Something is happening in Israel.
I don’t think it would be an understatement to say that the State of Israel has been in
the spotlight since it was founded in 1948.
We’re talking about 70 years of wars with their Arab neighbors; seven decades of severe
tensions due to the Palestinian situation.
70 years of international isolation only mitigated by the strong support of the United States.
But hold on, because now all that is changing.
In recent years, Israel has gone from being as vilified as Lindsey Lohan to being as exalted
as Natalie Portman.
You think I'm exaggerating, right?
Well, take a look at what 2018’s number one villain had to say about the country.
Saudi Prince Says Israelis Have Right to ‘Their Own Land’ NYTimes)
The turnaround is so dramatic that the Israeli national anthem has made it to - wait for
it - Abu Dhabi.
See for yourself.
In October 2018, at the medal ceremony of an international judo tournament in Abu Dhabi,
the Israeli national anthem was played for the first time ever in the United Arab Emirates.
The woman you see crying emotionally is the Israeli Minister of Culture and Sports, Miri
Regev, a former Brigadier General in the 2006 Lebanon War.
A bit of an about-face huh?
Especially if we take into account that to this day not one country in the Arabian peninsula
officially recognizes Israel as a State.
But that’s not the end of it.
Around the same time, the Israeli Prime Minister himself, Benjamin Netanyahu, made a secret
visit to the Sultan of Oman.
And, in the past few months, several Israeli ministers have visited the Dubai emirate and
have even met with Qatari representatives.
You heard that correctly.
So how on earth did Israel achieve such diplomatic advances in such a short time?
What do the Palestinians think of all this?
And perhaps the most important question of all:
Is an enduring, peaceful resolution finally in sight for this region that has spent decades
as the planet’s powder keg?
Today, in VisualPolitik, we’ll answer all these questions, but first, let’s rewind
for a bit of History.
Listen up.
(A DIFFICULT BIRTH)
May 14th, 1948.
Ben Gurion proclaims the independence of the State of Israel.
The very next day, this brand new nation is invaded by the armies of five Arab countries.
But...why was there such a rapid and dramatic reaction??
Well, it turns out that since the late 1800s, Jews had been buying up land in Palestine,
which, at that time, was under the control of the Ottoman Empire.
In the late nineteenth century, anti-Semitism was running rife in Europe, so more and more
Jewish people were emigrating to the traditional land of their ancestors.
After the First World War, however, Palestine was put under a mandate leaving the running
of the country in the hands of the UK.
Problem sorted then?
Not exactly.
If the British put forward policies favouring the Jews, the Arabs reacted with riots and
protests of all kinds.
On the other hand, if any British measure favoured Arab interests, Jewish armed groups
leapt into action.
Twenty years later, World War II further complicated the situation.
As you can imagine, the Jewish exodus to Palestine only increased in the wake of the horrors
of the Holocaust.
What’s more, it highlighted the need for a dedicated Jewish state.
Meanwhile in Palestine, the situation became increasingly unsustainable.
Overwhelmed by events, the British authorities handed control over to the United Nations.
And that chain of events brought about one of the most contentious resolutions in the
history of the United Nations: Resolution 181.
With this resolution, the UN proposed dividing Palestine into two states.
The first of roughly 14,000 square kilometres would be controlled by a Hebrew Government
with a Jewish population of around 60% but the remaining 40% would be Arab.
The second, slightly smaller state of around 11,000 kilometres would be controlled by the
Palestinian people, with a Jewish population of barely 2%.
At the same time Jerusalem, Bethlehem and the Holy Lands would be placed under an international
mandate.
The Jews accepted the resolution.
The Arabs did not.
That’s why, the day after the proclamation of Israel's independence in 1948, the country
was invaded by Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan.
And with that began a conflict that’s dragged out over the past seven decades.
As it happened, Israel, despite being a fledgling nation and facing the armies of five different
countries, was the clear victor..
And this victory allowed Israel to expand its territory considerably.
It was also the first victory of the newly created Israel Defense Forces, which went
on to become one of the most powerful armies in the world today.
But this wouldn’t be the only war between Israel and the Arab countries.
Far from it..
In 1967 the so-called 6-day war took place, during which Israel took control of the Golan
Heights, East Jerusalem, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula.
Just six days.
It was such a humiliating defeat for the Arab countries that they spent time planning their
revenge.
Six years later, during the Yom Kippur Jewish holiday, Israel was attacked by the Egyptian
and Syrian armies.
This time the war didn’t last 6 days but 19, and the result was practically the same:
A clear and rapid victory for the Israeli army.
It was possibly as a result of this war that the Egyptian President, Anwar al-Sadat, made
one of his most famous statements:
(“Russians can give you arms but only the United States can give you a solution”.
Anwar al-Sadat, Egyptian President.)
(SADAT TAKES THE FIRST SHOT)
1978 marked a turning point in Israel's relationship with its neighbors.
The Egyptian president, Anwar al-Sadat traveled to Jerusalem, recognized the existence of
Israel as a State before the Hebrew Parliament and got ready to negotiate a Peace Treaty.
That’s how, with a
little mediation from Jimmy Carter, the Camp David Agreements were forged.
Israel returned the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt and, Egypt became the first Arab country to
have diplomatic relations with the Jewish state.
While Sadat may have taken the crucial first step, he paid a very high price for it.
Just three years later he was assassinated by Islamic radicals.
