The 1948 War Or the May 1948 War

The 1948 War Or the May 1948 War Or the 1948 -1949 War Or the War for Israeli Independence Or the Catastrophe

“A Jewish Triumph and a Palestinian tragedy” • Read the official declaration of war • Participants: – Egypt – Iraq – Syria – Lebanon – Transjordan – Saudi Arabia – (Yemen)

Phase I • May 1948 – June 1948 • Israel pushed the Arab forces back pretty definitively • A truce was called and the UN peacekeeping forces helped mediate • Swedish guy named Bernadotte tried helping both sides reach an agreement based around the UN Partition Plan as previously passed • Neither side would have it now

Phase II • July 1948 • Egypt and Syria broke the truce and were easily defeated by the better supplied Israelis • Bernadotte again attempted to mediate and a truce was called in mid-July • An underground Israeli group assassinated Bernadotte

Phase III • October 1948 - July 1949 • Israeli Defense Force (IDF) made some small offensive moves to secure new borders, but the Arabs did not • New UN mediator (US guy) tried “proximity talks” where Egyptian and Israeli leaders met with him on the island of Rhodes—in separate rooms • Israel made separate peace agreements with each Arab country, gaining new territories • Iraq never signed a peace treaty with Israel— angrily opposed any Arab-Israeli peace—still does.

“Peace” talks • UN Conciliation Commission for Palestine met at Lausanne (haha) • Now Arabs argued the Partition Plan of 1947 was fair and Israel should move back to those borders and let Palestinian refugees return home (5800, 000 people? ) – Also said that as UN members, Israel agreed to UN rules • Israel said it was the Arabs who first broke the UN agreement • He said, she said, repeat. No deal.

Results of the War • Read the p. 215 section titled “The 1948 War: A Jewish triumph and a Palestinian Tragedy” • 1. List two reasons the Arabs lost the war. • 2. List at least five reasons the Israelis won the war. • Read the section titled “The Legacy of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War” • 3. List as many outcomes of the war as you can find.

Border Changes 1937 1949

Paper 1 Practice