Israel/Palestine Part 1

So, what's going on in the middle east? I've been fairly ignorant about world affairs. I've been trying to educate myself recently, but if you know more about this than me, please enlighten me. What follows is my understanding of the ancient history of the Israel/Palestine conflict. I will add more in future.

It all started when a group of Hebrews moved into Israel/Palestine area somewhere around 3,200 years ago, driving out the Canaanites (Phoenicians). The Canaanites tried to force the Hebrews back out again soon after, but were defeated. Various other tribes were in the area, including later on the Philistines moving in from the south. Later the Hebrews wrote down that god told them they could have the land of Canaan, and they thereafter believed they had a divine right to take this land and hold it forever.

The family groups of the Hebrews eventually joined together for mutual strength, forming themselves into a kingdom under King Saul ben Kish, then King David, and then his son Solomon, who built a fancy temple in Jerusalem. After Solomon's death (around 926 BCE), Israel split into two kingdoms: Israel in the north and Judea in the south.

The nearby Babylonians and Assyrians were growing stronger and about 200 years after Solomon's dealth, Israel was conquered by the Assyrians, who were in turn conquered by the Babylonians, who also took over Judea. During this period (up to 200 years), many Jews fled to other parts in Europe. Others were expelled or taken into slavery by the Babylonians and Assyrians, particularly the nobility who they feared might form a focal point for an uprising. Many Jews still remained in the area.

By about 550 BCE, the Persian empire overthrew the Babylonians, and allowed many Jews to return to the area, and allowed them to rebuild Solomon's temple in Jerusalem. The Jews were allowed to freely practice their religion, although the area was a province of Persia. Some of the books of the old testament were written around this time.

Around 331 BCE, the Persian empire fell to Alexander the Great, and with no resistance from the Jews, they were allowed to stay. After his death, the rulers of the areas changed hands numerous times. Eventually, in 63 BCE, the area became part of the Roman empire, and was made a Roman province by Caesar Augustus in 6 BCE.

The Romans weren't particularly tolerant of Jewish religious practices. For instance, after his death Julius Caesar was proclaimed a god and Augustus was known as the son of god (although he was actually Julius' nephew). In 39, Caligula declared himself a god while he was still alive, and ordered that statues be build to him and that he be worshipped, something the Jews refused to do. Eventually, in 66, there was a Jewish revolt, which the Romans violently put down. This lasted several years, and in 70, the Romans destroyed the second temple in Jerusalem. Thousands of Jews were killed, thousands more were dispersed as slaves around the Roman empire, and many more fled into Iraq and other areas around the mediterranean. The Romans did allow some Jews to stay in the area, but dispersed through the countryside, and especially not in Jerusalem. They renamed the whole province Syria Palaestina.

Stay tuned for the next installment