Israel, History of Palestine

Paleolithic and Neolithic periods (1000000 - 5000 BCE)

Human remains found south of Lake Tiberias date back as early as 600,000 BCE. The discovery of the "Palestine Man" in the Zuttiyeh Cave in Wadi Al-Amud near Safad in 1925 provided some clues to human development in the area.

In the caves of Shuqba in Ramallah and Wadi Khareitun in Bethlehem, stone, wood and animal bone tools were found and attributed to the Natufian culture (12500 - 10200 BCE). Other remains from this era have been found at Tel Abu Hureura, Ein Mallaha, Beidha and Jericho.

Between 10000 and 5000 BCE, agricultural communities were established. Evidence of such settlements were found at Tell es-Sultan, Jericho and include mud-brick rounded and square dwellings, pottery shards, and fragments of woven fabrics.

Chalcolithic period (4500 - 3000 BCE) and Bronze Age (3000 - 1200 BCE)

Along the Jericho-Dead Sea-Bir es-Saba-Gaza-Sinai route, a culture originating in Syria, marked by the use of copper and stone tools, brought new migrant groups to the region contributing to an increasingly urban fabric.

By the early Bronze Age (3000 - 2200 BCE) independent Canaanite city-states situated in plains and coastal regions and surrounded by mud-brick defensive walls were established and most of these cities relied on nearby agricultural hamlets for their food needs.

Archaeological finds from the early Canaanite era have been found at Tel Megiddo, Jericho, Tel al-Far'a (Gaza), Bisan, and Ai (Deir Dibwan/Ramallah District, Tel an Nasbe (al-Bireh) and Jib (Jerusalem).

The Canaanite city-states held trade and diplomatic relations with Egypt and Syria. Parts of the Canaanite urban civilization were destroyed around 2300 BCE, though there is no consensus as to why. Incursions by nomads from the east of the Jordan River who settled in the hills followed soon thereafter.

In the Middle Bronze Age (2200 - 1500 BCE), Canaan was influenced by the surrounding civilizations of Egpyt, Mesopotamia, Phoenicia, and Syria. Diverse commercial ties and an agriculturally based economy led to the development of new pottery forms, the cultivation of grapes, and the extensive use of bronze. Burial customs from this time seemed to be influenced by a belief in the afterlife.

Political, commercial and military events during the Late Bronze Age period (1450 - 1350 BCE) were recorded by ambassadors and Canaanite proxy rulers for Egypt in several hundred cuneiform documents known as the Amarna Letters.

By 1250 BCE, the Philistines arrived and mingled with the local population, losing their separate identity over several generations.

Iron Age (1200 - 330 BCE)

Pottery remains found in Ashkelon, Ashdod, Gat, Ekron and Gaza decorated with stylized birds provided the first archaeological evidence for Philistine settlement in the region. The Philistines are credited with introducing iron weapons and chariots, as well as new ways to ferment wine, to the local population.

Developments in Palestine between 1250 and 900 BCE have been the focus of debate between those who accept the Old Testament version on the conquest of Canaan by the Israelite tribes, and those who reject it. Niels Peter Lemche, of the Copenhagen School of Biblical Studies, submits that the picture of ancient Israel "is contrary to any image of ancient Palestinian society that can be established on the basis of ancient sources from Palestine or referring to Palestine and that there is no way this image in the Bible can be reconciled with the historical past of the region."

Hebrew Bible period

See also: Archaeology of Israel

See also: History of ancient Israel and Judah

Though there is a debate over whether the Hebrews arrived to Canaan from Egypt, or emerged from among the local population existent there at the time, these events are generally dated to between the 13th and 12th centuries BCE.

According to Biblical tradition, the united Kingdom of Israel was established by the Hebrew tribes with Saul serving as its first king in 1020 BCE. In 1000 BCE, Jerusalem made the capital of King David's kingdom and it is believed that the First Temple was constructed in this period by King Solomon. By 930 BCE, the kingdom was split into two kingdoms: the northern Kingdom of Israel, and the southern Kingdom of Judah.

Archaeological evidence indicates that the late 13th, the 12th and the early 11th centuries BCE witnessed the foundation of perhaps hundreds of insignificant, unprotected village settlements, many in the mountains of Palestine. From around the 11th century BCE, there was a reduction in the number of villages, though this was counterbalanced by the rise of certain settlements to the status of fortified townships.

