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Palestinian people

Palestinians are people with family origins mainly in Palestine Palestine

Palestine is one of several names for the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea [i] and the ba ... 

. Their religion is primarily Islam Islam

Islam is a monotheistic [i] religion [i] based upon the Qur'an [i], which adherents believe w ... 

, with Christianity Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic [i] religion [i] centered on Jesus of Nazareth [i] ... 

, Judaism Judaism

Judaism is the religion [i] of the Jew [i]ish people. ... 

, Druze Druze

The Druze are a distinct religious community based mostly in the Middle East [i] who are an offshoot of ... 

, and other minorities. Today, they are mainly Arabic Arabic language

The Arabic language , or simply Arabic , is the largest member of the Semitic [i] branch of the Afro-Asiatic [i] ... 

-speaking. Under the British mandate Palestine (mandate)

The Mandate for Palestine, also known as the Mandate of Palestine or British Mandate of Pal... 

 period from 1918 to 1948, the term "Palestinian" referred to anyone native to Palestine, regardless of their religion; Muslim Muslim

A Muslim is an adherent of Islam [i]. ... 

, Christian, Jew Jew

Jews are followers of Judaism [i] or, more generally, members of the Jewish people , an ethno [i] ... 

, or Druze Druze

The Druze are a distinct religious community based mostly in the Middle East [i] who are an offshoot of ... 

. Since the creation of Israel Israel

Israel , officially the State of Israel, is a country in Western Asia [i] on the so ... 

, the application of "Palestinian" to native Palestinian Jews has lessened, and they are now simply identified as "Israelis Israelis

Israelis are citizens of modern Israel [i]. ... 

" and are not distinguished from the majority of Israeli Israel

Israel , officially the State of Israel, is a country in Western Asia [i] on the so ... 

 Jew Jew

Jews are followers of Judaism [i] or, more generally, members of the Jewish people , an ethno [i] ... 

s resultant from the modern Zionist Zionism

Zionism is a political movement [i] that supports a homeland [i] for the Jew [i] ... 

 migrations.

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Encyclopedia


The term "Palestinian" has other usages, for which see definitions of Palestinian Definitions of Palestine and Palestinian

The term Palestine [i] and the related term Palestinian [i] have several overla ... 

.


Palestinians are people with family origins mainly in Palestine Palestine

Palestine is one of several names for the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea [i] and the ba ... 

. Their religion is primarily Islam Islam

Islam is a monotheistic [i] religion [i] based upon the Qur'an [i], which adherents believe w ... 

, with Christianity Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic [i] religion [i] centered on Jesus of Nazareth [i] ... 

, Judaism Judaism

Judaism is the religion [i] of the Jew [i]ish people. ... 

, Druze Druze

The Druze are a distinct religious community based mostly in the Middle East [i] who are an offshoot of ... 

, and other minorities. Today, they are mainly Arabic Arabic language

The Arabic language , or simply Arabic , is the largest member of the Semitic [i] branch of the Afro-Asiatic [i] ... 

-speaking.

Under the British mandate Palestine (mandate)

The Mandate for Palestine, also known as the Mandate of Palestine or British Mandate of Pal... 

 period from 1918 to 1948, the term "Palestinian" referred to anyone native to Palestine, regardless of their religion; Muslim Muslim

A Muslim is an adherent of Islam [i]. ... 

, Christian, Jew Jew

Jews are followers of Judaism [i] or, more generally, members of the Jewish people , an ethno [i]... 

, or Druze Druze

The Druze are a distinct religious community based mostly in the Middle East [i] who are an offshoot of ... 

. Since the creation of Israel Israel

Israel , officially the State of Israel, is a country in Western Asia [i] on the so ... 

, the application of "Palestinian" to native Palestinian Jews has lessened, and they are now simply identified as "Israelis Israelis

Israelis are citizens of modern Israel [i]. ... 

" and are not distinguished from the majority of Israeli Israel

Israel , officially the State of Israel, is a country in Western Asia [i] on the so ... 

