Middle East: Israeli-Palestine Conflict (1916-1995), ISC Class 12 History

What Middle East: Israeli-Palestine Conflict (1916–1993) is about

Weightage: CISCE publishes no chapter or unit weightage for ISC History. Middle East: Israeli-Palestine Conflict (1916–1993) is part of Section B: World History, 11 of the 2027 syllabus and can be asked anywhere in the 80-mark Paper I (Section A 16 one-mark items, Section B 4-mark short answers, Section C 8-mark long answers).Source: CISCE ISC History (851) syllabus, examination year 2027; ISC 2025 specimen question paper

Key concepts

Arab nationalism, Zionism and Britain's conflicting promises

Aims of Zionism

• A national movement of the Jewish people, founded by Theodor Herzl (The Jewish State, 1896; First Zionist Congress, Basel, 1897).
• Its main demand: a national homeland for the Jews in Palestine, the ancient land of Israel, secured by law; a refuge from anti-Semitism in Europe.

Aims of Arab nationalism

• Independence of the Arab lands from Ottoman (Turkish) and then European rule; Arab unity; for Palestine's Arabs, an independent Arab Palestine and an end to Jewish immigration.

Britain's conflicting promises during the First World War
1. Husain-McMahon correspondence (1915-16): Sir Henry McMahon, British High Commissioner in Egypt, promised Sharif Husain of Mecca British support for Arab independence after the war in return for an Arab revolt against Turkey (launched in 1916). The Arabs believed Palestine was included.
2. Sykes-Picot Agreement (1916): a secret Anglo-French plan to divide the Ottoman Arab lands; France would control Syria and Lebanon, Britain Mesopotamia (Iraq) and areas to the south, with Palestine under international administration. It contradicted the promise to the Arabs.
3. Balfour Declaration (2 November 1917): the Foreign Secretary, Arthur Balfour, wrote that the British government viewed with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, provided nothing was done to prejudice the civil and religious rights of the existing non-Jewish communities.

After the war Britain received Palestine as a League of Nations mandate (1920-22). Jewish immigration rose, especially after Nazi persecution began in 1933; Arab protests and riots (1920s) and a major Arab revolt (1936-39) followed. Britain's 1939 White Paper limited immigration, angering Zionists, and after 1945 Jewish groups used terrorism against the British (for example the bombing of the King David Hotel, 1946).

To the creation of Israel: Britain handed the problem to the UN (1947). The UN partition plan (29 November 1947) proposed separate Jewish and Arab states with Jerusalem under international control; the Jews accepted, the Arabs rejected it. As British forces left, David Ben-Gurion proclaimed the State of Israel on 14 May 1948.

Worked example

[4] Explain how Britain's promises during the First World War created a conflict over Palestine. (Analysis)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

1. Husain-McMahon correspondence (1915-16): Britain promised Arab independence in return for the Arab revolt; the Arabs believed Palestine was included - 1 mark.
2. Sykes-Picot Agreement (1916): Britain and France secretly planned to divide the Arab lands between themselves - 1 mark.
3. Balfour Declaration (1917): Britain promised a national home for the Jews in Palestine - 1 mark.
4. Arabs and Jews both claimed Palestine on the basis of British promises, which led to conflict under the mandate - 1 mark.

Answer: Britain promised Sharif Husain Arab independence in return for a revolt against Turkey (1915-16), while secretly agreeing with France in the Sykes-Picot Agreement (1916) to share out the same Arab lands, and then in the Balfour Declaration (1917) promised the Jews a national home in Palestine. Both Arabs and Jews thus believed Palestine had been promised to them, and the clash of these claims under the British mandate turned into a lasting conflict.

The First Arab-Israeli War (1948-49)

Causes
1. The Arab states rejected the UN partition plan as unjust: it gave over half of Palestine to the Jews, who were a minority.
2. The proclamation of Israel on 14 May 1948.
3. Fighting between Jews and Arabs had already begun in 1947-48; incidents such as the killing of villagers at Deir Yassin caused many Arabs to flee.
4. Arab states (Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq) wanted to destroy the new state and support the Palestinian Arabs.

Course: on 15 May 1948 the Arab armies attacked; the Israelis, better organised and motivated, held them and went on the offensive; armistices were signed in 1949.

