Jewish History

     The Jews are a people with a multitude of problems.  From the 
Israelite tribes to prosperous modern day Israel, bigotry towards the Jews 
has been greatly evident.  The Jewish race has acted as the scapegoat for 
many crisis throughout history including the black plague which swept 
across Europe during the 14th century.  The establishment of Israel was the 
climax of what the Jewish people had been striving to obtain for centuries. 
This, however, led to many major conflicts between Israel and the Arab
countries.  One of the most meaningful of these conflicts was the Six-Day 
War.  Earlier Jewish events such as the holocaust have also had dramatic 
effects on world history.
     For twelve years following 1933 the many Jews in Germany were 
persecuted by the Nazis, who sought to blame German ruination on the Jews. 
It began with the boycotting and vandalization of Jewish businesses.  By
1939, Jews were no longer citizens, could not attend public schools, engage 
nearly any business or profession, own any land, associate with any 
non-Jew, or visit public places such as parks and museums.  The victories 
of the German armies in the early years of World War II brought the 
majority of European Jews under the Nazis.  The Jews were deprived of human 
rights.  At first, the Jewish people were forced to live in Ghettos which 
were separated from the main city.  Then they were moved to "Concentration 
Camps", where Hitler's plan of genocide was carried out very efficiently.  
The total number of Jews killed has been estimated at 5,750,000.
     In Warsaw, where approximately 400,000 Jews had once lived, the Jewish 
population was reduced to 60,000.  They, nearly unarmed, resisted the 
German deportation order and had held back the regular German troops 
equipped with flame throwers, armored cars, and tanks for nearly a month.  
     The horrific events of the holocaust have resulted in many problems, 
but also in giving the Jews more world recognition. After World War II and 
the holocaust, the number of Jewish followers had greatly declined, and the 
Jewish people still had problems finding jobs; they essentially had to 
start their lives over.  Almost all of them had lost a close relative or a 
friend to the gas chambers of the Nazi concentration camps.  This put a
psychological strain on Jewish survivors as many no longer had family and 
friends with them for support.  However, not all of the results of the 
holocaust have been bad.  This event has awakened the world to the needs of 
the Jewish people; it has given them political power and justification for 
some of their actions.  
     In May of 1945, the end of World War II was seen.  Organized Judaism 
in the European continent was damaged beyond repair.  The Jews were only 
able to concentrate on the preservation of Israel and on bringing Nazi war 
criminals to trial.
     There is now a day of commemoration, Holocaust Day, observed in Israel 
and elsewhere on Nisan (April) 19 and 20.  These dates are considered the 
anniversary of the beginning of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.    
     The creation of Israel as a Jewish state on the former territory of 
Palestine was the central political issue in the Middle East for many years 
after World War II.  A movement was established to reestablish the Jewish 
national state of Israel.  This movement was called Zionism.  The Zionists 
were full of energy, enthusiasm, and skill which led to remarkable
accomplishments.  Israel was a modern European state in an underdeveloped 
area.  This was a source of both many problems and many achievements.   
     The Jews received vast amounts of financial and military support from 
Western governments.  The Israelis also benefitted from a highly trained 
and motivated population which created a unique nation-state.
     It had taken the Zionists seventy years to purchase 7 percent of 
Palestine, but many of the nations of world felt that they owed something
to the Jews to compensate for holocaust.  The UN responded to this feeling 
by offering the Zionists another 50 percent of Palestine. This area was 
some of the most fertile land in the Middle East; it included the citrus 
groves on which many of the Arabs depended for their living.  Because of 
this, the partition plan was objected to by all of the Arab and Palestinian 
Arab governments.  However, the Zionists accepted the plan and were 
supported by many Western nations.  They were, however, upset that 
Jerusalem was excluded from the Jewish state.  
     The formation of this new state in Palestine was greatly important to 
both Jewish history and world history.  It had given some Jews a place to 
seek refuge from the Nazi persecutions.  However, after having fifty 
percent of Palestine given to Israel, tension between the countries was 
very high, and sometimes became violent.  The Jewish army, called Haganah 
(defense), was formed to protect Israel from Arab attacks.  To this day, 
that formation has had many effects on all of the Middle Eastern countries, 
and on other countries throughout the world who have tried to be 
peacemakers.
     The Six-Day War of 1967 was caused by Egypt's closure of the Strait of 
Tiran, Israel's main link to the Indian Ocean.  This war was focused on the 
issue of Israel's legitimacy.  Withdrawal of UN troops after May 16 had 
signified to the Israelis that they were responsible for their own defense. 
War broke out in June.  During the war the Jews pushed Jordan's boundaries 
back to the Jordan river, regaining control of Jerusalem.  Syria was also 
pushed back by a frontal assault through northeast Israel's that soon 
threatened Damascus.
     The United Nation security council executed a cease-fire on June 11th. 
 By this time the Arab states had lost much territory, a lot of their 
productive capacity, and large amounts of revenue.  Their mental and 
political defeat set the tone for the events of the following years.  The 
defeat of the Arab governments also gave power to the Palestine guerrilla 
movement.
     The Wailing Wall is one of Judaism's most honored holy places. 
According to the original United Nation's partition it was located in 
Jordan.  The Six Day war returned it to the Israelis. 
     As is clearly visible from these few examples, modern Judaism has had 
a very traumatic history.  These, however, are only a small piece of all of 
modern Judaism's problems.  War and terrorism are still present, and 
continue to raise tension between Israel and the Arab countries.  During 
the Persian Gulf War of 1991, Israel was continuously bombed by Iraq.  If 
Israel had fought back, many more Arab countries would probably have joined 
with Iraq to eliminate the common enemy.  Even with advances such as the 
Middle East Peace process, it appears terrorism and differences in religion 
will always create tension and even war between these countries.
 


 


Bibliography

1. Holocaust : the Jewish tragedy
   Gilbert,Martin, 
   COLLI 1986

2. Israel & the Arabs: The June 1967 War
   Facts on file, INC.  New York, N.Y.
   1968

3. The Holocaust in Historical Perspective
   Yehuda Bauer
   University of Washington Press
   1978

---------------------------------------------------------------