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Middle East Conflict Explainer
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Israel-Hamas War The Israelis and the Palestinians: A Century of Conflict
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Middle East Conflict Explainer

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Article History

To help put the current Middle East conflict in context, here are Britannica resources that readers should find useful:

  • One-state solution: The idea of resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with a single state.
  • Two-state solution: History and context for a framework of peace between Israel and Palestine.
  • Israel-Hamas War: Summary of the Hamas attack of Oct. 7, 2023, and subsequent war.
  • Abraham Accords: Agreements to normalize relations between Israel and Arab neighbors.
  • Israeli-Saudi peace deal: Anticipated agreement between Saudi Arabia and Israel, maybe now in doubt.

  •  Arab-Israeli wars: Brief summary (with links to more comprehensive articles).
  • Gaza Strip: Comprehensive geographical and historical recounting of the region.
  • Hamas: Origins and actions of the group.
  • Hezbollah: Militant Lebanese group to Israel’s north.
  • Palestinian Liberation Army (PLO): Umbrella term for group that claims to represent the world’s Palestinian populations.
  • Israel Defense Forces (IDF): Israel’s national military.
  • West Bank: Historical and geographical context for the disputed territory.
  • Israel: Historical and geographical context for the country.
  • Iran: Historical and geographical context for the country.
  • Palestine: Historical and geographical context for the region.
  • Benjamin Netanyahu: prime minister of Israel.
  • Camp David Accords: President Jimmy Carter’s Britannica essay on the peace deal between Israel and Egypt (1978)
  • Oslo Accords: Agreement between Israel and the PLO to reach a two-state solution.
  • Hayat Tahrir al-Sham: Militant Islamist group in Syria that led the ouster of Pres. Bashar al-Assad in Syria
  • Bashar al-Assad: President of Syria, ousted in 2024 in Syrian Civil War  
  • Syrian Civil War: Summary of conflict that lasted from 2011-24
  • Yemeni Civil War: Summary of devastating conflict that began in 2014.
  • Houthi movement: A main factor of the Yemeni Civil War.
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