Even so, Egypt stuck to the terms of the Camp David agreements.
Now, you may be wondering, what was the outcome of these agreements for Israel?
Well basically two things happened: Firstly, Jewish settlements began to emerge
in the West Bank and Gaza This continues to be a sticking point and one of the main obstacles
to peace between the neighbouring states.
Secondly there was a huge increase in violence and terrorist attacks as Hezbollah and the
Palestinian Liberation Organization, under Yasir Arafat’s leadership, gathered force.
At this time both organizations were operating out of Lebanon which led to Israeli military
intervention in that country on two occasions.
The Arab-Israeli conflict did not let up.
Despite the conflicts, Jordan also recognized the Jewish state in the 1990s.
This was during the time of the Madrid and Oslo negotiations
where, progress was made towards Palestinian self-government.
Up until that point, Palestine’s power to make and implement its own policies had been
very limited in practice.
That may explain the years of prolonged tension and be the reason the conflict is yet to come
to a satisfactory resolution.
However, as we told you at the beginning of the video, now everything seems to be changing.
(COLD WAR IN A HOT REGION) To those who usually follow VisualPolitik,
this may not surprise you: The Middle East is experiencing its own version
of a cold war.
The clash between Riyadh and Tehran has reached an unprecedented level.
This Cold War has intensified since the end of 2017 when Saudi Arabia, the Arab Emirates,
Bahrain and Egypt imposed an almost total economic blockade on Qatar because of its
relations with Iran... and also for its support of the Muslim Brotherhood.
Which incidentally, is very closely linked to Hamas in Palestine.
Hamas, in turn, maintains very close relations with Qatar
Hamas Pays Gaza Clerks After Receiving $15 Million From Qatar.
But, nowadays in the Middle East, having good relations with Qatar can cost one dearly:
Egypt court sentences Mursi to 25 years in Qatar spy case.
Wait, Eqypt?
Qatar?, you’re probably thinking, “Simon, What on earth does all this have to do with
Israel?”
Well, the fact is that this Arab Cold War provides Israel with a unique opportunity..
Let’s break it down..
Israel is a declared enemy of Iran... and vice versa.
For Jerusalem, the Ayatollahs’ government is their archenemy.
And... you know the old saying…
“My enemy's enemy is my friend”)
So that means...
Suddenly Israel has become a potential ally for Ryad, a very important ally.
And there’s more.
The Arab countries want Washington's support at all costs; so here’s a question:
What would please the White House more than Arab nations becoming close to the Jewish
state?
It's a no-brainer right?
And, if we add to all this the fact that many Arab capitals are getting tired of Palestine
and of Hamas' ties with Qatar, then it looks like a done deal.
That’s why, when Australia suddenly announced that it recognized Jerusalem as the Israeli
capital, we saw reactions like this:
Bahrain FM defends Australia's decision on Jerusalem.
Aljazeera) But hold on.
Don’t think that this is just about geopolitics.
On this occasion, money also plays a key role.
Let’s take a look.
(BUSINESS AS USUAL)
We’ve mentioned this in several videos: Over the last two decades, Israel's economy
has skyrocketed.
The country has become a world leader in technological innovation and now, to top it all off, it
has discovered huge deposits of natural gas off its coast.
So now we see headlines like this: Egyptian firm to buy $15 billion of Israeli
natural gas.
Reuters) Whoa!
We’re talking about the most significant economic agreement ever achieved between these
two countries.
But Israel's economic ties with the Arab world go much further than that.
You see, while the Gulf countries may not officially recognize the Israeli State, they
do recognize their technological superiority, especially in the areas of Defense and Security.
And this has far-reaching consequences.
In the midst of the Arab Cold War, Israeli technology has become highly prized.
So much so that there are strong indications that Israel is already supplying technological
equipment to Saudi Arabia, while the Saudi secret services are sharing information with
the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad.
Relations seem to be so good that, according to US sources, Saudi Arabia may have bought
part of the Israeli missile defense system technology known as the "Iron Dome".
To be fair, Israel has denied it... but you know that, in business, discretion rules.
Especially on this occasion
“There is an alignment of Israel and other countries in the Middle East that would have
been unimaginable 10 years ago.
Certainly in my life time, I never saw anything like it and I'm the same age as the State
of Israel more or less, so it's an extraordinary thing”.
Benjamin Netanyahu.)
These days, visits from the highest Israeli authorities to many Arab countries are turning
into a common event; significant trade agreements are being signed and the security and defense
ties seen today are unprecedented.
So Arab – Israeli relations seem to be getting better and better... nods and winks between
the main players are a regular event.
One example would be the Saudi government’s decision to allow commercial flights to Israel
to cross Saudi airspace for the first time in 70 years.
Of course, all this has a downside.
Dealing with democratic countries is not the same as dealing with dictatorships that sometimes
seem stuck in the Middle Ages.
You may get nasty surprises like this:
(Israeli Software Helped Saudis Spy on Khashoggi, Lawsuit Says.
Anyway, that's how things stand today.
Everything points to the likelihood that the Arab – Israeli conflict could soon become
a thing of the past.
The only question remaining is, will we see a solution to the core Palestinian problem?
So I really hope you enjoyed this video, please hit like if you did, and don’t forget to
subscribe for brand new videos.
Don’t forget to check out our friends at the Reconsider Media Podcast - they provided
the vocals in this episode that were not mine.
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And as always, I’ll see you in the next video.