 Jew Jew

Jews are followers of Judaism [i] or, more generally, members of the Jewish people , an ethno [i]... 

s resultant from the modern Zionist Zionism

Zionism is a political movement [i] that supports a homeland [i] for the Jew [i] ... 

 migrations. While some also exclude Israeli Arab Arab citizens of Israel

Arab citizens of Israel are Arab [i]s who are citizens of the State of Israel [i]. ... 

s from today's definition of "Palestinians," others do not. Thus the term over the centuries has largely shifted from a regional to an ethnic and a political description.

The Palestinian National Covenant, as revised by the Palestine Liberation Organization Palestine Liberation Organization

The Palestine Liberation Organization is a political and paramilitary organization regarded by Arab s... 

 in 1968, defines Palestinians as those Arab citizens who were living normally in Palestine up to 1947, and all their descendants through the male line. For those who were Jewish Jew

Jews are followers of Judaism [i] or, more generally, members of the Jewish people , an ethno [i]... 

, the requirement was that they had resided in Palestine until the beginning of the Zionist Zionism

Zionism is a political movement [i] that supports a homeland [i] for the Jew [i] ... 

 migrations Migration

Migration occurs when living things move from one biome [i] to another.... 

. For this purpose, the Zionist migrations are considered to have begun in 1917.

The official designation of "Palestinian refugee Palestinian refugee

In the Israeli-Palestinian conflict [i], a Palestinian refugee is a refugee [i] from Palestine [i] ... 

" refers to anyone who registered as a Palestinian Refugee Refugee

A refugee is a person seeking asylum in a foreign country in order to escape persecution [i], war [i], terrorism [i] ... 

 with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East  and any of those registrants' descendents in the male line. Under UNRWA's operational definition, Palestine refugees are persons whose normal place of residence was Palestine between June 1946 and May 1948, who lost both their homes and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict.

Palestinian demographics



While the largest single population of Palestinians is found in the lands which constituted Mandate for Palestine Palestine

Palestine is one of several names for the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea [i] and the ba ... 

, over half of Palestinians live elsewhere as refugees Refugee

A refugee is a person seeking asylum in a foreign country in order to escape persecution [i], war [i], terrorism [i] ... 

 and emigrant Emigration

Emigration is the act and the phenomenon of leaving one's native country to settle [i] abroad. ... 

s. In the absence of actual censuses, counting large populations is very difficult. However, in 2001 the Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs collated the estimates of world-wide distribution of Palestinians quoted in the table below.
Country or region Population
West Bank West Bank

[i] in the [[Middle East]... 

 and Gaza Strip Gaza Strip

The Gaza Strip is a narrow coastal strip [i] of land along the Mediterranean [i], in t ... 

 
3,700,000 or 2,490,000
Jordan Jordan

Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , is an Arab [i] country in the Middle East [i] ... 

 
2,598,000
Israel Israel

Israel , officially the State of Israel, is a country in Western Asia [i] on the so ... 

 
1,213,000
Syria Syria

Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in the Middle East [i]. ... 

 
395,000
Lebanon Lebanon

Lebanon, officially the Lebanese democratic Republic , is a small, largely mountainous [i] country ... 

 
388,000
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the largest country on the Arabian Peninsula [i]. ... 

 
287,000
The Americas Americas

he Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere [i] or New World [i] consisting o ... 

 
216,000
Egypt Egypt

[i] country in [[North Africa]... 

 
58,000
Other Gulf states  152,000
Other Arab states 113,000
Other countries 275,000
TOTAL 9,395,000
Note: The Palestinian population in the West Bank West Bank

[i] in the [[Middle East]... 

 and Gaza Gaza

Gaza is the largest city within the Gaza Strip [i], part of the Palestinian territories [i].... 

 has been disputed in recent research - see Demographics of Palestine.


In Jordan Jordan

Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , is an Arab [i] country in the Middle East [i] ... 

 today, there is no official census data about how many of the inhabitants of Jordan are Palestinians; estimates range from 50% to 80%. Some political researchers attribute this to the Jordanian policy of not further widening the gap between the two main population groups in Jordan: its original Bedouin Bedouin

Bedouin, derived from the Arabic [i] ' , a generic name for a desert-dweller, is ... 

 population that holds most of the administrative posts and the Palestinians who are predominant in the economy.

