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The West Bank (Template:Lang-he, Yehuda ve-Shomron, or הגדה המערבית, ha-Gada ha-Ma'aravit; Template:Lang-ar, Template:ArabDIN) is a landlocked territory on the west bank of the Jordan River in the Middle East. It was captured by Israel from Jordan in the 1967 Six-Day War and is considered by the United Nations and most countries to be under Israeli occupation. Some Israelis and various other groups prefer to refer to it as "disputed" rather than "occupied" territory. It is not currently considered under international law to be a de jure part of any state.
Located west and south-west of the Jordan River in the eastern part of the Palestine region in the Middle East, it is bordered by Israel to the west, north, and south, and by Jordan to the east.
The boundaries of the West Bank were defined by the 1949 Armistice Agreements in the aftermath of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, when it was captured and annexed by Jordan. From 1948 until 1967 the area was under Jordanian rule, though Jordan did not give up its claim to the area until 1988. The area was captured by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War, although with the exception of East Jerusalem, it was not annexed by Israel due to the concern of the overwhelming amount of Palestinian people it would control. Prior to 1948 the area was part of the British mandate of Palestine created after the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire.
40% of the area (including most of the population) is under the limited civilian jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority, while Israel maintains overall control (including over Israeli settlements, rural areas, and border regions). The population of the West Bank is predominantly Palestinian (84%) with a significant minority of Jewish settlers.
In Hebrew it is often referred to by the Biblical names of Yehuda and Shomron (sometimes abbreviated יו"ש Yosh or ש"י Shai), and some English speakers use the equivalent Judea and Samaria. The name Cisjordan is also used for the region in some languages (e.g. French, Italian, Spanish, Catalan, Hungarian). The status of East Jerusalem is controversial. Israel, having annexed it, no longer considers it part of the West Bank; however, the annexation is not recognized by any other country, nor by the United Nations. In either case, it is often treated as separate from the West Bank due to its importance.
Demographics of the West Bank
Main article: Demographics of the West BankThe West Bank is inhabited by approximately 2.8 million people, 2.4 million Palestinians, over 400,000 Israeli settlers (including those in East Jerusalem), and small ethnic groups such as the Samaritans, living in and around Nablus, numbering in the hundreds or low thousands.
The Jewish settlers in the West Bank live mostly in Israeli settlements, though populations exist in Arab neighborhoods of Jerusalem and Hebron (though in Hebron, the Israelis live separated by fences and barricades). Interactions between the two societies have generally declined due to the recent security problems, though an economic relationship often exists between adjacent Israeli settlements and Palestinian villages .
Approximately 30% of Palestinians living in the West Bank are refugees or their direct descendants, who fled or were expelled from Israel during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War (see Palestinian exodus).,,
The accuracy of the total population figures are disputed according to a study presented at The Sixth Herzliya Conference on The Balance of Israel’s National Security.
Cities in the West Bank
The most densely populated part of the region is a mountainous spine, running north-south, where the cities of East Jerusalem, Nablus, Ramallah, Bethlehem, and Hebron are located. Jenin, in the extreme north of the West Bank is on the southern edge of the Jezreel Valley, Qalqilyah and Tulkarm are in the low foothills adjacent to the Israeli coastal plain, and Jericho is situated near the Jordan River, just north of the Dead Sea.
East Jerusalem
East Jerusalem is not recognized by Israel as a separate entity, and is the location where Palestinians hope to establish their future capital.
Ramallah
Ramallah (not to be confused with the Israeli city of Ramla) is a major Palestinian cultural and economic center, and is the location of Yasser Arafat's temporary burial spot. The city is located close to the biblical Beit El, the location where Jacob had his divine revelation dream in Genesis, and the location where the Israelites built a temple to worship in the book of Kings.
Nablus
Nablus is a major city of over 100,000 Palestinians and lies between the two mountains of Ebal and Gerizim. It is the location of the Palestine Securities Exchange and is also famous for its Knafeh. The city is referred to as Shechem in Hebrew, a Biblical city.
