The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a long-standing dispute over competing claims to the Holy Land, which includes disputes over borders, Jerusalem, security, and Palestinian refugees. The conflict dates back to the late 19th and early 20th centuries when major nationalist movements among Jews and Arabs emerged, both seeking sovereignty for their people in the Middle East. The United Nations adopted Resolution 181 in 1947, which sought to divide the British Mandate of Palestine into Arab and Jewish states. On May 14, 1948, the State of Israel was created, sparking the first Arab-Israeli War. The war ended in 1949 with Israels victory, but 750,000 Palestinians were displaced, and the territory was divided into three parts: the State of Israel, the West Bank (of the Jordan River), and the Gaza Strip.
The conflict has continually flared into conflict, including multistate wars, armed uprisings (intifadas), and terrorist acts. The 1967 Six-Day War was a major turning point, which culminated in Israels occupation of East Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza. In its aftermath, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 242, which called for Israel to withdraw from occupied lands to secure and recognize borders in exchange for peace. The outlook for Israeli-Palestinian negotiations is bleak, with divisions between the two sides.
The primary approach to solving the conflict today is a so-called "two-state solution" that would establish Palestine as an independent state in Gaza and most of the West Bank, leaving the rest of the land to Israel. However, the two sides are still deeply divided over key issues, including the status of Jerusalem, the borders of a future Palestinian state, and the right of return for Palestinian refugees. The conflict has resulted in significant human rights violations, including Israels continuing oppressive and discriminatory system of governing Palestinians in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, which Amnesty International has described as a system of apartheid.
