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Where is Israel?

Israel is located on the east coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the so-called Mashrek and also has a narrow access to the Red Sea in the south near the seaside resort of Eilat. From there, the border with the Egyptian part of the Sinai Peninsula runs north to the Gaza Strip. In the east, the border with Jordan extends north to the Syrian border, although, as we will see later, the route is disputed. Syria and Lebanon surround the country in the northwest and north.

Israel is currently not recognized by 28 states. These are mainly members of the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. But here too there are exceptions. Egypt and Jordan have recognized the country since peace treaties (1979 and 1994). The relationship with Lebanon is more complicated. Israel interprets the joint signing of a maritime border treaty (2022) as de facto recognition. However, Lebanon denies this. Syria does not recognize Israel, but offers the prospect of doing so if Israel withdraws from the Golan Heights. It is therefore worth taking a look at the four disputed areas: the Golan Heights, the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, all of which fell into Israeli hands during the 1967 Six-Day War.

The Golan Heights

Internationally, the Golan Heights is awarded to Syria. In 1967, Israel annexed the area, displacing more than 100,000 Syrian residents. Since then, Israel has controlled the area, with the exception of a narrow belt on the eastern border, which is controlled by UN forces.

Before 1967, Syria had used the area’s higher elevation to bombard northern Israel with artillery. Also of strategic importance is the adjacent Sea of ​​Galilee with its main tributary, the Jordan. They provide Israel with drinking water – and Syria tried to cut off this lifeline.

In 2019, the US, in the form of President Trump, recognized the Golan Heights as Israeli territory. The UN responded immediately and referred to the still valid UN Resolution 497 from 1981. This calls for the return of the Golan Heights to Syria. Despite several attempts, all diplomatic attempts to mediate between Syria and Israel have so far failed.

The West Bank

As the name suggests, the area is located west of the Jordan River, which flows from the Sea of ​​Galilee in an almost straight line from north to south into the Dead Sea. Israel also annexed this area during the Six-Day War. With an area of ​​almost 6,000 square kilometers, the area is more than three times the size of the Golan Heights.

The area was not allocated to the future state of Israel in the UN partition plan of 1947, but was first occupied and then annexed by Jordan a year later (1950) during the Arab-Israeli war. Israel captured the area in the Six-Day War. Since the 1990s, various contracts have regulated an almost incomprehensible tangle of connection areas.

east Jerusalem

The day after Israel declared its independence in 1948, Egyptian, Jordanian, Syrian, Lebanese and Iraqi troops entered the country. Their goal was to immediately destroy the newly established state. While the war ended with an Israeli victory, Jordan managed to occupy the West Bank and the eastern part of Jerusalem. In the eastern part of Jerusalem are the Islamic shrines of the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque, as well as the Western Wall, important for Jews, and the Christian Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Israel has controlled the area since its victory in 1967 and has officially claimed ownership of the eastern part of the city through various laws. This position is consolidated with the expansion of settlement activity and various barriers such as walls. The International Association of States condemns this approach, just as it condemned Jordan’s annexation.

At the same time, Palestinians see Jerusalem as the capital of a future recognized Palestinian state, making the so-called ‘Jerusalem issue’ one of the central problems of the conflict in the Middle East. A solution is still far away at the moment.

The Gaza Strip

On the country’s southwestern border lies the Gaza Strip, which is only 365 square kilometers in size and, like the other areas, was occupied in 1967. Until 2005, Israel allowed its citizens to settle in this section. Ironically, under Ariel Sharon, who was known as a hardliner, in 2005 all settlements were evacuated – sometimes forcibly – and the army was withdrawn. Since then, the border in the east has continued to be controlled by Israel. Egypt is responsible in the West. In 2006, Israel imposed an air, land and sea blockade of the Gaza Strip following the kidnapping of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit by Hamas.

The subsequent power struggle between Fatah and Hamas in the Gaza Strip was extremely bloody and resulted in many civilian casualties. Hamas had the upper hand. Since then, Israel has been repeatedly bombarded with rockets from the Gaza Strip – reportedly more than 4,000 in 2021. In addition, there have been repeated deadly clashes and kidnappings in the border area, causing international uproar.

According to the UN, Israel destroyed more than 6,000 buildings with bombings in 2014. The civilian population is suffering and is largely dependent on foreign humanitarian aid.

Hamas

The majority of last Saturday’s terrorist attacks took place in the Gaza Strip area. The music festival that the terrorists attacked took place outside Kibbutz Re’im (4). Re’im was also the location of the military base that was overrun by Hamas. The Israeli army has now regained control of the base.

At least eight other facilities were attacked simultaneously. These include the kibbutzim Kerem Shalom (1), Sufa (2), Be’eri (5), Nahal Oz (6), Kfar Azza (7) and the settlements of Sderot (8) and HaAsara (9). The Israeli army is currently trying to gain control of the areas.