# 1. What is the Nakba? **May 15, 1948** marks **al-Nakba, 'the Catastrophe,"** the beginning of mass displacement of Palestinians and the day after declaration of Israel. This took place within the broader **Arab-Israeli War** between November 1947 and July 1949, whereby Israel carried out ethnic cleansing operations. >[!note] When did the Arab-Israeli War begin? >Most scholars consider the Arab-Israeli War to be 1948-1949. However, in this document, JVP dates the Arab-Israeli War as starting in November 1947. This divergence seems to reflect their perspective and political goal to center a Palestinian perspective and highlight the systemic violence that started following the UN Partition Plan. >The events of 1947-9 stand at the root of the conflict. By acknowledging them, there is hope for sincere reconciliation. (p. 1) # 2. What is the UN Partition Plan of 1947? >On November 29, 1947, the UN partition proposal (UN General Assembly Resolution 181) was accepted 33:13, with 10 abstentions. The U.S. and U.S.S.R. supported the resolution. Britain abstained. (p. 1) - Despite comprising only about one-third of the population (610,000 Jews versus 1.3 million Palestinian Arabs) and owning about six percent of the land in Palestine, **Jews were allocated 52% of the land**. - 45% of the land was assigned to the Arab state. - Jerusalem and Bethlehem (3%) would be under international control. Zionist leadership agreed to the partition plan. The Arab League and **Palestinians rejected the partition plan**, viewing it as a violation of their right to self-determination within their own ancestral land. # 3. What happened between 1947-1949? Plan Dalet (Plan D) was a Zionist military strategy agreed upon in March 1948 by Ben-Gurion (primary founder and first prime minister of Israel), with the intention to control Jewish allotted land with the least amount of Palestinians. "Today we would call this plan ethnic cleansing." Historian Ilan Pappe documented the occupation, destruction, and expulsion of Palestinian villages and their people. - Indigenous Palestinians of Deir Yassin, Tantura, Dawaymeh, and Safsaf experienced atrocities such as massacre, rape, and displacement. These induced fear and flight of other Palestinians. By the end of the Arab-Israeli war... - "over 6000 Israelis and between 8000-15,000 Arabs, military and civilian, lost their lives" (p. 3) - Israel controlled 78% of Palestine. - _No Palestinian state was established on the remaining 22% of land._ Egypt controlled the Gaza Strip; Jordon controlled the West Bank and East Jerusalem. >[!note] On-the-ground reality after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War >Despite the initial partition plan, the outcome of the Arab-Israeli war meant significant territorial gains for Israel and the failure to establish a Palestinian state. This laid the groundwork for the ongoing conflict. # 4. UN Response: In support of Palestinian refugees In 1948, the **United Nations Declaration of Human Rights** (Article 13) stated that, "Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and return to his country." In December, 1948, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) passed **Resolution 194**. Article 11 states that, "refugees wishing to return to their homes and live at peace with their neighbours should be permitted to do so at the earliest practicable date, and that compensation should be paid..." Despite these UN policy positions, Palestinians have not been allowed to return to their home lands. # 5. Who are the Palestinian refugees? According to the UN Relief and Works Agency... “Palestinian refugees are persons whose normal place of residence was Palestine between June 1946 and May 1948, who **lost their homes and means of livelihood** as a result of the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict. UNRWA also includes descendants of people who became refugees in 1948.” (p. 3) >The Israeli government decided that Palestinian expulsion and refusing the return of these refugees was necessary and desired for the growth of the new state. (p. 3) >By 1949, about 500 Palestinian villages, towns, and tribes were depopulated and destroyed and approximately 711,000 Palestinian refugees, according to the UN, were dispossessed. (p. 3) As of 2015, there are an estimated **7 million Palestinian refugees**. # 6. What is the state of Israel's relationship to Palestinian refugees and nearby Arab states? - In 1949, armistice agreements were made between Israel and Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria. - Peace agreements and borders were recognized between Israel and Egypt in 1979, and between Israel and Jordan in 1994. - There are still no peace Lebanon and Syria. >[!note] Evolving and nuanced relationships since 2015 >For much of the 20th century, many Arab states were unified in opposition against Israel, driven by Arab solidarity against Western influence. >However, Israel and several Sunni-majority Gulf states have had a quiet realignment of interests over Iran's growing regional power, nuclear weapons ambition, and its proxy wars via support of Shia militias. Additionally, Israel's technological and economic strength make it an attractive partner. This thawing of relations culminated in the **Abraham Accords** in 2020. A majority of Palestinians view these shifts as a betrayal of the Palestinian cause. # 7. Why must Jews recognize the Nakba? A resolution to Israeli-Palestinian hostilities is only possible if Jews recognize the Nakba, and Palestinian history and dispossession. >As Jews, there must be a way to honor the traumatic histories of the past, how the past lives in the present for Palestinians, and the possible contributions toward peace and justice Jews can make by rightfully engaging in worthwhile solutions acceptable also to Palestinians. One step in this process is learning about the Nakba and providing recognition of Palestinian history. (p. 4) >A resolution to the refugee issue must be resolved equitably and in a manner that promotes peace and is consistent with international law. Implementation of these rights is possible through return, compensation, or resettlement. It is a matter to be negotiated between Israelis and Palestinians. Under any circumstances, the dispossession of the Palestinian refugees must be acknowledged and redressed in a way that leads to a just peace, security and hope for Palestinians and Israelis. (p. 4)