Many Palestinians have settled in the United States United States

The United States of America, also known as the United States, the U.S., the U.S.A., a... 

, particularly in the Chicago area.

In South America South America

South America is a continent [i] situated in the western hemisphere [i] and, mostly, ... 

, around 600,000 people of Palestinian origin reside. Palestinian emigration Emigration

Emigration is the act and the phenomenon of leaving one's native country to settle [i] abroad. ... 

 to South America took place largely, but not exclusively, for economic reasons before the Arab-Israeli conflict Arab-Israeli conflict

The Arab-Israeli conflict spans about a century of political tensions and open hostilities.... 

. Many came from the Bethlehem Bethlehem

Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank [i] under Palestinian Authority [i] considered a central hub of Pa ... 

 area. Those emigrating to South America were mainly Christian. Half of the Palestinian-origin people in South America are in Chile Chile

Chile, officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America [i] occupying a long coast ... 

 and El Salvador El Salvador

El Salvador is a country in Central America [i] with a population of approximately 6.9 million people. ... 

  and Honduras Honduras

Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America [i], bordered to th ... 

  also have substantial Palestinian populations. These two countries have had presidents of Palestinian ancestry . Belize Belize

Belize is a small nation on the eastern coast of Central America [i] on the Caribbean Sea [i] bordered ... 

, which has a smaller Palestinian population, has a Palestinian Minister — Said Musa.

The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics announced on October 20, 2004 that the number of Palestinians worldwide at the end of 2003 is 9.6 million, an increase of 800,000 since 2001.

However, in 2005, a comprehensive assessment of the PCBS figures and methodology was conducted by the American-Israel Demographic Research Group. In their critique, they claimed that several errors in the PCBS methodology and assumptions artificially inflated the numbers by a total of 1.3 million. The PCBS numbers were cross-checked against a variety of other sources . The errors claimed in their analysis included: birth rate Birth rate

In demography [i], the crude birth rate of a population is the number of childbirth [i]s per 1000 person ... 

 errors , immigration & emmigration errors , failure to account for migration to Israel , double-counting Jerusalem Jerusalem

Jerusalem is Israel [i]'s capital [i] and largest city, with a population of 724,000 contained in 123 ... 

 Arabs , counting former residents now living abroad and other discrepancies . Their research was reported in several media outlets, including Ynet news, the online portal of Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth Yedioth Ahronoth

Yedioth Ahronoth is a major Hebrew language tabloid [i] newspaper published in Israel [i]. ... 

  and the newssite Cybercast News Service Cybercast News Service

The Cybercast News Service is a conservative [i] news [i] website [i] operated by the Media Research Center [i] ... 

 . The results of their research was also presented before the United States House of Representatives United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers [i] of the United States Congress [i] ... 

 on March 8, 2006.

Palestinian Arabs

A Palestinian Arab is an Arab of Palestine - either the historical region of Palestine Palestine

Palestine is one of several names for the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea [i] and the ba ... 

 or any of the political divisions designated as "Palestine".
Journalists Journalist

A journalist is a person who practises journalism [i], the gathering and dissemination of information ab ... 

, historians and some diplomats Diplomacy


Diplomacy is the art and practice of conducting negotiation [i]s between representatives of groups or ... 

 or government officials frequently refer to Palestianian Arabs as "Palestinians" for short.

According to the PLO Palestine Liberation Organization

The Palestine Liberation Organization is a political and paramilitary organization regarded by Arab s... 

, the "homeland of Arab Palestinian people" is Palestine Palestine

Palestine is one of several names for the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea [i] and the ba ... 

, an "indivisible territorial unit" having "the boundaries it had during the British Mandate".

Refugees

Main article: Palestinian refugees Palestinian refugee

In the Israeli-Palestinian conflict [i], a Palestinian refugee is a refugee [i] from Palestine [i] ... 

 for more detail.