Results
1. Israel survived and expanded beyond the UN plan, controlling about three-quarters of former Palestine.
2. No Palestinian Arab state emerged: the West Bank went to Jordan and the Gaza Strip to Egypt; Jerusalem was divided.
3. About 700,000 Palestinian Arabs became refugees in camps in neighbouring countries; Palestinians call this the 'Nakba' (catastrophe).
4. Arab humiliation led to political upheavals, notably the revolution in Egypt (1952) that brought Nasser to power.
5. Lasting hostility: the Arab states refused to recognise Israel.

Worked example

[4] State four results of the First Arab-Israeli War. (Recall)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

1. Israel survived and gained more territory than the UN plan allotted - 1 mark.
2. No Palestinian state: West Bank to Jordan, Gaza to Egypt; Jerusalem divided - 1 mark.
3. About 700,000 Palestinian refugees - 1 mark.
4. Arab humiliation; revolution in Egypt (1952); continued hostility - 1 mark.

Answer: The war ended with Israel surviving and controlling more land than the UN had proposed; the planned Arab state never appeared, as Jordan took the West Bank and Egypt the Gaza Strip, with Jerusalem divided; some 700,000 Palestinians became refugees; and Arab humiliation led to upheavals such as the Egyptian revolution of 1952 and to lasting refusal to recognise Israel.

The Suez Crisis (1956)

Causes (the aggressive policies of all sides)
1. Nasser's Arab nationalism: he wanted to free the Arab world from Western influence and supported Palestinian guerrilla (fedayeen) raids into Israel from Gaza.
2. Egypt blockaded the Straits of Tiran, closing the Gulf of Aqaba to Israeli shipping.
3. The Czech arms deal (1955): Nasser obtained Soviet-bloc weapons, alarming Israel and the West; Egypt also recognised Communist China.
4. The USA and Britain withdrew their offer to finance the Aswan High Dam (July 1956).
5. Nasser nationalised the Suez Canal Company (26 July 1956) to pay for the dam; Britain and France, the company's main owners, feared for their oil supplies and prestige; France was also angry at Egyptian help to the Algerian rebels.
6. Britain, France and Israel secretly agreed that Israel would attack Egypt, giving Britain and France an excuse to occupy the canal zone.

Course: Israel invaded Sinai (29 October 1956); Britain and France bombed Egypt and landed troops at Port Said (5-6 November). The USA, the USSR and the UN demanded a ceasefire; a UN Emergency Force (UNEF) replaced the invaders.

Consequences
1. Humiliation for Britain and France; Prime Minister Anthony Eden resigned (1957); Britain's decline as a world power was exposed.
2. A political triumph for Nasser, who kept the canal and became a hero of Arab nationalism.
3. The canal was blocked by sunken ships until 1957, causing oil shortages and rationing in Europe.
4. The USSR replaced the West as Egypt's backer and financed the Aswan Dam; Soviet influence in the Middle East grew.
5. Israel gained: UNEF troops ended fedayeen raids from Gaza and kept the Gulf of Aqaba open to Israeli shipping.
6. The USA announced the Eisenhower Doctrine (1957) to resist communism in the region.

Worked example

[4] Give four consequences of the Suez Crisis. (Understanding)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

1. Humiliation for Britain and France; Eden resigned - 1 mark.
2. Triumph for Nasser and Arab nationalism; Egypt kept the canal - 1 mark.
3. Canal blocked; oil rationing in Europe - 1 mark.
4. Soviet aid replaced American; Israel gained security on the Gaza border and access to the Gulf of Aqaba - 1 mark.

Answer: Britain and France were humiliated and Eden resigned; Nasser emerged as the hero of Arab nationalism, keeping control of the canal; the blocked canal caused oil shortages in Europe; and the USSR replaced the West as Egypt's patron, funding the Aswan Dam, while Israel gained a quieter border with Gaza and shipping access through the Gulf of Aqaba.

Origin and formation of the PLO

Origin

• Palestinian refugees, scattered in camps after 1948, felt that Arab governments used their cause for their own ends.
• Small guerrilla groups appeared, the most important being Fatah, founded by Yasser Arafat and others in the late 1950s.

Formation

• The Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) was founded in 1964 at a meeting of Palestinian representatives in Jerusalem, backed by the Arab League; its first chairman was Ahmad Shukeiri.
• Its National Charter aimed at the liberation of Palestine through armed struggle and denied Israel's right to exist.
• After the Arab defeat of 1967, guerrilla groups took over the PLO and Yasser Arafat became its chairman (1969).
• It carried out raids and attacks on Israel and Israeli targets; it was expelled from Jordan (1970-71) and moved to Lebanon, and after Israel's invasion of Lebanon (1982) to Tunis.
• In 1974 the Arab League recognised it as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, and Arafat addressed the UN General Assembly.

