The conflict between the State of Israel and the Palestinians is an important issue affecting American and international policy. While the United States has a longstanding policy of political, military, and economic support for Israel, it often must balance such support with its relations with Arab nations and its commitment to a Palestinian state.
The conflict dates back to early Arab opposition to Jewish national sovereignty and numerous wars fought between Israel and neighboring Arab states. However, many currently consider the central foreign policy issue to be the creation of an independent Palestinian state next to the existing Jewish state of Israel. Most of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, territories taken by Israel during the Six-Day War in 1967, are considered acceptable locations for a future Palestinian state.
Numerous efforts have been made to achieve peace through a negotiated settlement between the Israeli government and its Palestinian counterparts. Most prominently, the Oslo Accords of 1993 allowed the Palestinian National Authority to have autonomy over large parts of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, although a campaign of terrorism from Palestinian extremist groups and the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995 would derail further negotiations.
The Oslo Accords
The signing of the Oslo Accords in 1993
Current issues for negotiations include: mutual recognition, borders, terrorism and security, water rights, control of Jerusalem, Israeli settlements, Palestinian incitement, and finding a solution for Palestinian refugees from Israel's War of Independence in 1948. Another challenge is the lack of unity among Palestinians, reflected in the political struggle between Fatah, which controls the Palestinian areas of the West Bank, and the terrorist group Hamas, which has controlled the Gaza Strip since Israel's withdrawal from that territory in 2005.