Palestinian History: The Timeline of Colonization & Resistance

1937

Peel Commission Partition Plan

The British Peel Commission proposed partitioning Palestine, allocating:

  • 33% of land to Jewish settlers (who were 30% of population and owned 6% of land)
  • 67% to Palestinian Arabs (70% of population)
  • Forced transfer of 225,000 Palestinians from proposed Jewish state
Peel Partition Map

The partition plan laid groundwork for ethnic cleansing by treating Palestinian majority as secondary.

1947

UN Partition Plan (Resolution 181)

United Nations General Assembly Resolution 181:

  • Awarded 55% of Palestine to Jewish state despite:
  • Jews owning only 7% of land
  • Being 33% of population
  • Palestinians rejected the plan as illegitimate colonial imposition
"The partition decision was made without consulting the native majority... This was European colonial powers deciding the fate of indigenous people." - Historian Ilan Pappé
1948

The Nakba ("Catastrophe")

Zionist militias systematically expelled Palestinians through:

  • 750,000+ Palestinians made refugees
  • 531 villages completely destroyed
  • 70+ massacres (Deir Yassin, Tantura, etc.)
  • Israel established on 78% of historic Palestine

Eyewitness Accounts:

Walid Khalidi
"In Lydda, the Israeli army forced 50,000 Palestinians to march in summer heat without water. My aunt died clutching her infant - both skeletons were found years later."
- Prof. Walid Khalidi, survivor
Edward Said
"As a 12-year-old in Jerusalem, I watched Zionist forces shell our neighborhood. We became permanent refugees overnight."
- Edward Said, literary scholar
1967

Naksa (Six-Day War) & Ongoing Occupation

Israel captured remaining Palestinian territories:

  • West Bank (including East Jerusalem)
  • Gaza Strip
  • Syrian Golan Heights
  • 300,000+ new Palestinian refugees

Israel Immediately Imposed:

✓ Military Law #378 (indefinite detention without trial)

✓ Order #101 (banning political gatherings)

✓ Settlement construction began within months

1982

Sabra and Shatila Massacre

September 16-18, 1982 in Beirut's refugee camps:

  • 3,500 Palestinians slaughtered by Phalange militia
  • Under Israeli Defense Minister Ariel Sharon's command
  • Israeli forces provided flares and sealed exits
  • Documented cases of rape, mutilation, and live burials
Massacre Evidence

Photos smuggled out by journalists showed piles of bodies in the camps.

1987

First Intifada (Uprising)

Popular resistance featured:

  • Stone-throwing youth vs. occupation forces
  • General strikes and civil disobedience
  • 1,200+ Palestinians killed
  • 160,000+ imprisoned (including children)
"Israeli soldiers broke both arms of my 12-year-old son for throwing stones. They said 'Now let's see how you throw stones.'"
- Mother from Jabaliya refugee camp
2000

Second Intifada: Al-Aqsa Uprising

Triggered by Ariel Sharon's provocative visit to Al-Aqsa Mosque compound:

  • 3,000+ Palestinians killed
  • Collective punishment: Home demolitions, curfews
  • Israel reoccupied West Bank cities
  • Construction of Apartheid Wall began (2002)

Israeli Military Actions:

✓ 28,000 homes destroyed or damaged

✓ 400,000 olive/agricultural trees uprooted

2005

Gaza Blockade Begins

After Hamas election victory, Israel imposed:

  • Land, sea and air siege
  • Banned imports of: medicine, construction materials, fuel
  • Restricted fishing zone to 3 nautical miles
  • Created "no-go zones" covering 35% of Gaza's farmland

UN predicted Gaza would be "uninhabitable by 2020" due to blockade. Conditions have only worsened since.