4,255,120 Palestinians are registered as refugees Palestinian refugee

In the Israeli-Palestinian conflict [i], a Palestinian refugee is a refugee [i] from Palestine [i] ... 

 with UNRWA; this number includes the descendants of refugees from the 1948 war, but excludes those who have emigrated to areas outside of the UNRWA's remit . Thus, if the estimates above are correct, almost half of all Palestinians are registered refugees.

Religions


The British United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland

| align="center" colspan="2"| United Kingdom ofGreat Britain and Ireland
... 

 census of 1922 counted 752,048 in Palestine Palestine

Palestine is one of several names for the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea [i] and the ba ... 

, comprising 589,177 Muslim Muslim

A Muslim is an adherent of Islam [i]. ... 

s, 83,790 Jew Jew

Jews are followers of Judaism [i] or, more generally, members of the Jewish people , an ethno [i]... 

s, 71,464 Christians and 7,617 persons belonging to other groups . Bedouin Bedouin

Bedouin, derived from the Arabic [i] ' , a generic name for a desert-dweller, is ... 

 were not counted, but a British study estimated their number at 70,860 in 1930 .

Currently, no reliable data are available for the worldwide Palestinian population; Bernard Sabella of Bethlehem University estimates it as 6% Christian. However, within the West Bank West Bank

[i] in the [[Middle East]... 

 and Gaza Strip Gaza Strip

The Gaza Strip is a narrow coastal strip [i] of land along the Mediterranean [i], in t ... 

, according to the Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs, the Palestinian population is 97% Muslim Muslim

A Muslim is an adherent of Islam [i]. ... 

 and 3% Christian; there are also about 300 Samaritan Samaritan

Samaritans "Shamerim Yisraelim" are both a religious and an ethnic group [i]. ... 

s and a few thousand Jews from the Neturei Karta Neturei Karta

Neturei Karta is a group of Haredi [i] Jews who reject all forms of Zionism [i] and act... 

 group who consider themselves Palestinian. Within Israel, 68% of the non-Jewish population is Muslim Muslim

A Muslim is an adherent of Islam [i]. ... 

, 9% Christian, 7% Druze Druze

The Druze are a distinct religious community based mostly in the Middle East [i] who are an offshoot of ... 

, and 15% "other".

The ancestry of the Palestinians

Canaanites, believed to have migrated in the 3rd millenium from the inner Arabian Peninsula Arabian Peninsula

The Arabian Peninsula is a peninsula [i] in Southwest Asia [i] at the junction of Africa [i] and Asia [i] ... 

, are considered to be among the first to live in cities in Palestine. . Additionally, Israelites Israelite

An Israelite is a member of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, descended from the twelve sons of the Bib... 

, Philistines Philistines

The historic Philistines were a people [i] who inhabited the southern coast of Canaan [i] aroun ... 

, Romans Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a civilization [i] that grew out of the city-state [i] of Rome [i], founded in the Italian Peninsula [i] ... 

, Arabs, Crusade Crusades

The Crusades were a series of military campaigns waged in the name of Christendom [i] This term refers t ... 

rs, and other people have all settled in the region and intermarried . Many of their descendants converted to Christianity Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic [i] religion [i] centered on Jesus of Nazareth [i] ... 

 and later to Islam Islam

Islam is a monotheistic [i] religion [i] based upon the Qur'an [i], which adherents believe w ... 

, and spoke different languages depending on the lingua franca of the time. For the most part, the Arabization Arabization

Arabization is the gradual transformation of an area into one that speaks Arabic [i] and... 

 of Palestine began in Umayyad times. Increasing conversions to Islam among the local population, together with the immigration of Arabs from Arabia and inland Syria, led to the replacement of Aramaic Aramaic language

Aramaic is a Semitic language [i] with a 3,000-year history [i]. ... 

 by Arabic Arabic language

The Arabic language , or simply Arabic , is the largest member of the Semitic [i] branch of the Afro-Asiatic [i] ... 

 as the area's dominant language. Among the cultural survivals from pre-Arab times are the significant Palestinian Christian community as well as Aramaic loanwords in the local dialect. A distinguishing characteristic of Palestinians is their dialect; unusually among Arabic speakers, speakers of rural Palestinian dialects pronounce the letter qaaf as k . Palestinians, like most other Arabic speakers, thus combine pre-Arab and Arab ancestry; the precise mixture is a matter of debate, on which genetic evidence has begun to shed some light, apparently confirming Ibn Khaldun Ibn Khaldun

Ibn Khaldun was a famous Arab [i] historiographer [i] and historian [i] born in present-day Tunisia [i], ... 

