The Israeli-Palestinian conflict dates back to the late 19th century when Zionists sought to establish a homeland for the Jewish people in Ottoman-controlled Palestine. The conflict began to escalate in 1947 when the United Nations adopted Resolution 181, known as the Partition Plan, which sought to divide the British Mandate of Palestine into Arab and Jewish states. On May 14, 1948, the State of Israel was created, sparking the first Arab-Israeli War. The war ended in 1949 with Israels victory, but 750,000 Palestinians were displaced, and the territory was divided into three parts: the State of Israel, the West Bank (of the Jordan River), and the Gaza Strip. Over the following years, tensions rose in the region, particularly between Israel and Egypt, Jordan, and Syria.
In 1967, following a series of maneuvers by Egyptian President Abdel Gamal Nasser, Israel preemptively attacked Egyptian and Syrian air forces, starting the Six-Day War. The war resulted in an Israeli victory, with Israel annexing territory beyond the partition borders for a proposed Jewish state and into the borders for a proposed Palestinian Arab state. Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Egypt signed the 1949 Armistice Agreements with Israel. The remaining territories, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, were occupied by Egypt and Transjordan, respectively. Jordan also annexed East Jerusalem while Israel administered West Jerusalem.
The status of the city as Israels capital and the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip created a new set of contentious issues in the conflict. The conflict has continued to escalate over the years, with various military confrontations and uprisings.