2008

Operation Cast Lead

22-day assault on Gaza:

  • 1,400+ Palestinians killed (300+ children)
  • Use of white phosphorus on civilians
  • 4,000+ homes destroyed
  • UN schools and shelters bombed
Cast Lead survivor
"They bombed our apartment building without warning. I lost my parents and two sisters. The white phosphorus burned my brother's face off."
- Ahmed, 14-year-old survivor
2014

Operation Protective Edge

51-day assault on Gaza:

  • 2,200+ killed (70% civilians)
  • 18,000 homes destroyed
  • 500,000 displaced
  • Deliberate targeting of UN shelters and hospitals
"The Israeli military's actions in Gaza amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity."
- UN Human Rights Council report
2018

Great March of Return

Peaceful protests at Gaza fence:

  • 223 protesters killed by snipers
  • Including 46 children, 2 journalists, 3 paramedics
  • 8,000+ wounded by live fire
  • Israeli soldiers documented celebrating shootings
Great March of Return

Protesters were shot while praying, running away, or helping wounded.

2021

Unity Intifada & Sheikh Jarrah

Nationwide uprising against ethnic cleansing:

  • Triggered by forced evictions in Sheikh Jarrah, Jerusalem
  • 256 Palestinians killed in Gaza bombing
  • Historic unity between Palestinians in 1948 lands, West Bank, and Gaza
  • Global #SaveSheikhJarrah movement
Sheikh Jarrah family
"They want to take our home that we've lived in since 1956. My grandfather was a refugee from Haifa. Where should we go now?"
- Muna al-Kurd, Sheikh Jarrah resident
2023

Al-Aqsa Flood & Gaza Genocide

After Hamas operation on October 7:

  • 35,000+ Palestinians killed (70% women/children)
  • 80,000+ wounded (many with life-changing injuries)
  • All universities and hospitals destroyed
  • 90% of population displaced
  • Deliberate starvation and disease as weapons
"This is a textbook case of genocide unfolding before our eyes."
- UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese
2024

ICJ Genocide Case

South Africa vs. Israel at International Court of Justice:

  • Case documents genocidal intent by Israeli officials
  • ICJ issued provisional measures ordering Israel to prevent genocide
  • Israel continues violations despite court order
  • Case ongoing as of 2024
ICJ Hearing

First time Israel faces legal accountability for its crimes at international court.

UN Documentation of Israeli Crimes

UN Resolution 194 (1948)

Affirms Palestinian right of return

Security Council 242 (1967)

Demands Israel withdraw from occupied territories

Security Council 338 (1973)

Calls for implementation of 242

General Assembly 3236 (1974)

Reaffirms Palestinian self-determination

Security Council 465 (1980)

Condemns Israeli settlements as illegal

General Assembly ES-10/L.22 (2017)

Condemns US Jerusalem recognition

Human Rights Council 43 (2020)

Documents war crimes in Gaza

General Assembly ES-10/L.25 (2023)

Calls for immediate ceasefire in Gaza

Documented Massacres Against Palestinians

Deir Yassin victims

Perpetrators: Irgun & Lehi militias

  • Systematic house-to-house killings
  • Women raped before execution
  • Bodies dumped in wells
  • Survivors paraded through Jerusalem as "prisoners of war"

Zionist leader David Ben-Gurion used this massacre to terrorize Palestinians into fleeing.

"The massacre was deliberately exaggerated to spread panic among Palestinians and make them flee."
- Yehoshua Zettler, Irgun commander
Tantura mass grave

Perpetrators: Alexandroni Brigade

  • Men separated and executed on beach
  • Mass graves later found under parking lot
  • Israeli historian Teddy Katz documented testimonies in 2000
  • Haifa University tried suppressing the research
"They took the men in groups, shot them, then threw them in the well. The women were screaming but the soldiers just laughed."
- Tantura survivor testimony
Sabra and Shatila

Perpetrators: Phalange militia under Israeli command

  • 3-day massacre of refugees in Beirut
  • Israeli forces provided flares and sealed exits
  • Pregnant women cut open, children executed
  • Ariel Sharon found "personally responsible" by Israeli inquiry
"The Israelis knew what was happening. They lit up the camp with flares so the killers could see better at night."
- Robert Fisk, journalist who documented the massacre

Palestinian Land Loss (1917-2024)

Palestine Map
Palestinian Land
Israeli Control
Illegal Settlements

94%

Historic Palestine controlled by Israel

531

Villages destroyed since 1948

7M

Palestinian refugees worldwide