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Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Last reviewed: 26-02-2008

ROCKY ROAD TO MIDDLE-EAST PEACE


The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is rooted in a seemingly intractable dispute over land claimed by Jews as their biblical birthright and by the Palestinians, who seek self-determination.

  • World's longest refugee crisis
  • Humanitarian suffering in Gaza
  • Palestinian factional fighting

    Despite repeated attempts to end the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians, there is no peace settlement in sight.

    Neither side has fulfilled the commitments it made under the 2003 roadmap - a phased timetable designed to lead to a viable Palestinian state alongside Israel put together by the United States, European Union, Russia and the United Nations.

    Palestinian militant groups continue their attacks on Israeli soldiers and civilians, while Israel - established as a Jewish state in 1948 - continues building settlements in the West Bank.

    Within the Palestinian Territories, a power struggle between rival Palestinian factions has led to the establishment of two administrations. Hamas, a militant group whose stated aim is the destruction of Israel, controls Gaza, while the Fatah party controls the West Bank.

    More than 40 percent of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza - 1.7 million people - are refugees, many of whom live in crowded camps.

    Life in the Palestinian territories has got worse in recent years. Israeli border closures and checkpoints makes it hard for Palestinians to work and trade in Israel or access public services.

    Socio-economic conditions in Gaza, which is subject to the most severe restrictions, have deteriorated particularly sharply and the population is increasingly reliant on food aid.

    At the end of 2008, Israel launched a major operation in Gaza aimed at stopping Hamas militants firing rockets into the Jewish state. The offensive, the biggest in four decades, killed hundreds including many civilians.

    KEY FACTS


    POPULATION
    Israel 6.9 million (U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs, 2006)
    Palestinian territories 3.8 million (U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs, 2006)
    Settlers There are around 460,000 settlers in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem (B'Tselem)
    Refugees There are 4.6 million Palestinian refugees in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, of which 1.3 million live in camps. (UNRWA )
    Palestinian prisoners There are more than 8,000 Palestinians in Israeli prisons, according to B'Tselem.
    POVERTY
    Palestinians living in poverty 57 percent overall - 49 percent in the West Bank and 79 percent in Gaza (UNOCHA, January 2008)
    Palestinians not hooked up to the sewage system Two-thirds (UNOCHA, January 2008)
    ECONOMY
    Israel
    GNI per capita (2006) $18,580 (World Bank)
    Palestinian territories
    GNI per capita (2006) $1,230 (World Bank)
    Percentage below poverty line of $2.3 per day 80 percent in Gaza; 46 percent in the West Bank (World Food Programme, 2007)

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    Lebanese soldiers patrol the border with Israel at al-Abbad point in the village of Houla in south Lebanon July 8,2009. A Lebanese army colonel suspected of collaborating with Israel fled to ...


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