HISTORY 244 Lecture Notes - Lecture 18: Greater Israel, Kadima, Likud
Outline -- Israel Returns To Unilateralism
I. Intro
● Both concluded that the other side were not capable of peace
● Propose their will by force
● Had put great hope in peace process
● When oslo led to the second intifada, israeli turned against negotiations all
together
● Convinced that any improvement w
● 3 unilateral strategies
○ Crushed second intifada
○ Built a separation barrier/ security fence to separate west bank from israeli
proper
○ Left gaza
II. The Second Intifada Builds
● Spurred israelis return to unilateralism and deep pecism to pals
● September 2000 after sharon's visit
● Didn't crest for a year
● Insurgency was led by hamas and fatah militias who tried to compete against
hamas
● By spring 2001, pal guerilla ambushes and bombs, israeli strikes were
approaching a small scale war in west bank
● Terrorists moved past west bank into israeli proper
○ Terrorists- used violence on civilians for political purposes
● Suicide vests has high explosives
● Killed 22 young people
● March 2002, suicide bomber attacked a passover religious celebration
● Killed 30 old people and hurt 140
● Friends called o father of suicide bomber
● Militants killed 685 israeli and ____ over 4,500
● Idf killed and wounded over twice as many pals
○ ⅔ of israeli deaths were civilians
○ Over ⅔ of pal deaths were militants
III. Israel (and USA) Move Right
● Labor mantra - if we offer to swap land for peace, if we end the settlement, then
we’ll end the conflict
● Hopelessly naive
● Offered an end to settlement- in reply terrorists killed 14x civilians in 2002 than in
1993 when negotiations began
● Elections swept barak out of power, his career was discredited by oslo
● In came sharon and likud party
● Formed center right coalition
● Sharons outlook was more insync with new bush administration which took office
in 2001
● 9/11 reinforced bushes pro israel instincts
○ He and many americans saw that israel and america were allies in a war
against terrorism
● Discovery that arafat was helping to finance and organize second intifada and
giving arms to hamas only reinforced
IV. Operation Defensive Shield
● When sharon took office, ordered
● Stepped up assassination of guerilla leaders
● Intifada only intensified
● Suicide bombers celebrated with pictures on trading cards which were
accumulated by children
● Israelis were scared to leave their house
● March 2002, suicide bombing caused screaming headlines throughout israel -
final straw
● Sharon authorized military's biggest action since invasion of lebanon
● Full scale, reoccupation of west bank
● Late 2002, the combo of assassinations and forms of military pressure plus
economic pressure began to take a toll
● Second intifada began to collapse
● Suicide bombers declined and stopped in 2004
● Sharons nickname was the bulldozer
●
V. Rethinking Strategy
● Only conclusion is theyd have to withdraw from most of the territories
● Intifada showed you couldnt occupy all territories
● Russian jews now gathered in israel
● Motivated by demography
● Despite massive immigration, the higher arab birthrate meant the majority of jews
in mandate of pal was declining
● In 67 they were 64% between river and sea, and now it was 53%
● Israel could not give them citizenship bc theyd soon make israel into an arab
majority country
● Israel couldnt control many hostile non-citizens w out abandoning its claims to be
a democracy
Document Summary
Outline -- israel returns to unilateralism: intro. Both concluded that the other side were not capable of peace. Had put great hope in peace process. When oslo led to the second intifada, israeli turned against negotiations all together. Built a separation barrier/ security fence to separate west bank from israeli proper. Spurred israelis return to unilateralism and deep pecism to pals. Insurgency was led by hamas and fatah militias who tried to compete against hamas. By spring 2001, pal guerilla ambushes and bombs, israeli strikes were approaching a small scale war in west bank. Terrorists moved past west bank into israeli proper. Terrorists- used violence on civilians for political purposes. March 2002, suicide bomber attacked a passover religious celebration. Killed 30 old people and hurt 140. Friends called o father of suicide bomber. Militants killed 685 israeli and ____ over 4,500. Idf killed and wounded over twice as many pals. Over of pal deaths were militants.