Worked example

[4] Explain the origin and formation of the PLO. (Understanding)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

1. Refugees after 1948 felt neglected by Arab governments; guerrilla groups such as Fatah formed - 1 mark.
2. PLO founded in 1964 in Jerusalem with Arab League support; first chairman Ahmad Shukeiri - 1 mark.
3. Its Charter aimed to liberate Palestine by armed struggle - 1 mark.
4. After 1967 guerrilla groups took control; Arafat chairman from 1969; recognised as the Palestinians' representative in 1974 - 1 mark.

Answer: The PLO grew out of the frustration of Palestinian refugees after 1948 and from guerrilla groups such as Fatah. It was founded in 1964 in Jerusalem, with Arab League backing, under Ahmad Shukeiri, and its Charter called for the liberation of Palestine by armed struggle. After the 1967 defeat the guerrilla groups took it over, Yasser Arafat became chairman in 1969, and in 1974 it was recognised as the representative of the Palestinian people.

The Six Day War (1967)

Causes
1. Border clashes between Israel and Syria, and Palestinian raids from Syria and Jordan.
2. Soviet reports (incorrect) that Israel was massing troops on the Syrian border.
3. Nasser, under pressure to act as Arab leader, asked UNEF to leave Sinai, moved troops into Sinai and closed the Straits of Tiran to Israeli shipping (May 1967).
4. Egypt, Syria and Jordan formed a military alliance; Arab leaders spoke of destroying Israel.
5. Israel decided on a pre-emptive strike.

Course: on 5 June 1967 Israel destroyed most of the Egyptian air force on the ground, then defeated Egypt, Jordan and Syria in six days.

Consequences
1. Israel captured Sinai and the Gaza Strip from Egypt, the West Bank and East Jerusalem from Jordan, and the Golan Heights from Syria, more than tripling the area under its control.
2. Hundreds of thousands more Palestinians became refugees or came under Israeli occupation.
3. UN Resolution 242 (November 1967) called for Israeli withdrawal from occupied territories in return for Arab recognition of Israel's right to live in peace; Israel did not withdraw.
4. The Arab summit at Khartoum (1967) declared 'no peace, no recognition, no negotiation' with Israel.
5. Humiliation for Nasser; the USSR rearmed Egypt and Syria; the Suez Canal stayed closed until 1975.
6. The PLO became more independent and militant under Arafat; Israel began building settlements in the occupied territories.

Worked example

[4] In June 1967 Israel defeated three Arab neighbours in less than a week. Name the war and explain three of its results. (Analysis)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

1. The Six Day War (June 1967) - 1 mark.
2. Israel occupied Sinai, Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights - 1 mark.
3. UN Resolution 242 called for withdrawal in return for peace; Israel did not withdraw; Khartoum 'three no's' - 1 mark.
4. Arab humiliation; Soviet rearming of Egypt and Syria; more refugees and a more militant PLO - 1 mark.

Answer: The Six Day War of June 1967. Israel occupied Sinai, Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights; UN Resolution 242 called for withdrawal in exchange for peace, but Israel stayed and the Arab states declared at Khartoum 'no peace, no recognition, no negotiation'; and the humiliated Arab states were rearmed by the USSR while the PLO grew more militant.

The Yom Kippur War (1973) and Camp David (1978-79)

Causes of the Yom Kippur War
1. The Arabs wanted to recover the lands lost in 1967; Israel ignored Resolution 242.
2. President Sadat of Egypt (from 1970) wanted to break the 'no war, no peace' stalemate and to force the USA to press Israel into negotiations.
3. Egypt's economic problems: the closed canal and military spending; a limited victory would allow a peace settlement.
4. Pressure from the PLO and Arab opinion; Soviet weapons gave confidence.

Course: on 6 October 1973, the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur, Egypt and Syria attacked; Egyptian forces crossed the Suez Canal and broke through Israel's defences. With an American airlift of arms, Israel recovered, crossed the canal and surrounded an Egyptian army. The USA and USSR arranged a ceasefire through the UN (late October).

