Extra!:
Gaza
CNN Student News -- Use this explainer to help students understand the history of Gaza and why it has been at the center of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Background Gaza lies on the Mediterranean coast, where Egypt and Israel meet.This territory covers 146 square miles - about twice the size of Washington, D.C.The economy is based on agriculture; nearly three-fourths of the land area is under cultivation.The chief crop, citrus fruit, is raised on irrigated lands and is exported to Europe and other markets under an arrangement with Israel. Wheat and olives are also produced.There are currently 21 Jewish settlements in Gaza.There are a total of about 9,000 Jewish settlers and around 1.3 million Palestinians in Gaza.Brief Timeline In ancient times, the pharaohs of Egypt ruled Gaza. Later, at various times, the region was controlled by Philistines, Jews, Arabs and Turks.The territory was ruled by the Ottoman Empire until the end of World War I, when it became part of the League of Nations.1920-1948 -- Gaza is part of the British-ruled mandate of Palestine.1948 - Egypt gains control of the region during the Arab-Israeli war.1956 - Gaza is briefly taken by Israel.June 1967 - Israel takes control of Gaza after the Six-Day War.1967-1994 - Israeli troops occupy Gaza.1988 - The PLO declares an independent Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza.1993 - Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) sign agreements that lead to the withdrawal of Israeli troops from most of the Gaza in 1994.1996 - Palestinians in Gaza and parts of the West Bank elect a legislature and a president to make laws and administer these areas.2000 - Israel and the Palestinians hold peace talks but fail to resolve key disagreements.February 2, 2004 - Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon announces a plan to remove all Jewish settlements and Israeli troops from Gaza by the end of 2005.Details of the Disengagement Plan Israel plans to remove Jewish settlers, and the Israeli troops who guard them, from Gaza and parts of the West Bank by mid-August, leaving "no basis for the claim that the Gaza Strip is occupied territory." After Israel evacuates the settlements, an international body will to take possession of them, determine their value, and facilitate a transfer of the lands to the Palestinians. Israel could be reimbursed for the value of the land.Israeli forces will be out of Gaza and "redeploy outside the territory of the Strip." Israel will "supervise and guard the external envelope on land, will maintain exclusive control in the air space of Gaza, and will continue to conduct military activities in the sea space of the Gaza Strip." Israel would also maintain a military presence along the border between Gaza and Egypt.The withdrawal plan has generated anger among Israeli settlers and their supporters, who have staged protests and scuffled with police and Palestinians in recent weeks.The Israeli government has said the disengagement plan will redraw the landscape of the Middle East, allowing the peace process with the Palestinian Authority to proceed.However, Israeli Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu resigned from the Cabinet just minutes before it approved the plan to withdraw all troops and settlements from Gaza. Netanyahu said, "We can see in Gaza ... an Islamic terror base being established. The pullout will make Israel less, not more, secure," he said, adding that "the idea of disengagement has been tried and failed before, and it will fail again."(Source: CNN Library)
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