palestine

• biblical land of israel; land of israel during the period of the british mandate (before the establishment of the modern state of israel); city in texas (usa)
palestine is an area in the eastern mediterranean, parts of which lie in israel, lebanon, and jordan. the number of palestinians worldwide is estimated at between five and six million. palestine was part of the ottoman empire from 1517 to 1918. after the first world war it became a british mandate and jews from europe and elsewhere continued to immigrate in large numbers. the state of israel was created in 1948. war between israel and arab armies, including palestinian troops, followed, with about 780,000 palestinians becoming refugees. jordan occupied the west bank and egypt occupied gaza. the plo (palestine liberation organization) was founded in 1964, with the aim of establishing a state in palestine. in 1967 israel occupied the west bank and gaza strip. the intifada (uprising) by palestinians living in the west bank and gaza strip began in 1987. in 1988 the pnc (palestine national council) in exile declared an independent state of palestine, with jerusalem as its capital and yasser arafat as its president. it is a member of the arab league and is recognized by most arab states. the plo has observer status at the un and has diplomatic missions in some european and other capitals. peace talks which began in 1991 culminated in an agreement between israel and the plo in 1993. israel recognized the plo as representing the palestinian people. the plo recognized the state of israel and renounced violence. in 1994 palestinians were granted self-rule in jericho and the gaza strip, and yasser arafat returned at the head of the palestine national authority (pna).