Consequences
1. Arab pride was restored and the myth of Israeli invincibility broken; Israel suffered heavy losses and Prime Minister Golda Meir resigned (1974).
2. Oil weapon: Arab oil producers cut production and imposed an embargo on the USA and others; oil prices quadrupled, causing a world economic crisis.
3. American 'shuttle diplomacy' by Henry Kissinger led to disengagement agreements; Egypt reopened the Suez Canal (1975).
4. It prepared the way for Egypt-Israel peace.

Sadat and Camp David

• Sadat, wanting peace and American support, visited Jerusalem and addressed the Israeli parliament (November 1977).
• At Camp David (September 1978) President Carter brought Sadat and Israel's Prime Minister Menachem Begin to agree two frameworks.
• The Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty (March 1979): Israel returned Sinai to Egypt in stages (completed 1982); Egypt recognised Israel, the first Arab state to do so; Israeli ships could use the Suez Canal; a framework for Palestinian self-government in the West Bank and Gaza was outlined.
• Results: Sadat and Begin shared the Nobel Peace Prize (1978); Egypt was suspended from the Arab League; the PLO and other Arab states condemned it; the Palestinian autonomy provisions were not carried out; Sadat was assassinated in 1981. It was nonetheless the first major breakthrough in Arab-Israeli peace.

Worked example

[4] Discuss four causes of the Yom Kippur War. (Understanding)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

1. Arab determination to recover the lands lost in 1967; Israel ignored Resolution 242 - 1 mark.
2. Sadat wanted to break the stalemate and force the USA to press Israel to negotiate - 1 mark.
3. Egypt's economic problems from the closed canal and defence spending - 1 mark.
4. Pressure from the PLO and Arab opinion; Soviet arms gave confidence for a surprise attack on 6 October 1973 - 1 mark.

Answer: The Arabs, above all Egypt and Syria, wanted to recover the territories lost in 1967, which Israel refused to return despite Resolution 242; Sadat aimed to break the deadlock and bring the USA into peace-making; Egypt's economy was suffering from the closed canal and military costs; and pressure from the PLO and Arab opinion, together with new Soviet weapons, encouraged the surprise attack of 6 October 1973.

Intifada, change of attitudes and the Oslo Accords (1993, 1995)

Intifada (Arabic for 'shaking off'): a mass Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation in the West Bank and Gaza that began in December 1987. Methods: stone-throwing by youths, strikes, demonstrations, boycott of Israeli goods, refusal to pay taxes and other civil disobedience. The militant group Hamas emerged in 1987.

Change in attitude

• PLO: weakened in exile and losing ground to Hamas, it accepted UN Resolution 242, recognised Israel's right to exist and renounced terrorism (1988); after backing Iraq in the Gulf War (1991) it lost Gulf funding and needed a settlement.
• Israel: the Intifada was costly and damaged Israel's image; the Labour government of Yitzhak Rabin (1992) was readier to negotiate.
• International: the end of the Cold War and the Madrid Conference (1991) under US-Soviet sponsorship opened talks; secret talks were held in Norway.

Oslo I (Declaration of Principles, signed in Washington, 13 September 1993, by Rabin and Arafat in President Clinton's presence)
1. Mutual recognition: the PLO recognised Israel's right to exist; Israel recognised the PLO as the representative of the Palestinians.
2. Palestinian self-rule for an interim period of five years, starting in Gaza and Jericho, with Israeli withdrawal from these areas.
3. A Palestinian Authority and an elected council to govern these areas.
4. 'Permanent status' issues (Jerusalem, refugees, settlements, borders, security) to be negotiated later.
Rabin, Peres and Arafat shared the Nobel Peace Prize (1994).

Oslo II (Interim Agreement, signed September 1995)
1. The West Bank was divided into Area A (full Palestinian control of the main towns), Area B (Palestinian civil control, joint security) and Area C (full Israeli control, the largest area).
2. Israeli troops to withdraw from six major West Bank towns.
3. Elections to a Palestinian Legislative Council and for the head of the Authority (held in January 1996; Arafat elected).

Why Oslo failed to bring peace
1. The hardest questions (Jerusalem, refugees, settlements, borders) were postponed and never settled.
2. Rabin was assassinated by an Israeli extremist (November 1995).
3. Hamas and Islamic Jihad rejected Oslo and carried out suicide bombings; Israeli extremists also opposed it.
4. The Likud government of Benjamin Netanyahu (1996) did not accept the spirit of Oslo and slowed withdrawals.
5. Israeli settlements in the occupied territories kept expanding.
6. Daily life for Palestinians did not improve: closures, checkpoints and unemployment.
7. The Palestinian Authority was seen as corrupt and authoritarian, losing support.
8. Distrust on both sides; the USA was not seen as a neutral mediator; talks at Camp David in 2000 failed and the Second Intifada broke out in September 2000.

