An American presidential getaway in Maryland, U.S. In the context of the Arab-Israeli conflict, two significant events took place at Camp David, often referred to as Camp David I and Camp David II. At Camp David I (September 1978), Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin reached a bilateral agreement, with assistance and pressure from American President Jimmy Carter. The agreement stipulated that Israel would return the Sinai Peninsula in exchange for recognition from and peace with Egypt, thereby establishing a precedent for "land-for-peace" negotiations. In addition, the agreement called for talks between Israel, Jordan, Egypt and Palestinian representatives to create a framework for negotiations regarding the status of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. This element of the agreement was never implemented. Camp David II refers to meetings between Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and American President Bill Clinton in the summer of 2000 over "final status" issues of the Oslo Process, such as the settlements, Jerusalem, Palestinian statehood, the rights of Palestinian refugees, water, and final borders. Negotiations broke down and no agreement was reached. The collapse of the talks is commonly seen as being a major factor in the outbreak of the Second Intifada, which occurred soon thereafter. For more on Camp David I, see "Carter's Greatest Legacy: The Camp David Negotiations," Betty Glad, PBS. For more on Camp David II, see "Camp David: The Tragedy of Errors," Robert Malley and Hussein Agha, New York Review of Books, Aug 9 2001.
Roadblocks or military installations used by military forces to control and restrict pedestrian movement and vehicle traffic. The Israeli army makes widespread use of checkpoints in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) in order to control the movement of Palestinians between Palestinian cities within the OPT the and between the OPT and Israel. Checkpoints can be large, semi-permanent structures resembling border crossings, such as the Qalandia checkpoint between Ramallah and Jerusalem or the Hawara checkpoint, formerly between Nablus and Ramallah, or smaller barriers on roadways or at the entrance of Palestinian villages. There are also temporary checkpoints, often referred to as "flying" checkpoints. There have been (or currently still are) checkpoints at the entry and exit points of most large Palestinian populated areas in the West Bank, on every major road within the West Bank, and at every crossing point between Israel and the OPT, in addition to many smaller checkpoints within the West Bank. The Israeli military forces at a checkpoint exercise total control over movement through the checkpoint, including the authority to check the identity papers of every driver, passenger and/or pedestrian who wishes to pass through. At certain checkpoints, soldiers refuse passage to all who have not obtained Israeli-issued permits. Palestinians and Israeli observers cite frequent incidences of delay and harassment of Palestinian civilians at checkpoints, regardless of the status of their papers. According to the Israeli Army, a checkpoint is a "security mechanism to prevent the passage of terrorists from Palestinian Authority (PA) territory into Israel while maintaining both Israeli and Palestinian daily routine," used to "facilitate rapid passage of Palestinians while providing maximal security to Israeli citizens." Palestinians consider the checkpoints a major obstacle to daily life as the checkpoints prevent freedom of movement in their territory. For facts, figures and maps, see Machsom Watch's website and "West Bank Movement and Access," UNOCHA, June 2010. See also infographic "Born at Qalandia Checkpoint," Visualizing Palestine.
Located in the Christian Quarter of Jerusalem's Old City, the site is believed to mark the hill of crucifixion and the tomb of Jesus' burial. The present church dates from the time of Crusader rule, re-consecrated in 1149 CE, and is a major pilgrimage center for Christians around the world. See the church's official website.
Located in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, the church is considered by many to mark the birthplace of Jesus and is a primary Christian pilgrimage destination. This building is the oldest standing church in the Holy Land, and oldest Christian church in daily use. On April 2, 2002, Israeli forces entered Bethlehem as part of "Operation Defensive Shield." As fighting erupted between Palestinian gunmen and the Israeli army, a group of civilians and militants, including 13 who Israel considered to be on their most-wanted list, took refuge in the Church of the Nativity. The Israeli Army laid siege to the church, surrounding it and engaging in occasional skirmishes with militants inside the church compound. The standoff, which lasted 39 days, ended with 13 militants sent into exile, 26 gunmen taken to Gaza, and 85 policemen, local civilians and international peace activists released. In 2012, the church became UNESCO's first World Heritage Site to be listed under the name Palestine and is also on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Danger. See "Church siege ending after 39 days," The Guardian, May 10, 2002; and see information about The Freedom Theatre's 2015 play "The Siege." See also UNESCO's website; and "UNESCO: Nativity Church heritage site in "Palestine" Tovah Lazaroff, The Jerusalem Post, June 29, 2012.