There was an at least partial Egyptian withdrawal from Palestine in this period, though it is likely that Bet Shean was an Egyptian garrison as late as the beginning of the 10th century BCE. The socio-political system was characterized by local patrons fighting other local patrons, lasting until around the mid-9th century BCE when some local chieftains were able to create large political structures that exceeded the boundaries of those present in the Late Bronze Age.

Between 722 and 720 BCE, the northern kingdom of Israel was destroyed by the Assyrian Empire and the Hebrew tribes - thereafter known as the (Lost Tribes) - were exiled. In 586 BCE, Judah was conquered by the Babylonian Empire and Jerusalem and the First Temple were destroyed. Most of the remaining Hebrews, and much of the other local population, were sent into slavery in Babylonia.

Persian rule (538 BCE)

After the Persian Empire was established, Jews were allowed to return to what their holy books had termed the Land of Israel, and having been granted some autonomy by the Persian administration, it was during this period that the Second Temple in Jerusalem was built.

Sabastiye, near Nablus, was the northernmost province of the Persian administration in Palestine, and its southern borders were drawn at Hebron. Some of the local population served as soldiers and lay people in the Persian administration, while others continued to agriculture. In 400 BCE, the Nabataeans made inroads into southern Palestine and built a separate civilization in the Negev that lasted until 160 BCE.

Classical antiquity

Hellenistic rule (333 BCE)

The Persian Empire soon fell under the Greek forces of the Macedonian general Alexander the Great. . After his death, with the absence of heirs, his conquests were divided amongst his generals, while the region of the Jews ("Judah" or Judea as it became known) was first part of the Ptolemaic dynasty and then part of the Seleucid Empire.

The landscape during this period was markedly changed by extensive growth and development that included urban planning and the establishment of well-built fortified cities. Hellenistic pottery was produced that absorbed Philistine traditions. Trade and commerce flourished, particularly in the most Hellenized areas, such as Askalan, Gaza, Jerusalem, Jaffa, and Nablus (Sabastiya, Tel Balata and Jabal Jizrim).

The Jewish population in Judea was allowed limited autonomy in religion and administration. In the second century BCE fascination in Jerusalem for Greek culture resulted in a movement to break down the separation of Jew and Gentile and some people even tried to disguise the marks of their circumcision. Disputes between the leaders of the reform movement, Jason and Menelaus, eventually led to civil war and the intervention of Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Subsequent persecution of the Jews led to the Maccabean Revolt under the leadership of the Hasmoneans, and the construction of a native Jewish kingship under the Hasmonean Dynasty . After approximately a century of independence disputes between the Hasmonean rivals Aristobulus and Hyrcanus led to control of the kingdom by the Roman army of Pompey. The territory then became first a Roman client kingdom under Hyrcanus and then a Roman Province administered by the governor of Syria.

Roman rule (63 BCE)

Though General Pompey arrived in 63 BCE, Roman rule was solidified with the appointment of Herod the Edumite as king. Urban planning under the Romans was characterized by cities designed around the Forum - the central intersection of two main streets - the Cardo, running north-south and the Peladious running east-west. Cities were connected by an extensive road network developed for economic a military purposes. Among the most notable archaeological remnants from this era are Herodion (Tel al-Fureidis) to the south of Bethlehem and Caesarea.

Around the time that Jesus is believed to have been born, Roman Palestine was in a state of disarray and direct Roman rule was re-established. The early Christians were oppressed and while most inhabitants became Romanized, others, particularly Jews, found Roman rule to be unbearable.

As a result of the First Jewish-Roman War (66-73), Titus sacked Jerusalem destroying the Second Temple, leaving only supporting walls, including the Western Wall. In 135, following the fall of a Jewish revolt led by Bar Kokhba in 132–135, the Roman emperor Hadrian expelled most Jews from Judea on the pain of death, leaving large Jewish populations in Samaria and the Galilee. Tiberias became the headquarters of exiled Jewish patriarchs. The Romans changed the name of Judea to Syria Palaestina;

The Emperor Hadrian (132 CE) renamed Jerusalem "Aelia Capitolina" and built temples there to honor Jupiter. Christianity was practiced in secret and the Hellenization of Palestine continued under Septimius Severus (193 - 211 CE). New cities were founded at Eleutheropolis (Beit Jibrin), Diopolis (Lydd), and Nicopolis (Emmaus).