Hebron
Hebron is a city of paramount importance to Jews, Christians, and Muslims. Prior to the 1929 Palestine riots, all three populations lived together in the city. It is the location of the Tomb of the Patriarchs, Ruth and Jesse's tombs, as well as many ancient synagogues and mosques. In the Bible, another name for Hebron was Kiryat Arba, and this name is used for the name of the large Jewish settlement adjacent to Hebron.
Bethlehem
Bethlehem, considered the birthplace of Jesus, lies just south of Jerusalem. It is the site of both the Church of the Nativity and Rachel's Tomb. There is a large population of Christians living in the city and its environs.
Jericho
Jericho, an oasis town in the Jordan Valley, is one of the oldest cities on Earth. It is mentioned in the Biblical book of Joshua as the first location that the Israelites conquered when entering the new land.
Israeli Settlements
Ma'ale Adumim (about 6 km east of Jerusalem), Modi'in Illit, Betar Illit and Ariel are the largest Israeli settlements in the territory. See also: List of cities in Palestinian Authority areas
Origin of the name
West Bank
The region did not have a separate existence until 1948–9, when it was defined by the Armistice Agreement between Israel and Jordan. The name "West Bank" was apparently first used by Jordanians at the time of their annexation of the region, and has become the most common name used in English and related languages. Prior to this usage, the region was referred to as Judea and Samaria, its long-standing name. For example, U.N. Resolution 181, The 1947 Partition Plan explicitly refers to part of the area as Judea and Samaria. For region boundaries set forth in the resolution see the text here.
Cisjordan/Transjordan
The neo-Latin name Cisjordan or Cis-Jordan (literally "on this side of the Jordan") is the usual name in most Romance languages, in part out of the logical argument that the word " bank" should not be applied to a mountainous region. The analogous Transjordan has historically been used to designate modern-day Jordan which lies on the "eastern banks" of the River Jordan. In English, the name "Cisjordan" is also used to designate the entire region between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, but such usage was extremely rare before the past few decades. In English usage the name West Bank has gone into common standard usage for the entire geo-political entity. For the low-lying area immediately west of the Jordan, the name Jordan Valley is used instead. The names for this area, Judea and Samaria, have been in continual use by Jews as well as various others since biblical times.
Political terminology
Israelis refer to the region either as a unit: "The West Bank" (Hebrew: "ha-Gada ha-Ma'aravit" "הגדה המערבית"), or as two units: Judea (Hebrew: "Yehuda" "יהודה") and Samaria (Hebrew: "Shomron" "שומרון"), after the two biblical kingdoms (the southern Kingdom of Judah and the northern Kingdom of Israel — the capital of which was, for a time, in the town of Samaria). The border between Judea and Samaria is a belt of territory immediately north of Jerusalem sometimes called the "land of Benjamin".
Status
The future status of the West Bank, together with the Gaza Strip on the Mediterranean shore, has been the subject of negotiation between the Palestinians and Israelis, although the current Road Map for Peace, proposed by the "Quartet" comprising the United States, Russia, the European Union, and the United Nations, envisions an independent Palestinian state in these territories living side by side with Israel (see also proposals for a Palestinian state).
The Palestinian people believe that the West Bank ought to be a part of their sovereign nation, and that the presence of Israeli military control is a violation of their right to self-determination. The United Nations calls the West Bank and Gaza Strip Israeli-occupied (see Israeli-occupied territories). The United States generally agrees with this definition. Many Israelis and their supporters prefer the term disputed territories, claiming it comes closer to a neutral point of view; this viewpoint is not accepted by most other countries, which consider "occupied" to be the neutral description of status.
Israel argues that its presence is justified because:
- Israel's eastern border has never been defined by anyone;
- The disputed territories have not been part of any state (Jordanian annexation was never officially recognized) since the time of the Ottoman Empire;
- According to the Camp David Accords (1978) with Egypt, the 1994 agreement with Jordan and the Oslo Accords with the PLO, the final status of the territories would be fixed only when there was a permanent agreement between Israel and the Palestinians.
