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| ⚫ | {{mergeto|Occupation of the Palestinian territories}} | ||
| At the conclusion of the ] ], a number of '''Territories''' came '''under Israeli control''' which were either part of, or administered by, neighboring countries. These areas were the ], the ], the ] of the ], the ], and ]. | |||
| The term '''Occupied Territories''', especially when capitalized, is commonly used to refer to the territories occupied by ] after the ] in 1967. These originally included the ], the ], the ] of the ], and the ]. Following the conquest by Israel of these territories, ] of ] Israelis were established within each of them. The West Bank and the Golan Heights provide a significant portion of Israel's water resources, the former from its underground ] and the latter for containing many of the headwaters of the ]. | |||
| Because the West Bank (along with the Gaza Strip, prior to 2005) is subject to sporadically active negotiations between Israel and the ] while the other territories are not currently being negotiated over, the term "Occupied Territories" is sometimes loosely used to refer the ] occupied by Israel. | |||
| The status of these territories, the legality of Israeli's policy of encouraging ] in those areas, whether it is legitimate for Israel to ] portions of them, and whether Israel is legally an occupying power according to the ] are all highly contentious issues in the ]. | |||
| == |
== Status Changes == | ||
| ⚫ | The Sinai Peninsula was returned to ] in 1979 under the ] following the 1978 ], and Israel unilaterally withdrew its occupying forces from the Gaza Strip in 2005. In both of these instances, the Jewish settlers in the relinquished territories were also forced by the Israeli government to leave. | ||
| === The Sinai Peninsula === | |||
| ⚫ | The Israeli ] passed the "Jerusalem Law," annexing ] in the West Bank in 1980, but ] ] ] declared this action to be a violation of international law. Israel also passed the "Golan Heights Law" in 1981, which quasi-annexed the Golan Heights, as by extending Israel's law and jurisdicion to the territory and allowing Israeli citizenship for the resident population, but it has avoided using the term "annex" with regard to the action. The Security Council rejected the provisions of this law with ]. | ||
| The ] although sparsely populated, is of enormous strategic position because it straddles the ] and the ]. Egyptian policies of blocking Israeli shipping through these waterways were important factors leading to the ] and the ] ]. | |||
| == Contentious Term == | |||
| After capturing the Sinai in ], Israel began to establish ] along the Gulf of Aqaba, and in the northeast portion, just below the ], with plans to expand one settlement into the city of ] with a population of 200,000. (Khouri, ''The Arab-Israeli Dilemma'', page 365). | |||
| ⚫ | Supporters of Israel sometimes object to using the term "Occupied Territories" to describe them, prefering "Disputed Territories" or sometimes (with reference to the West Bank) the biblical names "]." Among the reasons that the term is objected to are that it tends to preclude Israel from claiming parts of the territories as its ], and that being an "occupying power" invokes the provisions of the ] regarding the protection of civilians during war and occupation. Israel holds that the Convention does not apply to the Territories. Significantly, most interpretations of the Convention hold that it forbids settlement of occupied territory by citizens of the occupying power, although Israel contends that only forced settlement is prohibited. | ||
| ⚫ | The Sinai Peninsula was returned to ] |
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| Opponents of Israel sometimes insist that the term refers to all of Israel as well, claiming that the State of Israel was illegally formed and is therefore illegitimate. | |||
| === The West Bank and the Gaza Strip === | |||
| These are together often referred to as the ], though some supporters of Israel object to the term. Both of these territories are part of former ], and both have populations consisting primarily of ] ]s, including historic residents of the territories and refugees who lost their homes in the territory that became Israel in the ]. Both were allotted to the proposed Arab state under ]. | |||
| For the nineteen years from the end of the Mandate until the Six-Day War, ] and ]. In 1950, Jordan annexed the West Bank, but this annexation was recognized only by the ]. Both territories were conquered (but not ]) from Jordan and Egypt by Israel in the Six-Day War. Neither Jordan, Egypt, not Israel during their respective periods of control ever allowed the creation of a Palestinian state in the territories. From 1967 to 1993, the majority of people living in these territories—those who are not Israeli citizens—were subject to Israeli military administration without the benefits of Israeli citizenship: in particular the right to vote in Israeli ]s. Most of the Palestinian population live in areas that have been under only partial Israeli control since 1993, although tribulations in the peace process have several times occasioned the redeployment of Israeli troops and reinstatement of full military administration. | |||
| As was the case in the Sinai Peninsula in 1982, in 2005 Israel forced all settlers to leave, destroyed all ]s, and ] its forces from the Gaza Strip. | |||
| === East Jerusalem === | |||
| While ] is considered by many to be part of the ], it is occasionally treated separately in negotiations. The 1947 UN Partition Plan had contemplated that all of Jerusalem would be an international city. ] captured East Jerusalem in the ], and annexed it in ], but no other country recognized this annexation. Israel captured East Jerusalem in the ] ] and in ] the Israeli ] passed the "]" annexing East Jerusalem, but ] ] declared this action to be a violation of ]. | |||
| === The Golan Heights === | |||
| The ] was captured from Syria in towards the end Six Day War, after the cease fire with Egypt and Jordan had been agreed. The status of the Golan Heights, and of the Israeli settlements established there, is the main issue preventing the signing of a peace treaty between Israel and Syria. Many of the headwaters of the ], from which Israel draws most of its fresh water resources, lie in the Golan Heights. | |||