Byzantine (Eastern Roman Empire) rule (330-640 CE)

Emperor Constantine's conversion to Christianity around 330 CE made Christianity the official religion of Palaestina. After his mother Empress Helena identified the spot she believed to be where Christ was crucified, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher was built in Jerusalem. The Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem and the Church of the Ascension in Jerusalem were also built during Constantine's reign.

Palestine thus became a center for pilgrims and ascetic life for men and women from all over the world. Many monasteries were built including the Saint George Monastery in Wadi al-Qilt, Deir Quruntul and Deir Hijle near Jericho, and Deir Mar Saba and Deir Theodosius east of Bethlehem.

In 352 CE, a Jewish revolt against Byzantine/Roman rule in Tiberias and other parts of the Galilee was brutally suppressed.

In approximately 390 CE, Palaestina was further organised into three units: Palaestina Prima, Secunda, and Tertia (First, Second, and Third Palestine). Palaestina Prima consisted of Judea, Samaria, the coast, and Peraea with the governor residing in Caesarea. Palaestina Secunda consisted of the Galilee, the lower Jezreel Valley, the regions east of Galilee, and the western part of the former Decapolis with the seat of government at Scythopolis. Palaestina Tertia included the Negev, southern Jordan — once part of Arabia — and most of Sinai with Petra as the usual residence of the governor. Palestina Tertia was also known as Palaestina Salutaris.

In 536 CE, Justinian I promoted the governor at Caesarea to proconsul (anthypatos), giving him authority over the two remaining consulars. Justinian believed that the elevation of the governor was appropriate because he was responsible for "the province in which our Lord Jesus Christ... appeared on earth". This was also the principal factor explaining why Palestine prospered under the Christian Empire. The cities of Palestine, such as Caesarea Maritima, Jerusalem, Scythopolis, Neapolis, and Gaza reached their peak population in the late Roman period and produced notable Christian scholars in the disciplines of rhetoric, historiography, Eusebian ecclesiastical history, classicizing history and hagiography.

Byzantine administration of Palestine was temporarily suspended during the Persian occupation of 614–28, and then permanently after the Muslims arrived in 634 CE, defeating the empire's forces decisively at the Battle of Yarmouk in 636 CE. Jerusalem capitulated in 638 CE and Caesarea between 640 CE and 642 CE.

Arab Caliphate rule (638 - 1099 CE)

In 638 CE, Caliph Omar Ibn al-Khattab and Safforonius, the Byzantine governor of Jerusalem, signed Al-Uhda al-'Omariyya (The Umariyya Covenant), an agreement that stipulated the rights and obligations of all non-Muslims in Palestine. Jews were permitted to return to Palestine for the first time since the 500-year ban enacted by the Romans and maintained by Byzantine rulers.

Omar Ibn al-Khattab was the first conqueror of Jerusalem to enter the city on foot, and when visiting the site that now houses the Haram al-Sharif, he declared it a sacred place of prayer. Cities that accepted the new rulers, as recorded in registrars from the time, were: Jerusalem, Nablus, Jenin, Acre, Tiberias, Bisan, Caesarea, Lajjun, Lydd, Jaffa, Imwas, Beit Jibrin, Gaza, Rafah, Hebron, Yubna, Haifa, Safad and Askalan.

Umayyad rule (661 - 750 CE)

Under Umayyad rule, the province of ash-Sham (Arabic for Greater Syria), of which Palestine was a part, was divided into five districts. Jund Filastin (Arabic جند فلسطين, literally "the army of Palestine") was a region extending from the Sinai to the plain of Acre. Major towns included Rafah, Caesarea, Gaza, Jaffa, Nablus and Jericho. Initially Lod was the capital, but in 717 the newly established city of Ramleh became the capital. Jund al-Urdunn (literally "the army of Jordan") was a region to the north and east of Filastin. Major towns included Legio, Acre, Bisan and Tyre and the capital was at Tiberias.

In 691, Caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan ordered that the Dome of the Rock be built on the site where the Prophet Muhammed is believed by Muslims to have begun his nocturnal journey to heaven, on the Temple Mount. About a decade afterward, Caliph Al-Walid I had the Al-Aqsa Mosque built.