's widely accepted argument that most Arabic speakers descend mainly from acculturated non-Arabs.

According to Sir James Frazer James Frazer

* The Golden Bough [i], 2nd edition
... 

, the majority of Palestinian Arabs are descendants of the ancient Jebusites and Canaanites. In 1902, he wrote in his book The Golden Bough The Golden Bough

The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion is a wide-ranging comparative study of mythology [i] ... 

:
"The Arabic-speaking peasants of Palestine are the progeny of the tribes which settled in the country before the Israelite invasion. They are still adhering to the land. They never left it and were never uprooted from it."


The genetic profile of the Palestinians which has been studied in supports Sir James Frazer James Frazer

* The Golden Bough [i], 2nd edition
... 

 claims:
"Archaeologic and genetic data support that both Jews and Palestinians came from the ancient Canaanites, who extensively mixed with Egyptians, Mesopotamian and Anatolian peoples in ancient times."



The Palestinian Bedouin Bedouin

Bedouin, derived from the Arabic [i] ' , a generic name for a desert-dweller, is ... 

, however, are much more securely known to be Arab by ancestry as well as by culture; their distinctively conservative dialects and pronunciation of qaaf as gaaf group them with other Bedouin Bedouin

Bedouin, derived from the Arabic [i] ' , a generic name for a desert-dweller, is ... 

 across the Arab world and confirm their separate history. Arabic Arabic language

The Arabic language , or simply Arabic , is the largest member of the Semitic [i] branch of the Afro-Asiatic [i] ... 

 onomastic elements began to appear in Edomite inscriptions starting in the 6th century BC, and are nearly universal in the inscriptions of the Nabataean Nabataeans

The Nabataeans were a trading people of ancient Arabia [i], whose oasis settlements in the time of Josephus [i] ... 

s, who arrived there in the 4th-3rd centuries BC. It has thus been suggested that the present day Bedouins of the region may have their origins as early as this period. A few Bedouin are found as far north as Galilee Galilee

The Galilee , meaning "circuit", is a large region overlapping with much of the North District [i] ... 

; however, these seem to be much later arrivals, rather than descendants of the Arabs that Sargon II Sargon II

Sargon II was an Assyria [i]n king. ... 

 settled in Samaria in 720 BC.

As genetic techniques have advanced, it has become possible to look directly into the question of the ancestry of the Palestinians. In recent years, many genetic surveys have suggested that — at least paternally — the various Jewish ethnic divisions and Palestinians, are genetically closer to each other than either is to the Arabs or non-Jewish Europeans.



. These studies look at the prevalence of specific inherited genetic differences among populations, which then allow the relatedness of these populations to be determined, and their ancestry to be traced back . These differences can be the cause of genetic disease or be completely neutral ; they can be inherited maternally , paternally , or as a mixture Genetic recombination

Genetic recombination is the transmission-genetic process by which the combinations of [[allele|alleles]... 

 from both parents ; the results obtained may vary from polymorphism to polymorphism. One study on congenital deafness identified an allele only found in Palestinian and Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews

Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim, are thought to be descended fro... 

 communities, suggesting a common origin ; an investigation of a Y-chromosome Chromosome

A chromosome is a large macromolecule [i] into which DNA [i] is normally packaged in a cell [i].... 

 polymorphism found Lebanese Lebanon

Lebanon, officially the Lebanese democratic Republic , is a small, largely mountainous [i] country ... 

, Palestinian, and Sephardic populations to be particularly closely related ; a third study , looking at Human leukocyte antigen differences among a broad range of populations, found Palestinians to be particularly closely related to Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews

Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim, are thought to be descended fro... 

 and non-Ashkenazi Jews, as well as Middle-Eastern and Mediterranean Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea is a part of the Atlantic Ocean [i] almost completely enclosed by land: on the nor... 

 populations.