| ⚫ | Israel passed the "Golan Heights Law" in |
||
| == Terminology == | |||
| ⚫ | Supporters of Israel object to using the term "Occupied Territories" to describe |
||
| For Palestinians, the Syrian residents of the Golan Heights, and their supporters, the term "occupied territory" reflects their view that Israel is a foreign presence in control of areas over which they have no sovereignty. To support this view, they cite: | |||
| * Israeli military administration over Palestinians and the residents of the Golan Heights | |||
| * The view of the world's governments that this is an occupation | |||
| * The legal interpretations of the ], other UN bodies, and the ] that it is an occupation {{fact}} | |||
| * Demographically, Palestinians make up the ] of the population and the Jewish population makes up the ] | |||
| Supporters of Israel argue that use of the term "occupied" in relation to Israel's control of the areas has no basis in international law or history, and that it prejudges the outcome of negotiations. They regard the area as "disputed territory" based on the following: | |||
| * No borders have been established or recognized by the parties. ] lines do not establish borders. | |||
| * The United Nations uses the term "disputed" about all other contested areas in the world — even those for which a stronger case for "occupation" can be made. <!--needs examples--> | |||
| * Historically, Jews have at least as strong a claim to the area as Palestinians do, possibly stronger. They emphasize that the ] plays a far more important role in ] than in ] or ], and continuous Jewish presence there for at least three millennia. | |||
| * Under Israeli law, ''occupation'' of an area implies it needs to have legally been part of a country. | |||
| == Palestinians and Israeli law == | |||
| Not being citizens of any nation, the Palestinian inhabitants of the Territories are not afforded the same political rights, freedom of movement, or protections under the law as Jewish people who live in the same areas. The Palestinians believe this amounts to a form of ]. Supporters of Israel claim this stituation is consistent with ] because Palestinians are allowed to issue appeals to the Supreme Court of Israel and vote in elections for the ] and ] of the ], bodies which in reality have little power. | |||
| == See also == | == See also == | ||
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| * ] | * ] | ||
| * ] | * ] | ||
| * ] | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | * ] | ||
| * ] | |||
| == References == | |||
| * by ], ''Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs'', January 16, 2002 | |||
| ==Further reading== | |||
| *, Princeton University | |||
| ] | ] | ||
Revision as of 13:36, 28 September 2005
 | It has been suggested that this article be merged into Occupation of the Palestinian territories. (Discuss) |
The term Occupied Territories, especially when capitalized, is commonly used to refer to the territories occupied by Israel after the Six-Day War in 1967. These originally included the Sinai Peninsula, the Golan Heights, the West Bank of the Jordan River, and the Gaza Strip. Following the conquest by Israel of these territories, settlements of Jewish Israelis were established within each of them. The West Bank and the Golan Heights provide a significant portion of Israel's water resources, the former from its underground aquifer and the latter for containing many of the headwaters of the Jordan River.
Because the West Bank (along with the Gaza Strip, prior to 2005) is subject to sporadically active negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority while the other territories are not currently being negotiated over, the term "Occupied Territories" is sometimes loosely used to refer the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel.
Status Changes
The Sinai Peninsula was returned to Egypt in 1979 under the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty following the 1978 Camp David Accords, and Israel unilaterally withdrew its occupying forces from the Gaza Strip in 2005. In both of these instances, the Jewish settlers in the relinquished territories were also forced by the Israeli government to leave.
The Israeli Knesset passed the "Jerusalem Law," annexing East Jerusalem in the West Bank in 1980, but United Nations Security Council Resolution 478 declared this action to be a violation of international law. Israel also passed the "Golan Heights Law" in 1981, which quasi-annexed the Golan Heights, as by extending Israel's law and jurisdicion to the territory and allowing Israeli citizenship for the resident population, but it has avoided using the term "annex" with regard to the action. The Security Council rejected the provisions of this law with Resolution 497.
Contentious Term
Supporters of Israel sometimes object to using the term "Occupied Territories" to describe them, prefering "Disputed Territories" or sometimes (with reference to the West Bank) the biblical names "Judea and Samaria." Among the reasons that the term is objected to are that it tends to preclude Israel from claiming parts of the territories as its sovereign territory, and that being an "occupying power" invokes the provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention regarding the protection of civilians during war and occupation. Israel holds that the Convention does not apply to the Territories. Significantly, most interpretations of the Convention hold that it forbids settlement of occupied territory by citizens of the occupying power, although Israel contends that only forced settlement is prohibited.
Opponents of Israel sometimes insist that the term refers to all of Israel as well, claiming that the State of Israel was illegally formed and is therefore illegitimate.
See also
- Arab-Israeli Conflict
- Arab Nationalism
- Balfour Declaration
- British Mandate of Palestine
- Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
- Occupation of the Gaza Strip by Egypt
- Occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem by Jordan
- Palestine
- Zionism