It was under Umayyad rule that Christians and Jews were granted the official title of "Peoples of the Book" to underline the common monotheistic roots they shared with Islam.

Abbasid rule (750 - 969 CE)

Palestine was not as central to the Abbasid rulers, though the Baghdad-based Abbasid Caliphs did visit the holy shrines and sanctuaries in Jerusalem and continued to build up Ramleh. Coastal areas were fortified and developed and port cities like Acre, Haifa, Caesarea, Arsuf, Jaffa and Ashkelon received monies from the state treasury.

A trade fair took place in Jerusalem every year on September 15 where merchants from Pisa, Genoa, Venice and Marseilles converged to acquire spices, soaps, silks, olive oil, sugar and glassware in exchange for European products. European Christian pilgrims visited and made generous donations to Christian holy places in Jerusalem and Bethlehem.

Fatimid rule (969 - 1099 CE)

From their base in Tunisia, the Fatimids, who claimed to be descendants of the Prophet Muhammed through his daughter Fatima, conquered Palestine by way of Egypt in 969 CE. Jerusalem, Nablus, and Askalan were expanded and renovated under their rule.

After the 10th century, the division into Junds began to break down. In 1071, the Isfahan-based Seljuk Turks captured Jerusalem only to hand it back in 1098.

See also the Mideastweb map of "Palestine Under the Caliphs", showing Jund boundaries (external link).

Crusader rule (1099 - 1187 CE)

Under the European rule, fortifications, castles, towers and fortified villages were built, rebuilt and renovated across Palestine largely in rural areas. A notable urban remnant of the Crusader architecture of this era is found in Acre's old city.

In July 1187, the Cairo-based Kurdish General Saladin commanded his troops to victory in the Battle of Hattin. Saladin went on to take Jerusalem. An agreement granting special status to the Crusaders allowed them to continue to stay in Palestine and In 1229, Frederick II negotiated a 10-year treaty that placed Jerusalem, Nazareth and Bethlehem once again under Crusader rule.

In 1270, Sultan Baibars expelled the Crusaders from most of the country, though they maintained a base at Acre until 1291. Thereafter, any remaining Europeans either went home or merged with the local population.

Mamluk rule (1270 - 1516 CE)

Palestine formed a part of the district of Damascus under the rule of the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt and was divided into three smaller districts with capitals in Jerusalem, Gaza, and Safad. Celebrated by Arab and Muslim writers of the time as the "blessed land of the Prophets and Islam's revered leaders," Muslim sanctuaries were "rediscovered" and received many pilgrims.

While the first half of the Mamluk era (1270 - 1382) saw the construction of many schools, lodgings for travellers (khans) and the renovation of mosques neglected or destroyed during the Crusader period, the second half (1382 - 1517) was a period of decline as the Mamluks were engaged in battles with the Mongols in areas outside Palestine.

In 1486, hostilities broke out between the Mamluks and the Ottoman Turks in a battle for control over western Asia. The Mamluk armies were eventually defeated by the forces of the Ottoman Sultan, Selim I, and lost control of Palestine after the 1516 battle of Marj Dapiq .

Ottoman rule (1516 - 1917 CE)

After the Ottoman conquest, the name "Palestine" disappeared as the official name of an administrative unit, as the Turks often called their (sub)provinces after the capital. Since its 1516 incorporation in the Ottoman Empire, it was part of the vilayet (province) of Damascus-Syria until 1660, next of the vilayet of Saida (Sidon), briefly interrupted by the 7 March 1799 - July 1799 French occupation of Jaffa, Haifa, and Caesarea. On 10 May 1832 it was one of the Turkish provinces annexed by Muhammad Ali's shortly imperialistic Egypt (nominally still Ottoman), but in November 1840 direct Ottoman rule was restored.

Still the old name remained in popular and semi-official use. Many examples of its usage in the 16th and 17th centuries have survived. During the 19th century, the "Ottoman Government employed the term Arz-i Filistin (the 'Land of Palestine') in official correspondence, meaning for all intents and purposes the area to the west of the River Jordan which became 'Palestine' under the British in 1922". Amongst the educated Arab public, Filastin was a common concept, referring either to the whole of Palestine or to the Jerusalem sanjaq alone or just to the area around Ramle.