One point in which the two populations appear to contrast is in the proportion of sub-Saharan African genes which have entered their gene pools. One study found that Middle Eastern Arabs , unlike other Middle Eastern populations , had what appears to be a substantial gene flow from sub-Saharan Africa Sub-Saharan Africa

[Image:Sub-Saharan-Africa.png|thumb|249px|A polical map showing national divisions in relation to the ecologic... 

  within the past three millennia, possibly due to the slave trade History of slavery

The history of slavery covers many different forms of human exploitation across many cultures and throug... 

.

The origins of Palestinian identity



In Arabic, Filasteen has been the name of the region since the earliest medieval Middle Ages

The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history [i] ... 

 Arab geographers Geographer

A geographer is a scientist [i] whose area of study is geography [i], the study of Earth [i]'s physical ... 

 , and Filasteeni was always a common adjectival noun adopted by natives of the region, starting as early as the first century 1st century

The 1st century was that century [i] which lasted from 1 [i] to 100 [i] according the Gregorian calenda ... 

 after the Hijra

Whereas European colonialism Colonialism

See colony [i] and colonisation [i] for examples of colonialism which do not refer to Western colonialism. ... 

 and to a lesser extent Turkish nationalism Nationalism

Nationalism is an ideology that holds that a nation [i] is the fundamental unit for human [i] social life [i] ... 

 in the Ottoman Empire Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire , is also sometimes known in the West [i] as the Turkish Empire. ... 

 was the main spur in forming national identities and borders elsewhere, the main force in reaction to which Palestinian nationalism developed was Zionism Zionism

Zionism is a political movement [i] that supports a homeland [i] for the Jew [i] ... 

. One of the earliest Palestinian newspapers, Filastin founded in Jaffa Jaffa

Jaffa, is an ancient port city [i] located in Israel [i] on the Mediterranean Sea [i].
... 

 in 1911 by Issa al-Issa, addressed its readers as "Palestinians".

Even before the end of Ottoman administration, Palestine, rather than the Ottoman Empire, was considered by some Palestinians to be their country. On 25 July 1913, for instance, the Palestinian newspaper al-Karmel wrote: "This team possessed tremendous power; not to ignore that Palestine, their country, was part of the Ottoman Empire." The idea of a specifically Palestinian state, however, was at first rejected by most Palestinians; the First Congress of Muslim-Christian Associations , which met for the purpose of selecting a Palestinian Arab representative for the Paris Peace Conference, adopted the following resolution: "We consider Palestine as part of Arab Syria, as it has never been separated from it at any time. We are connected with it by national, religious, linguistic, natural, economic and geographical bonds." However, particularly after the fall of the Ottoman Empire Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire , is also sometimes known in the West [i] as the Turkish Empire. ... 

 and the French conquest of Syria Syria

Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in the Middle East [i]. ... 

, the notion took on greater appeal; in 1920, for instance, the formerly pan-Syrianist mayor of Jerusalem, Musa Qasim Pasha al-Husayni Musa al-Husayni

Musa Kazim al-Husayni was nominated to several senior posts in the Ottoman [i] administra ... 

, said "Now, after the recent events in Damascus Damascus

Damascus is the largest city and capital [i] of Syria [i]. ... 

, we have to effect a complete change in our plans here. Southern Syria no longer exists. We must defend Palestine". Similarly, the Second Congress of Muslim-Christian Associations , passed a resolution calling for an independent Palestine; they then wrote a long letter to the League of Nations League of Nations

The League of Nations was an international organization [i] founded after the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 [i] ... 

 about "Palestine, land of Miracles and the supernatural, and the cradle of religions", demanding, amongst other things, that a "National Government be created which shall be responsible to a Parliament Parliament

A parliament is a legislature [i], especially in those countries whose system of government is based on ... 

 elected by the Palestinian People, who existed in Palestine before the war."