Palestinian public opinion is almost unanimous in opposing Israeli military and settler presence on the West Bank as a violation of their right to statehood and sovereignty. Israeli opinion is split into a number of views:
- Complete or partial withdrawal from the West Bank in hopes of peaceful coexistence in separate states (sometimes called the "land for peace" position); (According to a 2003 poll 73% of Israelis support a peace agreement based on that principle ).
- Maintenance of a military presence in the West Bank to reduce Palestinian terrorism by deterrence or by armed intervention, while relinquishing some degree of political control;
- Annexation of the West Bank while considering the Palestinian population as (for instance) citizens of Jordan with Israeli residence permit as per the Elon Peace Plan;
- Annexation of the West Bank and assimilation of the Palestinian population to fully fledged Israeli citizens;
- Annexation of the West Bank and transfer of part or all of the Palestinian population (a 2002 poll at the height of the Al Aqsa intifada found 46% of Israelis favoring Palestinian transfer; in 2005 two polls using a different methodology put the number at approximately 30%).
History
Main article: History of the West Bank and Gaza StripThe territories now known as the West Bank were part of the Mandate of Palestine granted to Great Britain by the League of Nations after WW1. The current border of the West Bank was not a dividing line of any sort during the Mandate period. When the United Nations General Assembly voted in 1947 to partition Palestine into a Jewish State, an Arab State, and an internationally-administered enclave of Jerusalem, almost all of the West Bank was assigned to the Arab State. In the ensuing 1948 Arab-Israel war, the territory was captured by the neighboring kingdom of Jordan. It was annexed by Jordan in 1950 but this annexation was recognized only by the United Kingdom. (Pakistan is usually, but apparently falsely claimed to have recognized it also.)
The 1949 Armistice Agreements established the "Green Line" separating the territories held by Israel and Jordan. During the 1950s, there was a significant influx of Palestinian refugees and violence together with Israeli reprisal raids across the Green Line. In the Six-Day War of 1967, Israel captured this territory, and in November, 1967, UN Security Council Resolution 242 was unanimously adopted. All parties eventually accepted it and agree in its applicability to the West Bank.
In 1988, Jordan ceded its claims to the West Bank to the Palestine Liberation Organization, as "the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people."
The 1993 Oslo Accords declared the final status of the West Bank to be subject to a forthcoming settlement between Israel and the Palestinian leadership. Following these interim accords, Israel withdrew its military rule from some parts of West Bank, which was then split into:
- Palestinian-controlled, Palestinian-administered land (Area A)
- Israeli-controlled, but Palestinian-administered land (Area B)
- Israeli-controlled, Israeli-administered land (Area C)
Areas B and C constitute the majority of the territory, comprising the rural areas and the Jordan River valley region, while urban areas – where the majority of the Palestinian population resides – are mostly designated Area A.
(See Israeli settlements for a discussion of the legal standing of Israeli settlements in the West Bank.)
Transport and communication
Roads
The West Bank has 4,500 km of roads, of which 2,700 km are paved. In response to shootings by Palestinians, some of these highways, especially those leading to settlements, have been completely inaccessible to cars with Palestinian license plates, while many others are restricted only to public transportation and to Palestinians who have special permits from Israeli authorities .
Israel maintains 50+ checkpoints in the West Bank . As such, movement restrictions are also placed on main roads traditionally used by Palestinians to travel between cities, and such restrictions have been blamed for poverty and economic depression in the West Bank . Since the beginning of 2005, there has been some amelioration of these restrictions. According to recent human rights reports, "Israel has made efforts to improve transport contiguity for Palestinians travelling in the West Bank. It has done this by constructing underpasses and bridges (28 of which have been constructed and 16 of which are planned) that link Palestinian areas separated from each other by Israeli settlements and bypass roads" and by removal of checkpoints and physical obstacles, or by not reacting to Palestinian removal or natural erosion of other obstacles. "The impact (of these actions) is most felt by the easing of movement between villages and between villages and the urban centres" .
However, the obstacles encircling major Palestinian urban hubs, particularly Nablus and Hebron, have remained. In addition, the IDF prohibits Israeli citizens from entering Palestinian-controlled land (Area A).