Ottoman rule over the region lasted until the Great War (World War I) when the Ottomans sided with Germany and the Central Powers. During World War I, the Ottomans were driven from much of the area by the United Kingdom during the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire.

The 20th century

In European usage up to World War I, "Palestine" was used informally for a region that extended in the north-south direction typically from Raphia (south-east of Gaza) to the Litani River (now in Lebanon). The western boundary was the sea, and the eastern boundary was the poorly-defined place where the Syrian desert began. In various European sources, the eastern boundary was placed anywhere from the Jordan River to slightly east of Amman. The Negev Desert was not included.

Under the Sykes-Picot Agreement of 1916, it was envisioned that most of Palestine, when freed from Ottoman control, would become an international zone not under direct French or British colonial control. Shortly thereafter, British foreign minister Arthur Balfour issued the Balfour Declaration of 1917, which laid plans for a Jewish homeland to be established in Palestine eventually.

The British-led Egyptian Expeditionary Force, commanded by Edmund Allenby, captured Jerusalem on 9 December, 1917 and occupied the whole of the Levant following the defeat of Turkish forces in Palestine at the Battle of Megiddo in September 1918 and the capitulation of Turkey on 31 October.

British Mandate (1920–1948)

Formal use of the English word "Palestine" returned with the British Mandate, which enacted English, Hebrew and Arabic as its three official languages. Palestine was now the formal name of the entity in English and Arabic whilst Palestina (Eretz Yisrael) ((פלשתינה (א"י) was the formal name in Hebrew.

In April 1920 the Allied Supreme Council (the USA, Great Britain, France, Italy and Japan) met at Sanremo and formal decisions were taken on the allocation of mandate territories. The United Kingdom accepted a mandate for Palestine, but the boundaries of the mandate and the conditions under which it was to be held were not decided. The Zionist Organization's representative at Sanremo, Chaim Weizmann, subsequently reported to his colleagues in London:

"There are still important details outstanding, such as the actual terms of the mandate and the question of the boundaries in Palestine. There is the delimitation of the boundary between French Syria and Palestine, which will constitute the northern frontier and the eastern line of demarcation, adjoining Arab Syria. The latter is not likely to be fixed until the Emir Feisal attends the Peace Conference, probably in Paris."

In July 1920, the French drove Faisal bin Husayn from Damascus ending his already negligible control over the region of Transjordan, where local chiefs traditionally resisted any central authority. The sheikhs, who had earlier pledged their loyalty to the Sharif of Mecca, asked the British to undertake the region's administration. Herbert Samuel asked for the extension of the Palestine government's authority to Transjordan, but at meetings in Cairo and Jerusalem between Winston Churchill and Emir Abdullah in March 1921 it was agreed that Abdullah would administer the territory (initially for six months only) on behalf of the Palestine administration. In the summer of 1921 Transjordan was included within the Mandate, but excluded from the provisions for a Jewish National Home. On 24 July, 1922 the League of Nations approved the terms of the British Mandate over Palestine and Transjordan. On 16 September the League formally approved a memorandum from Lord Balfour confirming the exemption of Transjordan from the clauses of the mandate concerning the creation of a Jewish national home and from the mandate's responsibility to facilitate Jewish immigration and land settlement. With Transjordan coming under the administration of the British Mandate, the mandate's collective territory became constituted of 23% Palestine and 77% Transjordan. Transjordan was a very sparsely populated region (specially in comparison with Palestine proper) due to its relatively limited resources and largely desert environment.

The award of the mandates was delayed as a result of the United States' suspicions regarding Britain's colonial ambitions and similar reservations held by Italy about France's intentions. France in turn refused to reach a settlement over Palestine until its own mandate in Syria became final. According to Louis,

Together with the American protests against the issuance of mandates these triangular quarrels between the Italians, French, and British explain why the A mandates did not come into force until nearly four years after the signing of the Peace Treaty.... The British documents clearly reveal that Balfour's patient and skillful diplomacy contributed greatly to the final issuance of the A mandates for Syria and Palestine on September 29, 1923.

Even before the Mandate came into legal effect in 1923 (text), British terminology sometimes used '"Palestine" for the part west of the Jordan River and "Trans-Jordan" (or Transjordania) for the part east of the Jordan River.