Conflict between Palestinian nationalists and various types of pan-Arabists Pan-Arabism

Pan-Arabism or Arab nationalism is a movement for unification among the Arab [i] peoples and natio ... 

 continued during the British Mandate, but the latter became increasingly marginalised. By 1937, only one of the many Arab political parties in Palestine promoted political absorption into a greater Arab nation as its main agenda. However, the 1948 Arab-Israeli War 1948 Arab-Israeli War

}
|-
|
|}
The 1948 Arab-Israeli War, referred to as the "War of Independence" or as the "War o... 

 resulted in those parts of Palestine which were not part of Israel being occupied by Egypt and Jordan.



The idea of an independent nationality for Palestinian Arabs was greatly boosted by the 1967 Six Day War Six-Day War

The Six-Day War , also known as the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Six Days' War, an-Naksah , ... 

 in which these lands were conquered by Israel; instead of being ruled by different Arab states encouraging them to think of themselves as Jordanians or Egyptians, those in the West Bank and Gaza were now ruled by a state with no desire to make them think of themselves as Israelis, and an active interest in discouraging them from regarding themselves as Egyptians, Jordanians, or Syrians. Moreover, the natives of the West Bank West Bank

[i] in the [[Middle East]... 

 and the Gaza Strip Gaza Strip

The Gaza Strip is a narrow coastal strip [i] of land along the Mediterranean [i], in t ... 

 now shared many interests and problems in common with each other that they did not share with the neighboring countries.

Because of the gradualness of the creation of an Palestinian national identity - and, many allege, for reasons of political convenience - many Israelis did not accept the existence of an independent Palestinian people, as in Golda Meir Golda Meir

Golda Meir was one of the founders of the State of Israel [i].
... 

's statement: "There was no such thing as Palestinians. It was not as though there was a Palestinian people in Palestine considering itself as a Palestinian people and we came and threw them out and took their country from them. They did not exist."
. Today the existence of a unique Palestinian nationality/identity is generally recognized. .

During the few decades after the State of Israel Israel

Israel , officially the State of Israel, is a country in Western Asia [i] on the so ... 

 came into existence, Palestinian expressions of pan-Arabism Pan-Arabism

Pan-Arabism or Arab nationalism is a movement for unification among the Arab [i] peoples and natio ... 

 could be heard from time to time but usually under outside influence. This was especially true in Syria Syria

Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in the Middle East [i]. ... 

 under the influence of the Baath Baath Party

The Arab Socialist Baath Party was founded in 1947 [i] as a radical, secular Arab nationalist political ... 

 party. For example, Zuhayr Muhsin, the leader of the Syrian-funded as-Sa'iqa Palestinian faction and its representative on the PLO Executive Committee, told a Dutch Netherlands

The Netherlands is the Europe [i]an part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands [i] , which is formed ... 

 newspaper in 1977 that "There is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. It is for political reasons only that we carefully emphasize our Palestinian identity." Such opinions also existed in Jordan Jordan

Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , is an Arab [i] country in the Middle East [i] ... 

, where government policy was to de-emphasize the difference between Palestinians and Jordanians for domestic reasons. However, most in the Palestinian organizations saw the struggle as either Palestinian-nationalist or Islamic in nature and these themes predominate even more today.

In 1977, the United Nations United Nations

name = United Nations
Nations Unies
... 

 General Assembly created the "International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People", an annual observance on November 29th.

Politics



The Arab summit meeting in Rabat Rabat

Rabat , population 1.2 million , is the capital [i] of the Kingdom of Morocco [i]. ... 

, Morocco Morocco

The Kingdom of Morocco is a country in North Africa [i]. ... 

 in October 1974 stated that the PLO Palestine Liberation Organization

The Palestine Liberation Organization is a political and paramilitary organization regarded by Arab s... 

 is the "sole legitimate representation of the Palestinian people" . However, Israel, and to a lesser extent the United States and parts of Europe, preferred to deal with what it regarded as more moderate groups for a long period of time.