Worked example

[4] Explain four main features of the Oslo I Accord (1993). (Recall)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

1. Mutual recognition of Israel and the PLO - 1 mark.
2. Interim Palestinian self-rule for five years, starting in Gaza and Jericho - 1 mark.
3. A Palestinian Authority and an elected council - 1 mark.
4. Permanent issues (Jerusalem, refugees, settlements, borders) left for later talks - 1 mark.

Answer: Oslo I (1993) provided for (1) mutual recognition between Israel and the PLO; (2) a five-year period of interim Palestinian self-rule beginning in Gaza and Jericho, from which Israel would withdraw; (3) a Palestinian Authority with an elected council; and (4) negotiations later on the permanent issues of Jerusalem, refugees, settlements and borders.

Middle East: Israeli-Palestine Conflict (1916–1993) in real life

Each concept, met in an everyday situation. Read the situation, answer the question in your own words, then compare with the model answer. The one-line hook is what to remember.

Topics in this chapter

• The Intifada and the Oslo Accords (1993 and 1995)
• The Suez Crisis (1956): Causes and Results

Middle East: Israeli-Palestine Conflict (1916–1993): key facts

Promises

Husain-McMahon 1915-16; Sykes-Picot 1916; Balfour 2 November 1917

Mandate for Palestine to Britain 1920-22.

Israel founded

UN partition plan 29 November 1947; Israel proclaimed 14 May 1948

Ben-Gurion.

Arab-Israeli wars

1948-49; Suez 1956; Six Day War 5-10 June 1967; Yom Kippur 6 October 1973

Resolution 242 (1967); oil embargo (1973).

PLO

Founded 1964 (Shukeiri); Arafat chairman 1969

Fatah; recognised 1974.

Camp David

Sadat in Jerusalem 1977; Camp David September 1978; treaty March 1979

Carter, Sadat, Begin; Sinai returned by 1982.

Intifada

From December 1987

'Shaking off'; Hamas founded 1987.

Oslo

Oslo I 13 September 1993; Oslo II September 1995

Rabin assassinated November 1995; Second Intifada 2000.

How the board asks Middle East: Israeli-Palestine Conflict (1916–1993)

The question patterns to expect, and the method that works for each.

Tricks to remember Middle East: Israeli-Palestine Conflict (1916–1993)

Short memory aids. Say each one aloud once, then use it on a question the same day.

• Promises: 'H-S-B' = 'Help, Share, Bestow'

  Husain-McMahon (help us, Arabs), Sykes-Picot (share with France), Balfour (bestow a Jewish home).

  Use it when: Three conflicting promises.

• Wars: '48-56-67-73'

  48 Birth, 56 Canal, 67 Six days, 73 Holy day.

  Use it when: Distinguishing the four wars.

• Oslo areas: 'A-B-C'

  A = All Palestinian; B = Both (civil Palestinian, security joint); C = Complete Israeli control.

  Use it when: Oslo II features.

Middle East: Israeli-Palestine Conflict (1916–1993): board-level solved questions

Ordered from board level to HOTS. Cover the solution, write your own, then compare step by step.

Case-study practice (Section D style)

Read the situation, then answer every part. In the board paper this is a 8-mark question split into 2 + 2 + 4 marks.

Where the marks are

How a typical answer is split into step marks. Show every step: a right final answer alone rarely earns full marks.

Where students lose marks in Middle East: Israeli-Palestine Conflict (1916–1993)

The slips examiners see most often, and what to write instead.

• ✗Mistake: Mixing up the wars

  CISCE examiners' comments, 2024: candidates 'Confused causes and consequences of Yom Kippur War with the Six Day War' and 'Confused consequences of Suez with those of Six-Day War and Yom Kippur War'. In 2025 they 'Confused the war with the Arab-Israeli wars of 1948 or 1973.'

  Wrong working

  Consequence of the 1973 war: Israel captured the Golan Heights and the West Bank.

  Right working

  Israel captured them in 1967; the 1973 war led to the oil embargo and the reopening of the canal (1975).

  ✓Do this: Make one causes-results table per war.

  Usually costs: Up to 4 marks.

