Eastern Med – Israel: Formation of a Country

1. Eastern Med – Israel: Formation of a Country • The Hebrews (or Israelites), the ancestors of the Jews, first established the kingdom of Israel about__________ years ago • Romans forced many Jews to leave the region and renamed it ____________________ in 135 AD • _______________ conquered Palestine in the mid-600s. However, from the late 1000s to the late 1200s, ___________________ from Europe launched a series of invasions of Palestine called the ___________________ • In time the Crusaders were pushed out of the area. Palestine then became part of the Ottoman Empire. After World War I, it came under ________________ control. • In 1947 the United Nations voted to divide Palestine, then under British control, into _____________ and ___________ states, and a year later created the State of _______________. • Arab armies then invaded Israel, but were _____________.After Israel's victory, many Palestinians ________ to neighboring Arab countries. Israel and Arab countries have fought each other in several wars since then. Disputes between the two sides continue today. Eastern Med – Israel Today • Israel has a prime minister and a parliament—the _________________ • Israel’s government has built a strong __________________ -- At age 18 most Israeli men and women must serve at least _____________________ • Israel’s economy is _______________ and ____________________. Items like high-technology equipment and cut diamonds are important exports.

2. Eastern Med – Israel Today (continued) • Most of Israel’s population lives in ____________ -- About _____ percent of Israel’s population is _____________. The rest of the country’s people are mostly Arab • Because Judaism is a way of life, ____________________________ address every aspect of daily life, including what Jews should eat. • About ____________ Israeli Jews live in rural settlements. Each settlement, or ________________, is a large farm where people share everything in common. Eastern Med – The Palestinian Territories • In 1967 during the _______________________ Israel captured areas from Jordan and Egypt inhabited by Palestinian Arabs: Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem. Since then, Jews and Arabs have fought over the right to live in these areas.  • GAZA: small, crowded piece of coastal land where more than a million Palestinians live. The area has almost ____________________. However, citrus fruit is grown in irrigated fields. ________________________ is a problem for the Palestinians living in Gaza. Many travel to _____________ each day to work. • WEST BANK: population of about 2.4 million. It is mostly _________, but the territory has three large cities. Economy is mostly based on _________________. Farmers rely on irrigation to grow their crops. • Thousands of ________ have moved into settlements there. The Palestinians consider the Jewish settlements an _____________ of their landand causes tension and violence. • EAST JERUSALEM: Control of Jerusalem is a difficult and often emotional question. Palestinians claim East Jerusalem as their ______________. However, Israel ________________ East Jerusalem in 1980 and moved its capital there from Tel Aviv.