Airports
The West Bank has three paved airports which are currently for military use only. The only civilian airport of Atarot Airport, which was open only to Israelis, was closed in 2001 due to the Intifada. Palestinians were previously able to use Israel's Ben Gurion International Airport with permission; however, Israel has discontinued issuing such permits, and Palestinians wishing to travel must cross the land border to either Jordan or Egypt in order to use airports located in these countries .
Telecom
The Israeli Bezeq and Palestinian PalTel telecommunication companies are responsible for communication services in the West Bank.
Radio and Television
The Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation broadcasts from an AM station in Ramallah on 675 kHz; numerous local privately-owned stations are also in operation. Most Palestinian households have a radio and TV, and satellite dishes for receiving international coverage are widespread. Recently, PalTel announced and has begun implementing an initiative to provide ADSL broadband internet service to all households and businesses.
Higher Education
Before 1967 there were no universities in the West Bank. There were a few lesser institutions of higher education; for example, An-Najah, which started as an elementary school in 1918, became a community college in 1963. As the Jordanian government did not allow the establishment of such universities in the West Bank, Palestinians could obtain degrees only by travelling abroad to places such as Jordan, Lebanon, or Europe.
After the region was captured by Israel in the Six-Day War, several educational institutions began offering undergraduate courses, while others opened up as entirely new universities. In total, seven Universities have been commissioned in the West Bank since 1967:
- Bethlehem University, a Roman Catholic institution partially funded by the Vatican, opened its doors in 1973 .
- In 1975, Birzeit College (located in the village of Bir Zeit north of Ramallah) became Birzeit University after adding third- and fourth-year college-level programs .
- An-Najah College in Nablus likewise became An-Najah National University in 1977 .
- The Hebron University was established in 1980
- Al-Quds University, whose founders had sought a university in Jerusalem since the early days of Jordanian rule, finally realized their goal in 1995 .
- Also in 1995, after the signing of the Oslo Accords, the Arab American University—the only private University in the West Bank—was founded in Jenin, with the purpose of providing courses according to the American system of education .
- In 2005, the College of Judea and Samaria in Ariel became a full fledged University . This move to create a university within an Israeli settlement has angered some Palestinians, although no official response was made by the Palestinian authority.
Most universities in the West Bank have politically active student bodies, and elections of student council officers are normally along party affiliations. Although the establishment of the universities was initially allowed by the Israeli authorities, some were sporadically ordered closed by the Israeli Civil Administration during the 1970s and 1980s to prevent political activities and violence against the IDF. Some universities remained closed by military order for extended periods during years immediately preceding and following the first Palestinian Intifada, but have largely remained open since the signing of the Oslo Accords despite the advent of the Al-Aqsa Intifada in 2000.
The founding of Palestinian universities has greatly increased education levels among the population in the West Bank. According to a Birzeit University study, the percentage of Palestinians choosing local universities as opposed to foreign institutions has been steadily increasing; as of 1997, 41% of Palestinians with bachelor degrees had obtained them from Palestinian institutions . According to UNESCO, Palestinians are one of the most highly educated groups in the Middle East "despite often difficult circumstances" . The literacy rate among Palestinians in the West Bank (and Gaza) (89%) is third highest in the region after Israel (95%) and Jordan (90%) .
See also
- Gaza Strip
- Economy of the West Bank
- Geography of the West Bank
- Israeli West Bank barrier
- Nakba (Palestinian exodus)
- Rule of the West Bank and East Jerusalem by Jordan
- Palestine
- Israeli Settlements
External links
- West Bank from the CIA World Factbook
- Palestine Facts & Info from Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs
- The Legal Status of Palestine Under International Law (Supports Palestinian claims)
- United Nations - Question of Palestine
- Disputed Territories: Forgotten Facts about the West Bank and Gaza Strip - from the Israeli government
- Large map of West Bank (1992)
- A series of geopolitical maps of the West Bank
- "American Thinker" opinion article which disputes some of the data in this article
- 1988 "Address to the Nation" by King Hussein of Jordan Ceding Jordanian Claims to the West Bank to the PLO
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