How Political Identities Work

1947 The United Nations votes in favor of two states, an Arab and a Jewish one, which does not in-clude the Gaza Strip. 1948 The State of Israel is declared. Battles erupt in the south between Egyptian and Israeli forces. Thousands of Palestinians flee and settle in the Gaza Strip. The Strip's population increases more than threefold. 1949 Following the signing of the armistice, the Gaza area comes under Egyptian military rule. Egypt proclaims the Strip held in trust for the Palestinians. The residents of Gaza are not given Egyptian citizenship. 1967 Israel captures the Gaza Strip during the Six Day War. The United Nations Security Council passes Resolution 242, calling for the withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from territories occupied in the war in exchange for an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict. 1970 Kfar Darom- a Jewish community in the Strip evacuated in 1948- is re-established as a para-military Nahal outpost. 1987 First intifada breaks out in Gaza City. Hamas founded in Gaza. 1993 Oslo Accords signed between Israel and the Palestinian Liberation Organization. End of intifada declared. Palestinian Authority created. 1994 Hamas and Islamic Jihad begin suicide bombings. Under the Gaza-Jericho Agreement Israeli mili-tary forces withdraw from Gaza and Jericho, and transfer authority to the Palestinian Authority. IDF forces leave most of the Strip's Palestinian inhabited areas. Israel maintains control of the settlements, borders, and other strategic points. 1995 Israel surrounds the Strip with a security fence. Israel and the Palestinian Authority sign the Is-raeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Prime Minister Yitzha