In the years following World War II, Britain's position in Palestine gradually worsened. This was caused by a combination of factors, including:

• Rapid deterioration due to the incessant attacks by Irgun and Lehi on British officials, armed forces, and strategic installations. This caused severe damage to British morale and prestige, as well as increasing opposition to the mandate in Britain itself, public opinion demanding to "bring the boys home".
• World public opinion turned against Britain as a result of the British policy of preventing the Jewish Zionist Holocaust survivors from reaching Palestine, sending them instead to refugee camps in Cyprus, or even back to Germany, as in the case of Exodus 1947.
• The costs of maintaining an army of over 100,000 men in Palestine weighed heavily on a British economy suffering from post-war depression, and was another cause for British public opinion to demand an end to the Mandate.

Finally in early 1947 the British Government announced their desire to terminate the Mandate, and passed the responsibility over Palestine to the United Nations.

UN partition

On 29 November 1947, the United Nations General Assembly, with a two-thirds majority international vote, passed the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine (United Nations General Assembly Resolution 181), a plan to resolve the Arab-Jewish conflict by partitioning the territory into separate Jewish and Arab states, with the Greater Jerusalem area (encompassing Bethlehem) coming under international control. Jewish leaders (including the Jewish Agency), accepted the plan, while Palestinian Arab leaders rejected it and refused to negotiate. Neighboring Arab and Muslim states also rejected the partition plan. The Arab community reacted violently after the Arab Higher Committee declared a strike and burned many buildings and shops. As armed skirmishes between Arab and Jewish paramilitary forces in Palestine continued, the British mandate ended on May 15, 1948, the establishment of the State of Israel having been proclaimed the day before (see Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel). The neighboring Arab states and armies (Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Egypt, Transjordan, Holy War Army, Arab Liberation Army, and local Arabs) immediately attacked Israel following its declaration of independence, and the 1948 Arab-Israeli War ensued. Consequently, the partition plan was never implemented.

Current status

Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, the 1949 Armistice Agreements between Israel and neighboring Arab states eliminated Palestine as a distinct territory. With the establishment of Israel, the remaining lands were divided amongst Egypt, Syria and Jordan.

In addition to the UN-partitioned area it was allotted, Israel captured 26% of the Mandate territory west of the Jordan river. Jordan captured and annexed about 21% of the Mandate territory, known today as the West Bank. Jerusalem was divided, with Jordan taking the eastern parts, including the Old City, and Israel taking the western parts. The Gaza Strip was captured by Egypt.

For a description of the massive population movements, Arab and Jewish, at the time of the 1948 war and over the following decades, see Palestinian exodus and Jewish exodus from Arab lands.

From the 1960s onward, the term "Palestine" was regularly used in political contexts. Various declarations, such as the 15 November 1988 proclamation of a State of Palestine by the PLO referred to a country called Palestine, defining its borders based on the U.N. Resolution 242 and 383 and the principle of Land for Peace. The Green Line was the 1967 border established by many UN resolutions including those mentioned above.

In the course of the Six Day War of June 1967, Israel captured the West Bank from Jordan and Gaza from Egypt.

According to the CIA World Factbook, of the ten million people living between Jordan and the Mediterranean Sea, 49% identify as Palestinian, Arab, Bedouin and/or Druze. One million of those are citizens of Israel. The other four million are stateless residents of the West Bank and Gaza. In the meantime, they live under Palestinian National Authority jurisdiction, subject to conditions imposed by Israel.

In the West Bank, 360,000 Israeli settlers live in a hundred scattered settlements with connecting corridors. The 2.5 million West Bank Palestinians live in four blocks centered in Hebron, Ramallah, Nablus, and Jericho, while Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip in 2005.

Demographics

The demographics of the Palestinian people are discussed in that article.