• ✗Mistake: Too few distinct reasons for Oslo's failure

  CISCE examiners' comments, 2025: candidates 'Gave generic responses and could not identify eight distinct reasons' and 'Omitted key factors such as Rabin's assassination and continued Israeli settlements.'

  ✓Do this: Learn the eight-point list on this page.

  Usually costs: Up to 4 marks.

• ✗Mistake: Confusing Camp David with Oslo

  CISCE examiners' comments, 2025: candidates 'Confused the Camp David Accord with the Oslo Accord; context of each was often lacking.'

  ✓Do this: Camp David = Egypt and Israel, 1978-79 (Carter). Oslo = Israel and the PLO, 1993 and 1995 (Clinton).

  Usually costs: 1 mark.

• ✗Mistake: Vague meaning of Zionism

  CISCE examiners' comments, 2025: 'Most could not answer, lacking conceptual clarity about Zionism.'

  ✓Do this: Zionism: a movement for a national homeland for the Jewish people in Palestine (the land of Israel).

  Usually costs: 1 mark.

• ✗Mistake: Unspecific consequences of 1967

  CISCE examiners' comments, 2025: candidates 'Did not mention specific outcomes such as capture of the Golan Heights and West Bank.'

  ✓Do this: Name all four territories and Resolution 242.

  Usually costs: 1-2 marks.

Practice questions on Middle East: Israeli-Palestine Conflict (1916–1993)

Write each answer on paper first. Open the hint only if you are stuck, and the answer only when you have finished.

1. Q1 · 1 mark · Very short answerBoard level

   Explain the term Intifada as used of the Palestinian uprising of 1987.

   Hint

   Arabic word.

   Answer

   Intifada ('shaking off') was the mass Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation in the West Bank and Gaza that began in 1987, using strikes, boycotts, civil disobedience and stone-throwing.

2. Q2 · 1 mark · Very short answerBoard level

   Who issued the declaration of 1917 promising a national home for the Jews?

   Hint

   British Foreign Secretary.

   Answer

   Arthur Balfour (the Balfour Declaration, 2 November 1917).

3. Q3 · 1 mark · MCQBoard level

   Which agreement first brought an Arab state to make peace with Israel?
   (a) Sykes-Picot Agreement
   (b) Camp David Accords
   (c) Khartoum Resolution
   (d) Balfour Declaration

   Hint

   Carter, Sadat, Begin.

   Answer

   (b) Camp David Accords.

4. Q4 · 1 mark · MCQHarder board level

   Arrange in order: (P) Oslo I; (Q) Formation of the PLO; (R) Suez Crisis; (S) Sadat's visit to Jerusalem.
   (a) R, Q, S, P
   (b) Q, R, S, P
   (c) R, S, Q, P
   (d) Q, S, R, P

   Hint

   1956, 1964, 1977, 1993.

   Answer

   (a) R, Q, S, P.

5. Q5 · 4 marks · Short answerHarder board level

   [4] Explain the role of Sadat in the peace process.

   Hint

   1973, 1977, 1978-79, cost.

   Answer

   (1) He launched the 1973 war to break the stalemate and bring the USA into peace-making. (2) He made a historic visit to Jerusalem and addressed the Knesset (1977). (3) He negotiated the Camp David Accords with Begin under Carter (1978) and signed the peace treaty (1979), recovering Sinai. (4) He shared the Nobel Peace Prize but was condemned by the Arab world and assassinated in 1981.

6. Q6 · 4 marks · Short answerHarder board level

   [4] Why did the British mandate in Palestine end in 1948?

   Hint

   Violence, cost, US pressure, UN.

   Answer

   (1) Arab-Jewish violence and Jewish terrorism against the British (King David Hotel, 1946) made the mandate unmanageable. (2) Britain, exhausted by the war, could not afford to keep large forces there. (3) The USA pressed Britain to admit more Jewish refugees after the Holocaust. (4) Britain handed the problem to the UN (1947), which voted for partition, and Britain withdrew in May 1948.

7. Q7 · 4 marks · Short answerHOTS / competency

   [4] Analyse the significance of UN Resolution 242.

   Hint

   Land for peace; ambiguity.

   Answer

   (1) It set out the principle of 'land for peace': Israeli withdrawal from territories occupied in 1967 in return for Arab recognition of Israel's right to live in peace. (2) It became the basis of later peace efforts, including Camp David and Oslo. (3) Its wording ('territories', not 'the territories') was ambiguous, letting Israel argue it need not withdraw from all. (4) It referred to refugees but not to Palestinian statehood, so the PLO at first rejected it, accepting it only in 1988.