Established by Israel in 1981 by military order as a part of the Israeli Defense Ministry, the Civil Administration currently oversees all civil matters for Jewish Israeli settlers and Palestinian residents in Area C of the West Bank, as well as some administrative matters for Palestinians living in other areas of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Before the Oslo Accords, the Civil Administration was the governing body in all the Occupied Palestinian Territories; since 1994, most of its functions have been transferred to the Palestinian Authority for civil matters in Areas A and B. Today, the Civil Administration primarily is responsible for issuing travel permits from the West Bank and Gaza to Israel and within the West Bank, work permits for Palestinians entering Israel to work, in addition to any kind of construction permits or demolitions in Israeli settlements and on Palestinian land in Area C. For more on the Civil Administration's construction permit and house demolition practices, see "Israel: Halt Home Demolitions," Human Rights Watch, June 23, 2011.
An area of land in the West Bank that the Israeli military declares off-limits to anyone but the Israeli military and those they allow to remain in the area, or those with permits issued by the Israeli authorities. These zones often encompass or are located near the Separation Barrier, Jewish Israeli settlements and/or Israeli military outposts. The Israeli military can also declare an area to be a Closed Military Zone for a short period of time, which often happens in villages/cities/areas where Palestinian protests are taking place, at Israeli military checkpoints and in areas where altercations have happened between Jewish Israeli settlers and Palestinians. See "Access Denied: Israeli measure to deny Palestinians access to land around settlements," B'Tselem, September 2008. For examples of temporary closed military zones, see "Hebron declared a closed military zone," Efrat Weiss, Ynet News, January 17, 2006; and "IDF declares West Bank protest villages a 'closed military zone'," Amira Hass, Haaretz, March 15, 2010.
Closures are imposed by the Israeli army by and large on Palestinians in order to restrict movement in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.These restrictions include physical structures such as military checkpoints, and Israeli-enforced orders such as closed military zones and curfews. Israel says that closures are necessary to prevent attacks against Israeli citizens, while Palestinians point to the illegality and discrimination of such closures and their damaging effect on normal life and movement. See "West Bank Closure count and analysis, occupied Palestinian territory," United Nations Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Sept 2006.
Frequently used to describe Palestinians who work for Israeli intelligence agencies in gathering information about other Palestinians. Israel often provides these Palestinians with financial compensation, travel privileges and/or protection. The reasons motivating Palestinian collaboration with Israel differ, but many Palestinians have become collaborators as a result of blackmail tactics and other forms of pressure by Israeli operatives. In several cases, Palestinian militant groups have killed Palestinians suspected of being collaborators. Many collaborators have moved to live inside Israel because of fear for their lives. See "The Phenomenon of Collaborators in Palestine." PASSIA, August 22, 2011.
(Maki is a Hebrew Acronym for "HaMiflega HaKomunistit HaYisraelit" or "Communist Party of Israel"). Founded in 1948, this Israeli political party developed from the remnants of the Communist Party of pre-1948 Palestine. It has both Jewish and Palestinian membership, although the latter more than the former. It was one of the first Israeli groups to establish contact abroad with individuals active in the Palestinian resistance and to actively recruit Palestinian citizens of Israel as members. The Communist Party of Israel held seats in the Israeli Knesset until 1974 when the party split, leading to the formation of the New Communist List (Rakah). Rakah became the leading faction within the coalition of Hadash (the Democratic Front for Peace and Equality), which has held seats in the parliament since 1974. In 1989, Rakah changed its name to Maki, thus taking back the name of the original Communist Party of Israel. See the party's website.