The 50 Years' War
RUNNING HEAD: The 50 Years' War
The 50 Years' War
Shain Ellison Thomas
ABSTRACT
Since its creation in 1948, the state of Israel has been on a constant state of war against those who wish to see it destroyed and its people annihilated. The creation of the state of Israel was the culmniation of centuries of struggle and persecution on the part of the Jews to have or to reclaim their homeland in Palestine which they firmly believed with total conviction was promised to them by God, “Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk and from your father's house to a land that I will show you...to your descendants I will give this land” (Gen. 12:1 & 7, New American Bible). This study will show the struggles Israel went through, the wars it fought, how they fared and what came out of these wars. One will notice that in all these conflicts, hostilities ended through truce or ceasefire and that there has never been a formal treaty ending these conflicts. Another common denominator here is that Israel surprisingly prevailed over them, partly due to that belief that God is on their side and with the material support of the United States. This showed that Israel's enemies never wanted peace and were determined to destroy the Jewish state. But in time and starting with Egypt, they began to realize the futility of their efforts and have made peaceful overtures and surprisingly, gained what they have failed to achieve through force. This study will also attempt to explain that Israel's “proactive” policy in dealing with its enemies is done out of survival, not imperialism as its enemies and critics claim and in an effort to gain understanding on why Israel does what is does.
The 50 Years' War (Israel vs. Arabs) In May 14, 1948, the state of Israel was created, culminating centuries of struggle and survival for the Jewish people as they had been persecuted for centuries following their explusion from Palestine during the Roman occupation, the most extreme of
The 50 Years' War
Shain Ellison Thomas
ABSTRACT
Since its creation in 1948, the state of Israel has been on a constant state of war against those who wish to see it destroyed and its people annihilated. The creation of the state of Israel was the culmniation of centuries of struggle and persecution on the part of the Jews to have or to reclaim their homeland in Palestine which they firmly believed with total conviction was promised to them by God, “Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk and from your father's house to a land that I will show you...to your descendants I will give this land” (Gen. 12:1 & 7, New American Bible). This study will show the struggles Israel went through, the wars it fought, how they fared and what came out of these wars. One will notice that in all these conflicts, hostilities ended through truce or ceasefire and that there has never been a formal treaty ending these conflicts. Another common denominator here is that Israel surprisingly prevailed over them, partly due to that belief that God is on their side and with the material support of the United States. This showed that Israel's enemies never wanted peace and were determined to destroy the Jewish state. But in time and starting with Egypt, they began to realize the futility of their efforts and have made peaceful overtures and surprisingly, gained what they have failed to achieve through force. This study will also attempt to explain that Israel's “proactive” policy in dealing with its enemies is done out of survival, not imperialism as its enemies and critics claim and in an effort to gain understanding on why Israel does what is does.
The 50 Years' War (Israel vs. Arabs) In May 14, 1948, the state of Israel was created, culminating centuries of struggle and survival for the Jewish people as they had been persecuted for centuries following their explusion from Palestine during the Roman occupation, the most extreme of