8. Q8 · 4 marks · Short answerHarder board level

   [4] Explain the main features of Oslo II (1995).

   Hint

   A-B-C; towns; elections.

   Answer

   (1) The West Bank was divided into Areas A (full Palestinian control), B (Palestinian civil control with joint security) and C (Israeli control). (2) Israeli forces were to withdraw from six major Palestinian towns. (3) Elections were to be held for a Palestinian Legislative Council and its head (held in 1996; Arafat elected). (4) Permanent-status issues remained for later negotiations.

9. Q9 · 8 marks · Long answerHOTS / competency

   [8] Why did Egypt and Syria go to war with Israel in October 1973, and how did the war change the region? (Four points each.)

   Hint

   Land, Sadat, economy, PLO; morale, Meir, oil, canal.

   Answer

   Causes: (1) Arab wish to regain lands lost in 1967, with Israel ignoring Resolution 242; (2) Sadat's aim to break the stalemate and force US involvement; (3) Egypt's economic difficulties; (4) pressure from the PLO and Arab opinion, with Soviet arms; the surprise attack came on 6 October 1973. Consequences: (1) Arab pride restored and Israel's invincibility questioned; (2) heavy Israeli losses and Golda Meir's resignation; (3) the Arab oil embargo and a fourfold rise in oil prices; (4) Kissinger's diplomacy, disengagement and the reopening of the Suez Canal (1975), leading to Camp David.

10. Q10 · 8 marks · Long answerHOTS / competency

    [8] The Oslo Accords raised great hopes in 1993. Explain eight reasons why those hopes were not fulfilled.

    Hint

    Issues, people, groups, facts on the ground.

    Answer

    (1) Core issues (Jerusalem, refugees, borders) were postponed. (2) Israeli settlements kept expanding. (3) Rabin was assassinated in 1995. (4) Netanyahu's Likud government (1996) slowed implementation. (5) Hamas and Islamic Jihad rejected Oslo and used suicide bombings. (6) Palestinian daily life did not improve, with closures and unemployment. (7) The Palestinian Authority was seen as corrupt and lost credibility. (8) Mutual distrust and the failure of the 2000 Camp David talks led to the Second Intifada, ending the process.

Test your recall

Answer in your head or on paper first, then open the card. Pulling an answer out of memory makes it stick far better than re-reading.

1. 1.Who founded modern Zionism?Show answer

   Theodor Herzl.

2. 2.When was Israel proclaimed?Show answer

   14 May 1948.

3. 3.When did Nasser nationalise the Suez Canal Company?Show answer

   26 July 1956.

4. 4.Who was the first chairman of the PLO?Show answer

   Ahmad Shukeiri (1964).

5. 5.What were the Khartoum 'three no's'?Show answer

   No peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel, no negotiation with it (1967).

6. 6.Who assassinated Rabin?Show answer

   An Israeli extremist opposed to Oslo, in November 1995.

Quick revision checklist

The night before the exam: can you do each of these without looking?

• ☐Zionism: Herzl; homeland in Palestine. Arab nationalism: independence and unity.
• ☐Husain-McMahon (1915-16), Sykes-Picot (1916), Balfour (1917): conflicting promises.
• ☐UN partition 1947; Israel 14 May 1948; war 1948-49; refugees; West Bank to Jordan, Gaza to Egypt.
• ☐Suez 1956: Aswan, nationalisation, Sevres plan; Anglo-French humiliation; Nasser's triumph.
• ☐PLO 1964 (Shukeiri); Arafat 1969.
• ☐Six Day War 1967: Sinai, Gaza, West Bank, East Jerusalem, Golan; Resolution 242; Khartoum.
• ☐Yom Kippur 1973: Sadat's surprise attack; oil embargo; Meir resigns; canal reopened 1975.
• ☐Camp David 1978; treaty 1979: Sinai for recognition; Egypt suspended; Sadat killed 1981.
• ☐Intifada 1987; Oslo I 1993 (recognition, Gaza-Jericho, Authority); Oslo II 1995 (Areas A, B, C; elections).
• ☐Failure: core issues, settlements, Rabin's murder, Netanyahu, Hamas, poor conditions, PA corruption, Second Intifada.

Middle East: Israeli-Palestine Conflict (1916–1993): frequently asked questions