See also

• Arab-Israeli conflict
• Conflict: Middle East Political Simulator
• Greater Israel
• Greater Syria
• History of Fatah/Hamas tensions
• History of Palestine
• State of Israel
• Israeli-Palestinian conflict
• Land of Israel covers roughly the same region, with a different focus
• Mandate for Palestine
• Names of the Levant
• Occupation of Palestine
• Palestinian people
• State of Palestine

External links

• The Hope Simpson Report (London, 1930)
• Palestine Royal Commission Report (the Peel Report) (London, 1937)
• Report to the Council of the League of Nations (1928)
• Report to the Council of the League of Nations (1929)
• Report to the Council of the League of Nations (1934)
• Report to the Council of the League of Nations (1935)
• www.mideastweb.org - A website with a wealth of statistics regarding population in Palestine
• Coins and Banknotes of Palestine under the British Mandate
• WorldStatesmen- Maps, flags, chronology, see Israel and Palestinian National Authority
• hWeb - Israel-Palestine in Maps
• Palestine Fact Sheet from the Common Language Project
• 1911 Encyclopedia description of Palestine
• Liberal Democrat Friends of Palestine

Maps

• Sykes-Picot Agreement, 1916
• 1947 UN Partition Plan
• 1949 Armisitice Lines
• Israel After 1949 Armistice Agreements
• Liberal Democrat Friends of Palestine

References

1. Thomas L. Thompson (1999). The Mythic Past:How Writers Create the Past. Basic Books. ISBN 0465006493.
2. Israel Finkelstein and Neil Ascher Silberman (2000). "The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts". Bible and Interpretation. Retrieved 05.14.2007. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
3. Hansen, 2000, p. 130.
4. Killebrew, 2005, p. 231.
5. ^ Shahin (2005), page 6
6. Palestine and Israel David M. Jacobson Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, No. 313 (Feb., 1999), pp. 65-74
7. The Southern and Eastern Borders of Abar-Nahara Steven S. Tuell Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, No. 284 (Nov., 1991), pp. 51-57
8. Herodotus' Description of the East Mediterranean Coast Anson F. Rainey Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, No. 321 (Feb., 2001), pp. 57-63
9. ^ Lehmann, Clayton Miles (1998). "Palestine: History: 135–337: Syria Palaestina and the Tetrarchy". The On-line Encyclopedia of the Roman Provinces. University of South Dakota. Retrieved 2006-07-19. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
10. Surah 5:21
11. ^ Shahin (2005), page 3
12. (PDF). Antiquity Journal. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
13. ^ Shahin (2005), page 4
14. ^ Gyémánt, Ladislau (2003). "Historiographic Views on the Settlement of the Jewish Tribes in Canaan". 1/2003. Sacra Scripta: 26 - 30. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
15. ^ Niels Peter Lemche. "On the Problems of Reconstructing Pre-Hellenistic Israelite (Palestinian) History". Journal of Hebrew Scriptures. Retrieved 05.10.2007. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
16. ^ "Facts about Israel:History". Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affaits. Retrieved 05.10.2007. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
17. ^ Shahin (2005), page 7
18. Pastor, 1997, p. 41.
19. Hayes & Mandell, 1998, p. 41.
20. ^ Johnston, 2004, p. 186.
21. Chancey, 2005, p. 44.
22. ^ Shahin (2005), page 8
23. ^ Kenneth G. Holum "Palestine" The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. Ed. Alexander P. Kazhdan. Oxford University Press 1991.
24. ^ Shahin (2005), page 10
25. ^ Shahin (2005), page 11
26. ^ Shahin (2005), page 12.
27. Gerber, 1998.
28. Mandel, 1976, p. xx.
29. Porath, 1974, pp. 8-9.
30. Haim Gerber (1998) referring to fatwas by two Hanafite Syrian jurists.
32. Hughes, 1999, p. 17; p. 97.
33. 'Zionist Aspirations: Dr Weizmann on the Future of Palestine', The Times, Saturday, 8 May, 1920; p. 15.
34. Gelber, 1997, pp. 6-15.
35. Sicker, 1999, p. 164.
36. Louis, 1969, p. 90.
37. Ingrams, 1972
38. "Mandate for Palestine - Interim report of the Mandatory to the LoN/Balfour Declaration text". League of Nations. 1921-07-30. Retrieved 2007-03-08.
39. Colonel Archer-Cust, Chief Secretary of the British Government in Palestine, said in a lecture to the Royal Empire Society that "The hanging of the two British Sergeants did more than anything to get us out ". (The United Empire Journal, November-December 1949, taken from The Revolt, by Menachem Begin)
40. Population data calculated from three pages of the online CIA World Factbook https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/is.html https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/we.html https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gz.html

Bibliography

• Palestine
• Regions of Asia
• Divided regions
• Disputed territories
• Zionism
• Titular Sees of the Coptic Orthodox Church