The Palestinian Authority Palestinian National Authority

The Palestinian National Authority is an interim [i] administrative organization... 

 administers large sections of the West Bank West Bank

[i] in the [[Middle East]... 

 and Gaza Strip Gaza Strip

The Gaza Strip is a narrow coastal strip [i] of land along the Mediterranean [i], in t ... 

, although it lacks actual sovereignty. In recent years, its authority has in practice been challenged by groups such as Hamas Hamas

Hamas is a Palestinian [i] Sunni [i] Islamist [i] organization that current ... 

; however, most such groups continue to recognize its legitimacy in principle. Israel Israel

Israel , officially the State of Israel, is a country in Western Asia [i] on the so ... 

 has publicly acknowledged this authority, but in practice taken actions which paralyse it.

Following the November, 2004 death of long-time Fatah Fatah

Fatah ; a reverse acronym [i] from the Arabic [i] name Harakat al-Tahrir al-Watani al ... 

 party PLO leader and PA chairman Yasser Arafat Yasser Arafat

Yassir Arafat August 24 [i] or August 4 [i], 1929 [i] – November 11 [i], 2004 [i]), born in Cairo [i] ... 

, Fatah member Mahmoud Abbas Mahmoud Abbas

Mahmoud Abbas, commonly known by the kunya [i] Abu Mazen, was elected [i] ... 

 was elected as Palestinian Authority Palestinian National Authority

The Palestinian National Authority is an interim [i] administrative organization... 

 Chairman.

In January, 2006, the List of Change and Reform Hamas

Hamas is a Palestinian [i] Sunni [i] Islamist [i] organization that current ... 

, the political wing of Hamas Hamas

Hamas is a Palestinian [i] Sunni [i] Islamist [i] organization that current ... 

, won a majority of seats in the Palestinian parliament in free elections Palestinian legislative election, 2006

On January 25 2006, elections were held for the Palestinian Legislative Council [i], the legislature of... 

, garnering a 44% plurality of votes cast. This result, a surprise to all parties, was widely interpreted as a protest against Fatah corruption, but was as much a cause of concern for supporters of the peace process Peace process in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

The Peace process [i] in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict [i] has taken shape over the years, despite th ... 

 as Ariel Sharon's rise to power, as Hamas' militant wing is actively involved in the resistance against the occupation and remains steadfast in its refusal to recognise Israel under the current circumstances.

Palestinian citizens of Israel have political representation in the Knesset Knesset

The Knesset is the legislature [i] of Israel [i]. ... 

 . The Israeli government asserts that non-Jewish citizens of Israel have nearly all the same rights and obligations as Jewish Israelis , but there are important differences and restrictions amounting to an implicit apartheid.

See also

  • Arab–Israeli conflict Arab-Israeli conflict

    The Arab-Israeli conflict spans about a century of political tensions and open hostilities.... 

  • Mandate for Palestine Palestine

    Palestine is one of several names for the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea [i] and the ba ... 

  • Definitions of "Palestine" and "Palestinian" Definitions of Palestine and Palestinian

    The term Palestine [i] and the related term Palestinian [i] have several overla ... 

  • Jewish Palestinians
  • List of famous Palestinians
  • Palestine region Palestine

    Palestine is one of several names for the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea [i] and the ba ... 

  • Palestinian Arabic
  • Palestinian economy Palestinian economy

    The Palestinian economy refers to the economy of the Palestinian territories [i], including the West Bank [i], ... 

  • Palestinian exodus Palestinian exodus

    The Palestinian exodus refers to the refugee [i] flight of Palestinian Arabs [i] during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war [i] ... 

  • Palestinian music
  • Palestinian Christian
  • Palestinian refugees Palestinian refugee

    In the Israeli-Palestinian conflict [i], a Palestinian refugee is a refugee [i] from Palestine [i] ... 

  • PLO Palestine Liberation Organization

    The Palestine Liberation Organization is a political and paramilitary organization regarded by Arab s... 



References


  • Argov Z et al. "Hereditary inclusion body myopathy: the Middle Eastern genetic cluster," Neurology May 13, 2003;60:1519-23.

Further reading

  • Gottheil, Fred M. , Middle East Quarterly, Winter 2003, Volume X:1